Hi there!

Thought I would finally make an account after browsing this site for weeks.

I'm a broke college student as the title suggests, with a 2013 Fit Sport. I call it pristine because when I took ownership back in April, she only had 16,000 miles on the clock! Today, I just punched over 23,000. She gets me to college and wherever else I need to go.

I first had a love/hate relationship with it. My girlfriend called it "cute" and my buddy (who drives a Ford Fusion rent-a-car) calls it a "Prius wannabe." However, when I started pushing it a little bit with the "sport mode," I started loving it more and more, and after seeing what some of you good people have done to them, I'm excited to keep it for years to come. Remarkably, I've only had to jump it twice, even though she stays outside where it's been single digits recently. It handles better than I thought it would be in the snow.

I just installed my first "mod," a new Pioneer X731BT head unit. It makes the stock speakers sound 100x better, and the hands-free calling is great.

I'm sure I can't do as much with the car as people who live in snow-free climates, but I'm excited to save up and ad some things, like a new exhaust and shocks. Not sure if body kits are in the future, but wow they look good.

The previous owner lived out in the sticks, so the paint is not very good. Scratches and nicks abound, especially on the A pillars. She also was a chain smoker, evident by my first test drive. The guys at the dealer cleaned it up nicely.

I'm excited to get to know some of the posters here, and if anyone has any starter modifications for me to look into, feel free to let me know. Lots of ideas already! Silver Bullet in snowy Buffalo, N.Y.

 

Welcome!

 

Hi Mike,
I'm in Buffalo as well. I have a blue 09 5spd that i picked up in Nov. Lovin it so far - don't worry my wife also calls it "cute"
Maybe i'll see ya on our snowy roads someday!

 

is dat a MT or AT?

good job on the stereo swap. i had a '12 GE MT myself (and a 09 GE AT for my wife) and i swapped to a pioneer dd on the '12. even with the factory speakers the stereo sounded good enough for me. with carplay aftermaret HU's these days, that would be the way to go for sure.

 

Keep it stock and pristine. Any mods reduce the value. Something is not right if you had to "jump" it. Is your battery dying or are you leaving it discharged?

 

yah, battery is dead, get a new one. my Fit's have all regularly parked outside below 0F and no issue starting in the winter.

 

You too! I see more and more Fits out there.

AT with the flippy-floppy paddle shifters, which I find great for the highway.

I'm thinking simple things like new paint and maybe new wheels. Anything else is non-affordable or unpractical for me.

My battery died twice, both times after the car had not been driven in a day or so and after spending time in extreme (sub-zero) temperatures.

it's on my list. The battery is original to the car, so it's likely more than 5 years old. Any recommendations?

 

.....and my buddy (who drives a Ford Fusion rent-a-car) calls it a "Prius wannabe."


Make sure you pick up your buddy at the side of the road during these next 10 years as he stands next to his (once again) broken down Fusion.

 

ive not had to swap a battery on my 4 Fits over the years, but it appears 51R is the size to get. might need to cut the tray a little bit to make it fit though on the GE. try doing a search in the 2nd Generation Fit forum

 

I seriously think the previous owner was harder on that car than the mileage suggests. I was looking in the 2nd Gen forum and it looks like I should upgrade to a 51R battery rather than stay with the stock size. Thanks!

 

I'm on my third or fourth battery in my Fit, 2012 with 88k miles on it. These cars & their batteries just seem to want to kill each other.

 

Good to know. Beautiful S2000 by the way.

 

:beer: Thanks amigo.

 

if you drive your car more than 5 miles at a time should last a lot longer. i suggest taking the car for a 30mile run on the weekend if you do short trips often. this will charge the battery.. and dont turn off your engine if you are idling and listening to the radio while waiting for someone.

battery tender (manager) is also good to have if you dont use your car much during the week. my fun cars are always on battery managers in the garage as i dont know when id drive them next.

 

I've always had a commute between 10 and 40 miles.

 

somethings wrong with your alternator or have parasitic drain..

 

My current battery has survived since 2015. But I replaced the battery twice between 2013 and 2015.

 

Normally I do (commute to school is about 15 miles round trip) but some days I just don't have anywhere to go.

I don't think so. Wouldn't the alternator be ticking if that were the case?

 

like a time bomb figuratively

 

How would I know exactly if it is an alternator problem and not just a weak battery (besides the obvious "head-to-the-damn-AAA-for-a-battery-test" way)?