Well, a few months ago I took a leap and bought a salvage 2010 Fit Sport. The previous owner slid into a telephone pole with the driver's door. Long story short, I found a complete driver's side door opening (A & B pillars and rocker/roof edges) on ebay that I had shipped to me. I fit that into my car (cut it out, drilled out spots welds, & welded it back in), and we're back together.

The srs system was fun. I replaced the driver's seat, and sidecurtain airbags. I had the srs module reprogrammed (crash codes cleared) and I had the driver's seatbelt pretensioner rebuilt. PS--I'm building this car for me so I don't have an issue with using used parts). When I reassembled the wiring and plugged everything back in (I had the dash completely out to make my body repairs), the srs light on the dash was on. To make my life easier, I bought a Honda HDS (Honda Diagnostic System) HIM (Honda Interface Module) to hook to a laptop to clear DTC and srs codes. PS--the Fit has an unbelievable computer system--anything electric is monitored and all errors or problems on the car are reported to the ecu). Of course it didn't come with directions and the few text files on the CD were in Japanese or Chinese (not sure). I went for it and found the software was in English, and between my Fit service manual on CD and Google, I was able to read the DTC srs codes. I was getting a pass airbag light malfunction, and driver's seatbelt wiring open/short. The pass airbag light was easy, I didn't have it installed yet as it was on the radio bezel and I hadn't put the radio back in yet. I plugged the air bag light in and cleared that code with the HDS software--problem fixed. The driver's seatbelt wiring error was troubling. I checked all the plugs, tested the resistance as specified in the service manual, and checked the wiring harness. Everything looked good. In the end, the problem was the small yellow srs plug that plugs into the seatbelt pretensioner. I did not like the way the plug fit, and I was right. To make that connection, you have to squeeze with the force of ten men to make the tin plug fit in far enough to lock (all the yellow srs connectors are locking plugs). After that, I cleared the codes and the srs light is off. I have to just do the finally assembly of the interior (probably 25 plastic trim pieces and the headliner) and I am ready for my state police inspection (required to get a title in my state).

The HDS HIM kits that you can find on ebay do work. They do require a pc/laptop with a small serial port. I ordered the kit from a seller in the USA so I wouldn't have to wait for an overseas shipment.

 

I would be worried about the "true-ness" of the chassis after a side collision. It would be a shame to go through all the work to have a twisted chassis that wanders on the road.

 

I've actually had it on side roads in my country neighborhood already. I haven;t had it for an alignment yet, but if I didn't know it, I would not have any indication of an accident. It tracks straight and true with no shimmy or shake. I'm pleasantly surprised too.

 

I forgot to add that I did have a local body shop do a pull on the side that was hit. They did a good job; I did a little untwisting of the bpillar with my hydralic portapower.

 

How much money do you think you've saved as opposed to buying a used fit with similar mileage?

What you have managed to do with your Fit is far and above anything I've seen anyone else do structurally or electrically on this forum. +rep for hardcore wrenching.

 

Thanks for the props. It surprises me that nobody else has done this--I do find very helpful info on this site in the Forums, so everybody keep posting. But, I guess I am a little crazy to tackle this project. I like to say that a person is only limited by their mind.

I'd say that I have about $9,500 in the Fit at this point, including my purchase price. Oh course, zero in it for my labor. I don't think I could touch a similar Fit considering its a 2010 Sport with 1,650 miles on it. I was blown away by the car being totaled--it's basically a brand new car when it was wrecked. I'd like to post some pics, but haven't figured out the embedding of imgs yet.

If anybody has questions, ask and I'll try to answer.

 

Pics would be awesome homie!

 

I uploaded pics into a public album for now.

Unofficial Honda FIT Forums - kplmn's Album: 2010 Honda Fit Sport Salvage Rebuild

 

Cool to see what a stripped GE looks like. Is all that padding just sitting under the carpet? How much sound deadening is there in the footwells?

 

Wow! Major project. Good job!

 

Thanks. To your questions, there is really very little sound deadening on the sheet metal. The firewall interior has pretty good insulation (maybe 3/4") beneath and separate from the carpet. The floor has spots where they applied a spray on "bedliner" type. But, the roof above the headliner is just a giant piece of sheet metal. While I had it apart, I took the chance to cut, peal, and stick Fatmat on everything. Fatmat is super easy to work with, and it sticks well. I pasted it on the inside of the doors, on the back of the door cards, all of the roof and floor, basically anywhere that I had a surface that it would stick too. This is my first Fit, so I don't have a frame of reference for how noisy it would be. But, it would be interesting to compare this one to a non-Fatmat version to see if the sound is different. The little bit I've driven it, I do hear a lot of sound from the back cargo area/spare tire well. Once I'm on the road, I plan to Fatmat those areas too.

 

i have a 09 fit sport with Navi, that is rebuilt..I love the car and I saved about $6000.
I have put 10,000 miles on it without any issues.
I have no problems buying a salvage/ rebuilt vehicle as long as I see the original damage pictures first and inspect the repairs.

looks like you did a nice job on the repairs and fixing it.
There's a wrong way and a right way to fix vehicles

 

Hi kplmn, Hi everyone else, I'm new posting in a forum, I'm a technician, being wrenching for many years but I haven't had any experience working on a Fit, I just bought a salvage 2007 Fit took it to a body shop and they did a good job on the front end, now I need to replace the deployed driver air bag, I already got a used one from a junk yard, can you please advise me what else do I need to buy and what steps do I need to follow to bring everything to work normal again, any help will be appreciated and I hope I can bring good answers to your questions.