Thank you for all the responses. Spoke with the dealership again today and they state that this "freezing" or "icing" can happen on all cars. They are not saying that this is what is happening with my Fit, but suggested that it "might" be. They still need to see it in order to diagnose it... They also informed me that if that is the problem, there is no fix for it, other than turning the temp guage to a warmer setting (opposite what the manual says) and changing the valve to "fresh air mode" (also opposite what the manual says for hot/humid weather). This would be the fix if you catch things before they freeze up... if not, they recommend that you run the heat (yes, while you sit in 90-100 degree weather) to melt the ice. I have owned many cars as well, big and small, and have NEVER had this issue with any other vehicle. Definitely a design problem with this car!! Not a happy camper at this point... love the car but feel it is not really okay to sell a brand new product that only gets A/C correctly when you fiddle around with the settings trying to figure out what will work... then if you go over your warranty trying to figure something out... then too bad... you pay to repair what "might" be wrong! So sad... really liked Honda, but if this does not get resolved... this will be our last one (we also have a Honda Odyssey that we bought in 2003 and really are babying it to make the transimission last!!). I live in NH for crying out loud... not the hottest place, should not require any extra stress to air condition a brand new car here!!

 

Call Honda customer service. Tell them what you were told.

Your local Honda service rep/manager does not know what he is talking about.

 

Some where recently I hear that one of the reason the USDM [not particularly Honda] does not like 'climate control' in their cars is that people were seeing the AC come on in the winter. They just couldn't understand or accept that.

My 96Deville has it and it is beautiful. Set a temp and the system takes care of it all.

Our US Fit's have a dumbed down HVAC system that has been typical in cars for decades. The same old controls doing the same old thing. Thing is ours is minimally sized to boost the economy we all love so much.

It's not big deal - nor will it harm anything - to mix AC w/ heat. Every time you go to the defrost mode the AC comes on - no little green light to tell you that, but it comes on every time, regardless of temperature or time of year. You know why the green light doesn't come on - I bet you can guess. Right, so that most of the ho-hum drivers never figure out the AC is on and start complaining.

julbie Your dealer knows exactly what he is talking about. My thought is that the system is designed so close to the edge for economy reasons it is the way it is - not the end of the world.

The reason you need to 'fiddle around' with the settings is that it is not a climate control system it's simply a car heater with an air conditioner hooked on to it. With the Fit it seems to be something we all can expect when the moon and stars line up. I've found that a one notch up on the temp dial is all you need to keep things even - and that's in 96d heat like right now in up-state NY. Still cold air flowing in.

Steve244 not much I can say - cry wolf if you must..... no disrespect intended.

 

My 04 Accord has the auto climate control system. The only time it can have trouble is if its sunny but the outside temp is right at about 70 degrees, ie equal to the inside temp. The car ends up not quite controlling the temp like I'd like.

All that said, I don't get why people dislike automatic climate systems. It's not like you don't have central air with a thermostat at home. Set it and just forget about it rather than having to fiddle with knobs to get fan speed, output temp, etc all exactly right.

 

We're not talking about automatic climate control.

There's a wide gap between adjusting the temperature manually in order to be comfortable, and having to turn off the A/C periodically, or making it uncomfortably warm to defrost it. No automotive A/C should freeze up regardless of ambient conditions. When was the last time you defrosted your frost-free refrigerator?

The dealer does not know what he's talking about if he insists this is normal, all cars do it, and you need to adjust the temperature to avoid it.

If your customer's car overheated in normal use, would you look for a problem with the thermostat (fan or coolant) or would you advise the him to stop driving? If you were the customer and told to stop driving, would you accept this or talk to someone else.

The solution is in post 24 of this thread : goto 24. It's not rocket science.

 

that sucks hope everything goes well

 

I don't see it as being a problem, but I have owned motorcycles that had the timing control on the opposite grip from the throttle, others that required using a compression release, tickling the carb float to start the engine and top end overhauls were considered routine maintenance. If there is no solution to a problem then you have a problem and I found the solution for dealing with what is being called a problem 4 years ago when it happened the first time to my Fit... This makes me think of employs I had working for me at my bicycle shops that could program a cash register to add the correct amount of tax to a purchase and tell them how much change to hand the customer when paid for the purchase.. but they didn't have any idea at all about how to count out the change they gave back to the customer.

 

Those employees I love to give a couple of pennies or whatever to along with bills so that you get say a quarter in change vs a couple dimes and pennies. It confuses the hell out of them. I let them struggle for awhile then tell them what change they need to give.

Anyhow I think a few on here should go back to the days when cars did not have A/C. It would solve the problems. Hell back in the day we were glad to have a heater that sort of worked in a car in the winter. In the summer we rolled down our non powered windows and turn the little vent windows to direct the outside air.

 

Imagine the response that an Austin Healey, Triumph TR-3 or MGA roadster with dashpot SU carburetors that need constant attention and tops the were assembled like tents, and Lexan removable or Eisen glass windows, lever action Armstrong shocks that leaked and Prince of Darkness Lucas Electrics would receive. Wire spoke knock off steel wheels with a brass hammer instead of a lug wrench and a spoke wrench to keep them trued... After my father got his new 53 Commander he bought my mother a 54 Lincoln Capri Coupe that had the A/C unit in the trunk and could freeze the balls off of a billy goat...It had a Y block Ford engine and leaked oil while on the showroom floor but it was loaded with accessories and was very fast for the time.... It was legal to drink and drive in Texas and a lot safer than today with people using cell phones and calling someone to tell them how to get where they are going because they got lost talking to someone else because they forgot to take or took too much of their prescription medication for whatever the catch all diagnosis for the neurotic condition they have been diagnosed and labeled with.

 

Hey Wily. I recall as small child adjust the spark lever as my Dad crank the old circa 30 vintage Chevy I think it was.

My AH Sprite was a summer car. The excuse for a heater barely kept you feet warm and when you had those vents down on the floor open then not much going to the windshield.

Well cell phone use banned here now. Not too many yakking on them now. They should be labeled AHs.

 

The heaters in British cars were manufactured by a company called Smith... There was a flat piece of sheet metal that was often left off of the bottom of the heater during the summer months and so you were likely not to have one on your car if you bought it 2nd hand.... The heaters were useless without that piece but with it you could drive comfortably in cold weather with the top removed and the side windows in place.

 

HA I've used ice scrapers on the inside of a 67Beetle windscreen and survived, barely, the 'Prince of Darkness Lucas Electrics' in a 64 Riley Elf.

 

I was wondering when you'd join us other old farts..... One of the worse things that I can remember caused by cold weather involved a trip to see a fellow employ at the state mental hospital I worked at who was recovering from cancer surgery in another town... There were 4 of us in a 74VW Thing on ice covered roads when one of the back seat passengers somehow put her elbow through the frozen and very brittle Eisen glass side window... The temperature was in the teens and the hot air exchanger heater just wasn't getting the job done.... It was miserably cold but we all lived through it... My son still owns a 73 Thing and wants to swap it to me for a recumbent bicycle.

 

Joined at the hip my friend. I think of those days and where we are today. Such high expectations everyone has, along with the need to "...have their way". i curse BK

This thread for example. I guess it's gotten some where - a bunch of misinformation - but where does it all end up....

The kids need to understand tolerance in any given situation and be able to understand good solid advice, it's solved many a problem.

 

No shit eh KC

Geez should change this thread to Meeting of the Older Farts. Speaking of I made chilli dogs and corn on the cob tonight. There will some bedsheet waving tonight.

We are off to the West coast of Ontario ie the shores of Lake Huron tomorrow for a couple of nights. We heard Elvis is in Kincardine so going to see him. Motel has pool which is good, not sure on the Internet though.

 

Update regarding the A/C issue. I too have owned vehicles without A/C and roll down windows, as well as older cars that do not have working A/C as well as other problems. This is a NEW car that I purchased NEW. The price included A/C that worked and I paid that price! Not my first new vehicle... if other manufacturers can make A/C work over long trips... then why can't Honda? My previous car was a Nissan Versa and did not have A/C problems like this (also a very small car).

Regarding the update... stopped back into the dealership today and talked to service rep #3. I brought with me a postcard they had sent me in the mail which stated I had a special order part that had come in. They informed me that the part was a "Thermal Protector for the A/C unit". They are not sure why the original rep ordered it (he is not in until Friday). The rep I talked with today told me that it is not "normal" to have to adjust the knobs to continue to get A/C. That this is an indicator of a problem, regardless of the weather conditions. He was an older man, who told me he has worked with Honda for 18 years and has been a mechanic for over 35 years.

I thank everyone for their advice/input. Very great posts from everyone and enjoyed reading them. For the record, I am not opposed to fiddling around with the controls as long as I can be sure that this is the way the car is suppose to function, that it will actually make the the A/C work, and that my A/C will continue to function for at least a few years! My problem comes with the 35,000 mile warranty and knowing that by next summer... the car will be out of warranty and this possible problem will then not be covered. It will be hard to test the A/C during a NH winter...

 

Well, you've got them talking amongst them selves. In diagnosing that's a good thing. - Possibly the first rep knows his stuff. Interested to see how this plays out.

The rest of it - we should all expect quality and service. We all also know that the expectation has been compromised in this Century.
No reason to change the expectation, all-though Marketing America knows we will... we always have, anyway.

My stick is when the expectation reaches a demanding/it's my right/fantasy level - NOT THAT YOU PORTRAY THAT [please know that_] the bk syndrome....
As many threads go, this one has taken a few turns.

I think your dealer will do good by you and the Honda name.

K_C_

 

<iToldyouso level=rant>Checking college hills honda online parts catalog, there is no part for a 2010 Fit called a "thermal protector" or "thermal" anything. There is however a "thermistor" (part #10 on this diagram) for $11. It's not hard to imagine that another name for a thermistor, a device intended to keep the evaporator from freezing, is a "thermal protector." My guess is the service rep julbie talked to the first time, talked to someone else who set him straight. Too embarrassed to call him and admit his mistake he ordered the part and had mail notification sent. Not ideal service, but he could have just let it be.

Not a big fan of burger king, but as far as having it my way, it seems this is a common trait among Yanks (and I mean that in the kindest sense, even though I live in the South). This isn't communist China (although they're having it more and more their way now too). Russia's been having it their way for a while now. And it isn't something that happened this decade. Yep, I remember getting my way as far back as '76. I special orderd a chevy with every option in the book. Not sure about before '76 but I've read in history books about people getting it their way. Something about the pilgrims.

Another thing that's peculiar to Americans is demanding satisfaction from a retailer or manufacturer, especially when an item is under warranty (but not limited to this). The 76 chevy was such a POS, after demanding it be fixed a dozen times, I finally traded it in on a VW after the chevy's 12month 12,000 warranty ran out.

I've gotten it my way on every new car I've purchased since. I get it my way at every retailer and service establishment I patronize. If I don't, they don't get my money. If you're not getting it your way, you're un-American.

Fast forward to 2010. If you buy any new car today it comes with a full bumper-to-bumper warranty at least 3 years or 36,000 miles. You're a fool if you don't demand that it work correctly.</iToldyouso>

Now excuse me while I totter out to the porch. If you care to join me I'd be honored to share a game a checkers and some sweet tea.

 

Steve Sweet tea and boiled peanuts...I'm in.

Sometimes it is what it is, nothing more is all I'm trying to say.

12month warranty was an industry standard then, almost. Dump it and get a new one was a whole lot easier then. Good used were always around.

Nothing un-American about accepting. Part of that means sacrifice. Personal sacrifice.

That is surely American. It can also lead to a more stable economy. Too much pressure on everything because, in a large part, people want.

That's a whole other thread..... I think we agree.

By all means enforce the Warranty.
Too many owners don't. It's part of your contract [or should be_?].

There's even this: https://www.fitfreak.net/forums/othe...ket-parts.html

BTW - I've had a butt in the 225 oven for seven hours. Didn't feel like firing up the off-set.

 

A "deuce and a quarter" is a fine car, but 7 hours without A/C?

I'm from Seattle. Out there we barbecued everything.

The French invented BBQ, it's from de la barbe à la queue (from the beard to the tail). Just throw another goat on the barbie.