I’ve been researching a problem I’ve been having with my Fit and I think it maybe the ignition coil problem I’ve seen people commenting on. It seems to be a pretty common problem around here. I’d like to run my symptoms and info by you guys to get some input. Plus, I had some questions about brands of coils and spark plugs.

First some details:

• It’s one of the first models sold in the US; 2008 model.

• It currently has 82k on it.

• I try to keep up on maintenance. This includes regular oil changes with full synthetic. I’ve already replaced the coolant and transmission fluids. I typically go to Valvoline where they’ve also done their “engine cleaning” thing a few times but it’s probably been 20k since the last time. Here’s the details on that.

My problem symptoms:

• First, there is NO check engine light on.

• I first noticed the problem this year when I started using my A/C.

• It’s most noticeable when I’m sitting idling at a light. I’ll feel the engine sort of vibrate/jerk. It’s quick and only once. If I were to guess, it maybe happens once every couple minutes if I’m just sitting there idling.

• I THINK I’ve noticed something similar happen while I’m driving, but it’s more difficult to notice.

• I don’t think it’s my A/C system because I can hear it make its own normal noises and the engines vibration doesn’t seem to coincide with when the AC system clicks or does its thing.

• I don’t think I’ve noticed it happening with my A/C off yet but I haven’t driven it a lot without the A/C.

If this is related to the ignition coil, I’ve noticed on RockAuto a few brands that range from $42 for Ultrapower and $65 for Delphi. I don’t know if spending more gets me quality or better performance. My goal is to drive my Fit into the ground, so I’d like to get something that will give me another 80k miles.

On that same note, I’m not sure about the spark plugs either. There’s copper, platinum, double platinum, and iridium. Brands range from Bosch, Champion, Denso and NGK. I’d like to get the “best” longest lasting ones, so I don’t mind spending $10 bucks on a “NGK Laser Iridium” plug, but I’d like to know if it’s worth it or not.


Thanks for any help!

 

Open the hood, watch and listen as the A/C cycles. Conversely turn off the A/C and see if you can recreate it. 2 minute frequency sounds A/C related so I'd rule that out first.

 

I've heard of the pcv valve causing similar symptoms. Might be something cheap to look into.

 

In terms of plugs, Iridium Denso's or NGK will be your best bet for longevity.

Denso is a good brand for the coil pack as well if you need to replace those.

Maybe Valvoline's Fuel System cleaning was too harsh on your injectors? Maybe it's related to that?

 

My problem is a little more often (also no CEL [first item on list above]), maybe every 30 seconds or so, but the rest of the symptoms are the same. Mine happens at idle (on drive, with brakes engaged) with A/C off, just at a less rate. FYI: 110 K.

Our Honda dealer charged us $60 for a diagnostic and said the valves were tight (and based on fitfreak forum research, seemed a likely cause). We just had our valves adjusted and the mechanic said they were loose. HMMM. Sadly, it did not solved the problem.

So. now we are here with the plugs & coil replacement. Although, the consensus seems to be the coils are bad, we are going to replace both. I thought the plugs were replaced at ~60K/80K and the dealer actually did checked them and said they were already replaced (although, I can't find any paperwork that it was done).

The suggestion from the forum is go with the OEM for both plugs and coils. These are what I ordered:

4x (ngk 6774, izfr6k13)
2x (Hitachi IGC0053)
2x https://www.rockauto.com/catalog/mor...php?pk=4017462 (Hitachi IGC0053)

(I used amazon for two of the coils because I had credits). NOTE that the plugs can also be DENSO skj20dr-m13 (these are also OEM). I believe both plugs are gapped within spec from factory.

They will arrive Friday (Sep. 19, 2014).... and will swap them out and see if it fixes the problem.

Also to see if coil/spark plugs are the problem are (suggestions from threads that I have red):
1) Pull the coil one at a time and see if the problem gets worst or stays the same. If you find one where you pull it and the "engine sort of vibrate/jerk" stays the same then that one is bad.
2) Using a temperature gun (infrared thermometer, $25 at harbor freight) and check each manifold and see if there is more than 5 degrees (F) difference. That's the one that's bad.

I plan on doing the temp gun today (if it's still light when I get home) and I may pull the wires... if the temp gun proves nothing (although, where the placed, I'm afraid, I'll get burn from the manifold/engine parts (so I may have to wait between each coil).
-d

 

Ack, noticed it's been two months since you posted this. Have you done anything? Was anything solved? Thanks,

-d

 

The coil is a common problem on the 2007 and 2008, but there are ways you can isolate this problem rather cheaply. Get an ELM 327 Bluetooth code reader for around $15 from Amazon. Then get the paid version of "Torque" for your android phone or tablet ($5.00) from the Android store. Then use mode $06 data that is easily available from Torque. They call this "Test Results" and it will give you misfire data for each of your 4 cylinders, along with other data you might find interesting. You can then know where to look for your problem and then switch the coils from a known good coil to one with misfires and see if problem follows the coil. If it doesn't follow the coil, then you'll know it is something else like bad plugs or a valve clearance problem.

Now, isn't that a lot better than buying some coils and guessing that you might fix the problem? And all for $20 and an Android phone!

FYI mode $06 gives you data your car uses to determine if your MIL should come on. Engine miss is only one of those. You can get info on catalytic converter, oxygen sensors, and evaporative systems as well, so you can actually see data on how good these components are before they are bad enough to light your MIL, or solve intermittent MIL problems, or in your case see exactly how many misses each cylinder has had since you started your car, or the last 10 times you started your car. There is a lot of room between perfect and lighting an MIL and mode $06 sheds light on this zone.

One thing--I know this is available with 2009 Fit, but maybe someone can chime in regarding mode $06 data for 2007-2008.

 

Will any of them do? I see quite a few ELM 327 units and some are as cheap as $7. Winning eBay bids are as low as $0.06 - $0.99 with free shipping (of course, 2-week shipping from China).

Thanks,

-d

 

I'd look for one with good user ratings. There are some knockoffs that do not fully meet the standard.

 

Ahhh..... do you have any suggestions for brands? Thx.

 

I have this one, I think. It looks like mine. Mine is orange on top and blue on bottom. It says in white on blue, "ELM327 Interface. Supports all OBDII protocols:

What you have to know is that it pairs with 6789 and don't use any of the programs on the CD with it. They include malware and are worthless. It did not have good documentation, but does work with any car I've tried it with. People who gave it a low grade generally tried programs on the CD, didn't realize the pairing code, or did not have a basic understanding of the OBDII system. As far as I know, it will not work with IPhone.

 

Thx. I also started reading torque's s/w dev's forum and they have a link to some of the devices they tested it (all very expensive > $89). They state the $20-60 ones from eBay/China/Amazon: "Some units seem to suffer poor build quality and reliability issues".