Hey guys, new owner of a used 2016 Fit EX here. I have recently been replacing all the speakers (shoutout to the great guides on this forum!) and I discovered something a little funky with the rear passenger side door.

1) the OEM speaker was not connected
2) the door itself has all sorts of putty plastered around each hole where the clips should be secured
3) there is condensation inside the water seal
4) there is tape plastered along the bottom edge of the water seal

I'm wondering if anyone more knowledgeable than me know if this is a sign of kind of recall or perhaps even a previous accident/repair? I've attached photos for reference. All the other doors are spotless in comparison.

 

Or previous owner was trying to fix water leaking into the cabin? That plastic sheet is supposed to redirect water into the door panel which then has drain holes. What a dumb design.

 

As the previous comment suggested, it does look like the previous owner was trying to stop a water leak. Not elegantly. Are the plastic clips intact or was the goop in the picture holding on the door panel.
There are many reasons to access the inside of the door panel: window regulator repair, door latch/lock mechanism repair, dent/accident repair, etc. If you're willing to pull the plastic and tape off you might be able to figure out what happened.
After I opened up my door panels for sound deadening purposes, the plastic sheet didn't really want to stick to the door. As suggested in the previous comment, on the back doors the water that drops off the bottom edge of the window glass (inside the door) falls directly onto an access hole. If the plastic isn't well sealed the water can come into the passenger compartment and make your rear floorboard wet. I resorted to sealing the lowest access hole with quality duct tape placed on the inside of the door panel (not outside like on yours, which could trap water) and haven't had any issues since. It should also be possible to reattach the plastic sheet with a replacement "seal." The factory material almost seems like some sort of tar.
The condensation suggests that you have moisture trapped inside the door. You should definitely make sure that the drains on the bottom edge of the door are clear.

 

Thanks for your thoughts, guys. The plastic clips look intact to me but they are absolutely covered in goop as well.

It would make sense that the owner could have been trying to fix water damage, as the rear passenger door is very different than the driver rear door. Forgive the quality, but I took a screenshot off of a video recording of the driver side:


driver side rear door water seal

I will make sure the drains are free and if this was a known issue it makes sense that the previous owner disconnected the rear speaker - water and electricity don't mix!

Mystery solved, but I'm curious to know if the dealer would be obliged to disclose something like this before sale.

 

How would they know? It's very doubtful that a previous owner would have disclosed this to them.

 

I guess the only hint that something was wrong is that the rear passenger side speaker wasn't working - I didn't think to test that when I made the purchase. It's a big big car dealership and this is my first vehicle, so I didn't know what to expect. But fair enough!