I have the opportunity to purchase a one owner, no accident, mint condition (really, it's CLEAN) 2010 Fit Sport automatic for $4700.00. In today's market, it's an ok price. My concern is that it has 203,000 miles on it. I will ask about the service history before I commit one way or the other. Even if it comes with a detailed history that looks complete, is it just too many miles to take a chance on? Any input would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

It sort of depends what you want from a car and what your willingness to invest your time or money is.

Hondas in general and GE8 Fits in particular are pretty reliable and many go well past 200K miles. Having said that, a 15-year-old car with 200K miles is always a risk. Obviously knowing the service history will help your decision, but in my mind this is the sort of purchase that is much safer/smarter for the DIY mechanic who is able to go through the car top-to-bottom to confirm all systems.

Finally, if this is an OH (or other salt state) car your first step should be to look very carefully for rust.

 

Solid advice. The vehicle shows zero rust, but I have yet to see the undercarriage. I'll definitely be checking that out before moving on it. Also, at 200,000+ I'm figuring that I'll run into some repair costs sooner than later. My big concern is whether or not the trannys (automatic) are prone to failure in higher mileage Fits....

 

I haven't heard much trouble regarding the auto or manual transmissions. For those who never serviced the fluid, it may benefit from servicing. These cars seem to go out of service totalled more often than mechanically disabled. The big hits are rust (the cv shafts, for which there was a recall, would snap due to corrosion occurring within/under a vibration dampener on the original design shafts.)
Spark plugs may or may not shoot out -- factory torque spec was too low, and the plugs would have benefitted from more threading. Valves need maintaining, and shocks/struts may well be worn out.

At the given mileage, I'd like to think I'd be doing all the maintenance, changing all the fluids, and replacing all the worn/ripped steering bushings. Maybe engine and trans mounts, too, if you could find stock ones for a reasonable price. The original design is fantastic at isolating engine vibration.

If it has an aftermarket intake, ditch it for stock or switch it over to (I think) an hps short ram. Check your brakes, including the rear drums. Check the oil for metal shavings, or easier yet, check the oil and coolant fill caps for cross-contamination goop.

Take your pointer finger and go along the body panel gaps looking for irregularities between doors and the body. Factory undamaged means you won't find any. Oh, and consider getting the windshield resealed, or doing it yourself.

If you're in a climate where you may want an engine heater, do know that installing it is a b*tch due to the engine block's coolant drain plug location and excessively strong threadlocker..

It's a pretty solid, practical car. Generally speaking, there's little reason for the mileage to intimidate you. You can put another 200k on it.

 

Thanks for the info!

 

I’d say go for it but just know that you have to expect things may need to be repaired or replaced due to the mileage. Good thing is that most of the items are cheap to repair or replace on this vehicle. Heck, you could probably find a cheap motor and teach yourself how to swap it in. I love this car and it will probably be passed down to my son once he gets to that age

 

Thank you!