After spending hundreds on the diagnosis, I found I the MICU on my 2009 Honda Fit, base model/manual trans needs replace and reprogram. Only problem is I cant find the exact part on ebay-TKGA110. The only thing I know to do is junk the car, which seems a crying shame. Anybody have experience hunting down this part for your Fit?
mombippy

 

Before you throw in the towel and junk your car why don't you check some wrecking yards like LKQ and buy a used one there? If you want a new one, call your local Honda dealer or check an online Honda dealer and price one there?

If you have a friend that has a shop that buys parts from dealers, see if they will help you out by getting them to order the part and get their discount- normally about 25%..

 

Run a search on car-part.com. It's a salvage yard search engine.

 

What's a MICU?

 

Multiplex Integrated Control Unit.

Controls electrical systems - lights, door locks, etc.

 

The name is an evolution from earlier "Integrated Control Unit"s which were a module snapped into the back of the cabin fuse box - integrated into the fuse box. When enough vehicle systems (engine control, transmission control, anti-lock brakes, anti-theft, gauge cluster) became computerized, it became useful to have them inter-communicate or at least share communication channels. The "Multiplex" bit appeared to indicate that the ICU now also acts as a communications hub or middle-man.

So the MICU does power-management stuff (fuse and relay box), monitors and operates body-related features (door locks, interior lights, etc), and acts as a communications hub.

 

Great information- I did a general search but the results didn’t match the exact part number for my Fit. The shop that diagnosed the parasitic drain to the MICU as the culprit said the part is no longer sold as new. I needed to narrow my search so greatly appreciate the sources mentioned here! Thanks for taking time to give some leads!

 

Oh, and the MICU and its ilk later fell under the industry-standard name "body control module". So try searching for that (especially when dealing with with salvage sources) or just the cabin fuse box.

edit: Oh jeeze. Okay, the part number is TK6, not TKG. And you will often find an extra zero on the printed part number, which doesn't exist on Honda parts listings. Most cabin fuse boxes start with 38200 (the first 5 is a sort of part-function designator), so your full part number is 38200-TK6-A11. If you scan the QR code on the label, it starts with 38200TK6A110

 

Thanks, this opens up so many more possibilities for my search! I knew there had to be the proper part somewhere out there. I think I mistyped the number on the thread, but will remind myself to be accurate in future. I am so grateful!

 

Thanks to this group, I located one part on eBay. On calling the shop, they said the problem with reprogramming the replacement MICU is that the immobilizer won’t allow the keys to be recognized. I will call a dealer for an estimate, but don’t know whether they can handle the immobilizer. My question is- can one faulty part, that isn’t the motor or transmission, cause so much difficulty and cost to replace???

 

Welcome to automobiles (and semi-trucks and tractors and on and on) in the 21st Century.

 

Lesson learned! Where is that darned time machine when you need it!

 

It got scrapped during the cash-for-clunkers program.

 

...probably due to a faulty MICU causing a parasitic drain, and in the process costing $200 for a new battery, $450 for troubleshooting a problem that would cost half the BB value to repair-and don't forget $3000 for replacing the hatchback door when trying to roll jump dead battery, instead rolling the car down my drive into a tree. Fun and games, fun and games! Thanks for your help Fitters!

 

Avoiding thousands of dollars and headaches, I landed at my local dealer whose service center- on a follow-up to first visit where they couldn’t detect a parasitic drain-did locate one in the filament of the bulb in the overhead light. Their cost was $220 and several cups of great coffee all in. Thanks for your help here!

 

Ugh. Was the dome light working (bulb not blown) when you brought it in? Because that sounds like a we-give-up-here's-your-bill situation. They don't want to admit they couldn't fix the problem, so they made something up to bill you for their time.
A parasitic-drain dome light must either have a bulb that blew in a very specific way (still conducts electricity while not producing light), or a defective dome light fixture.

 

No the bulb was not working, and after many hours at a smaller repair shop-the one that came up with the faulty MICU idea- and the dealer’s first try to replace a fuse, the light bulb fix worked like a charm! Also, no additional charge for the follow up visit. I’m changing my service visits to the dealer service center. I just wanted to add the results for anyone experiencing this issue. Thanks!