In 2021 I decided to keep my 2015 LX MT, then with 50k miles, after the fuel injection system failed and was replaced at no cost by dealer service. Although I considered trading, with the help of input I received here I chose to stay with the devil I know. This is my 8th? Honda and second Fit and I never mistrusted any of my cars until this one. Knock on wood, nothing else serious has failed since then. The tires and rear shocks were replaced last year (bought Yokohamas which have been great) ) and other than 6 month oil changes it's had no unusual service. Recently the key fob lock/unlock stopped working (not the battery) which is annoying but manageable.

The odometer is about to hit 75k. I do little distance driving, most trips are under 40 miles round trip and some days I don't drive at all. The dealer has given me their list of recommended work: rear brake service, brake fluid, coolant, transmission fluid, tire rotation. This makes sense to me, but I'm wondering, are there problems ahead that I could forestall by addressing them now? And is anything missing from this list, like maybe clutch maintenance? Rarely, on a cold start I get the ominous cough which I've read can indicate VTC problems. That concerns me, but neither dealer service nor local mechanic are interested in exploring it. Of course it never happens at the shop. I'd push for attention if I knew it's trouble down the road.

It's disappointing to be thinking about what could go wrong with my Fit as I never had such concerns about any of my other Hondas, but I know from this car and reading here that third generation has some unique problems. I'm sure some of you know what they could be.

The forum is a big help to this Fit owner who doesn't have any car experts among family or friends. My daughter (2009 Fit Sport MT) gives me wise advice but she's not a mechanic.

Thank you for any advice any of you can share.

 

i have a 2015 manual with a vtec rattle 66,000kms..its probably had it for 50,000 kms
replaced starter
thats about it.
there is no "clutch maintenance",,,if your a good driver you'll get 150,000 kms out of the clutch...once it starts to slip under load, replace..
you ve had the weak link i am waiting to fail, fail already....direct injection.

maybe starter fails, replace fluids, but you sound pretty lucky so far. may want to buy a few lottery tickets from time to time

 

Outside of the Start Push Button recall issue here's what I've gone through.

I had to get the Clutch replaced at 80,000 miles. I found this to be out of character with a stick. I've been driving stick since I was 16 years old. Very expensive replacement.

My original starter was going around 100,000 miles. The start button issue that was repaired was not the issue. My starter required a couple of push starts to start my Fit. I bought a rebuilt starter from Amazon by D.B. Electrical. Now it starts on the first push start.

I have not had the VTC Accuator issue so far. Engine starts up quiet. No unusual noises.

 

its those smokey burnouts chitown...you gotta cut back...lol
the starter quit early, i'm sure the clutch quits early too, actually i expect everything to quit early.lol

probably wont get 311,000 kms like my 27 year old prelude i just sold.......

thats so crazy you dont have the rattle.....i religiously changed the oil, not a hard driver...i wonder how the vtc gods decide who gets it

 

The VTC there's nothing to do. If the VTC noise gets loud enough to really annoy you then you get it fixed. Frequent oil changes with proper oil can help prevent/delay it since it is related to lubrication. For a shop to hear the noise you'd probably have to leave the car there overnight so the engine is cold on start.

 

I'm at 78k. Expect smooth sailing.

 

Thank you all for your wisdom! I was hoping for response from the experts here and you came right through. I'll just keep doing the maintenance and try to trust that my luck has really turned with this car. I'll live with the VTC noise, it's very rare anyway.

2015FitEX, our cars probably left Mexico around the same time. Mine's a black LX, bought new in NY in June 2015. The starter remains good, so far. I do hope you escape the dreaded fuel injection failure. Honda should issue a formal recall. I wonder why they haven't. It is kind of a relief that it's behind me. I wouldn't want to be in your position of waiting for the weak link to break.

One more question: I never use 5th. I've read here that many 3rd gen MT drivers don't - ? And that's OK for the transmission, to skip from 4th to 6th? I drive pretty conservatively, but there just doesn't seem to be a need for that 5th gear.

 

I skip 5th frequently. Sometimes 4th, if I've got lots of room on the road when I get up to speed. If you're shifting smoothly, you're not hurting anything.

 

I don't.

I go through every gear in order. When I slow down I go to the lower gear and go up from there if I need to.

 

i'm a skipper...depends on angle of terrain ahead, and hence amount of torque required while keeping engine in optimum RPM range.

not a big skipper though...like a 4% skipper

@Miss Bianca i am dreading the "dashlites of death" for the injectors, i really really doubt im the luckiest guy on the planet to avoid it...lol...and they will be carbon-ed in there and hard to remove

 

I think the only times I use 5th are on grades for more or less power to keep the engine from laboring. Since it's totally flat where I live that's almost never.

LOL yes the "dashlites of death" are really depressing. You might be lucky after all... but if it happens to you, Honda should cover the repair, right? I had to convince a dealer it was the right thing to do, but that was before the extended warranty was offered. And really Honda should be extending that warranty indefinitely or issue a recall.

 

2015 LX MT, got brand new last weekend of 2014. Got almost 87k miles and will do a major maintenance soon by end of spring early summer. Engine still silky smooth barely feel it when fully warmed up and idling in neutral, OCI with Honda's maintenance minder once that light comes on so 15%, seen as high as almost 9k as low as under 6k but usually around 7k ish, use Walmart Syntec or Costco Kirkland oil. Gonna do a valve check/adjust. Since I'm in there I'll do the VTC spring with Spring Start, even though mine has no noise that I have ever noticed. Will also do a walnut intake valve clean, wonder how bad it is, had no issues with this either. Got a bag of walnut and spray gun from harbor freight. Serpentine belt, can see cracks along the ribs. Spark plug, no ignition coil save that for maybe next plug. Might take apart the starter and blow/clean it out. All other fluids/filters changed at my time/mileage intervals or when needed ie brake pads.

One thing I noticed and I have noticed this since 30k ish miles, just took that long to notice with a new car, was that when engine oil level is down about half way on the dipstick the motor has a little more vibration and feels looser, but when full feels tight and smooth. That is my que to top off the oil, usually every 30% or so of oil life so from 100% down to70% to 40%, then when the oil change light comes on at 15% I change the oil.

 

Why is the oil level down? Are you burning oil?

 

my FIT has pretty much always been like this from new. At first it bothered me then I found out about the newer piston rings for fuel savings. I believe newer cars with the lower tension piston rings consumes oil. Before I figured out how it felt, I used to check/fill the oil level around 50% oil change life. It always dropped from full on the dipstick. I'm not easy on the car either, rev to red line regularly. Tow a 600+ pound trailer about once a month. Have a roof rack with a kayak during the warmer months, as well as a bike rack on the hitch. Basically my use case is consider severe driving condition by Honda.

 

Unlike the Civic and certain other models in Honda's portfolio the Fit isn't noted for using oil. The oil level in my 2018 remains exactly at the top line from when I fill it to when I drain it. But then I don't stress mine like you do yours. I'm old and gentle with my car.

 

Me too.

Easy and slow.