2009 Fit Sport water leak at antenna notice
 

Hey out there... just got a 2009 Fit Sport and the first time I washed it water poured into the headliner from the rear antenna mount. The headliner is ruined/stained and the dealer is going to replace the whole mess. You may want to watch for this or let your local dealers know. It's apparently not an isolated problem. The car will be in the shop for 2-3 days (they gave me a loaner) but what a job to replace all that just because a gasket was left out.

Other than that I've got 6000 miles on it with no problems and LOTS of fun!

Best MPG when trying was 43 highway/36 town. "Normal" driving like I don't care about MPG was 38 highway/30 town. Driving style did make a huge difference... but the little thing is sooo fun to tear around corners (sticks like velcro) that I can't help myself!

Enjoy your Fits!

Sorry to hear that...but glad that it is getting fixed!

MustangX3 - did you notice if the back of the antenna mount was raised above the roof line? The back of my 2009 Fit Sport antenna mount was raised above the roof line by 1/8". The front of the mount was flush with the roof.

I took it in for fear of water leak. The dealer had to roll the roof line back out to get a good fit. Took 2 days. Almost as if something pressed dow hard on the antenna and caused a small dent inn the roof.

Glad to hear things are getting fixed.

Yes, the antenna base was lifted from the roof metal at the rear of the antenna, front was flush as you said.

How did the dealer fix the antenna mount / roof line?

For mine, the dealer had a body shop drop the liner and "roll" the roof line from the inside.

Yes, you've made the worst mistake in your car buying history by choosing the Honda Fit. Please sell it to someone who knows and loves Honda cars, then go purchase another P/T Cruiser.

...unbelievable, dude.

My 1992 Mustang GT 5.0 automatic with 109k on it... transmission, wiper motors (4), radiator, water pump (2), ignition switch, door lock motors (2), window motor, heater core (2), A/C compressor, distributor module (2), ignition coils (2), U joints, rear wheel bearings, front wheel bearings, McPherson struts (2), air bag control unit, brake master cylinder, dashboard tachometer, factory radio (display went out)...

1992 Honda Civic, 190k miles on it... clutch and front CV joints last week... period.

Hmmm... ??? Yeah, bought the Fit, antenna water leak and all (fixing it for free). :)

Have you taken the car through an automatic car wash? I would be worried about the equipment pulling on the stubby roof antenna, which could cause exactly the sort of damage you have described.

I'm glad your wife found a reliable PT Cruiser, as this seems to be an unusual occurrence. TrueDelta shows that a PT Cruiser is, on average, approximately an order of magnitude less reliable than a Fit. Chrysler PT Cruiser Reliability Comparisons.

That is what I think happened to our Fit. I do not use automatic car washes, but the dealer uses an autowash before returning from servicing. I had the Fit in for a quick service, and after that, I noticed the Antenna Boot lifting.

I think the auto car wash snags the antenna stubby, and pulls back on it, causing the roof line to deform.

I never take my car through those automated car washes...

You outta re-read your original response - were you drunk? 8 years old? Oh wait, you said you are married....well, you certainly went up a few grade levels when responding to me. I'll work on downgrading my reading comprehension while you work on yer Community College English 101 homework. :D

"yet give outstanding accolades to a company who produces cars that have major defects right out of the factory door?"

Yeah, and I'd hardly call a missing gasket or water leak from the antenna a "major defect". If I can get 300k miles of trouble free use out of this car, it can leak a few drops of water from the antenna all it wants! :)

No car is perfect by any means, each model can have lemons, etc. but OVERALL I've seen "non-american" cars last where it counts... engine, transmission and drive train. Paint can peel, water can leak, etc. just don't leave me stranded on the side of the road 2 times a year while dropping $400 bucks every 4-5 months to get something fixed.

Bad part about these new Honda cars is that I really can't work on them myself like I can on my old Mustang, good part is they don't require constant work so I don't have to... and THAT my friends is what it's all about in MY book.

Antenna Mount Issue
 

My new 2009 base model Fit also has this problem at the antenna mount. The antenna mount is not flush with the roof. What does "rolling the roof line" mean? The fix for this problem seems extreme. A two-day repair job? I'm just thinking of putting some black or clear silicone caulking around it. I did call my dealer and all they said was "bring it in". I really don't want to drive the 30 miles to my dealership for this problem, right now. I'll wait until I take it in for servicing. Then again, I don't want water dripping down through the roof. So what do you all think about a bead of silicone caulking where the radio mount is not flush with the roof?

The dealer had to replace the entire headliner due to water stains. They found there is a nut with 3 small spike like protrusions that is used to hold the antenna mount down tight and ground it to the car metal. This nut was severely overtightened (likely on all Fits) and it dimpled the area around the antenna mount so bad the seal didn't sit properly. They had to take it to a bodyshop and have them "hammer and dolly" the roof flat again around the mount so the NEW base mount would fit properly. The bodyshop did all the work for them (on the mounting base) as they were well experienced in the dozens of 2009 Fits that they've had to do this to. Once the antenna base mount was installed properly (to proper torque) everything was fine as it should have been. Maybe some robot (or person) was using the wrong torque settings for that nut assembly but it's a simple fix if your headliner isn't stained from the water leak and in need of replacement, that's what takes soooo long. The Honda Dealership did a perfect job here, I'm a Quality Assurance Inspector for the Government and went over the whole car with a fine tooth comb... perfect in every way (actually I'm very surprised it went that way to be honest).

A bead of caulk to temporarily stop the water is a good idea if you want to keep the headliner from being stained BUT then the Dealership "may" not want to fix it if the caulk is hard to get off or damages the paint, etc. I say take it in and just get if done right from the start with all new parts. I mean it is a BRAND NEW car after all... be sure to get something in writing from your dealer to "approve" the caulk temp fix to CYA if ya know what I mean.

CLMAG - You have a new car, have the dealer fix it before rain or a car wash stains your headliner and too much time passes by. Woudln't want the dealer to question how the roof became deformed.

Im having the same problems with my 2008 fit sport!!!

I saw that post about PT Cruiser reliability. They really are built like a tank. My dad's '01 cruiser is still going stong at 90,000 miles. The only major things we've had to replace are the suspension bushings, and soon here in another few thousand miles, the serpentine belt and water pump. It's an awesome little car!

guys....

You have to end this "Which is better, the PT or FIT conversation"

You're on a web site for one of the worlds best selling cars. I dont know exactly how many were sold BUT lets just say 500,000 to pick a number. IF... 1% of the fit owners in the world had a problem and half of them found this website and half of them started a thread telling everyone about it... THEN you would have 1250 threads about a problem on this car.

Of course, these are just rough guestimates. BUT you get the point.

Everyone be cool....:cool:

Every car is a crapshoot. A couple complaints on an enthusiasts forum are statistically meaningless. I think a lot of people also equate "reliability" with "Not leaving you stranded by the side of the road." My '01 Civic has had a power lock actuator go and the in-dash CD-changer is an absolute piece of garbage, but these things and leaky antennae at least you can drive the car to the mechanic under its own power and at your own convenience for the repair :) I would not characterize my Civic has "unreliable" even though it had a couple of failures.

Honda's reliability reputation should also not be misconstrued to mean no Honda ever breaks or has a defect, ever!

Chrysler, OTOH has one of the worst reliability records in automotive history.

Honestly if you've been fortunate enough to get a reliable Chrysler your only regret should be that if you had bought a lottery ticket instead of a Chrysler you'd probably be a millionaire with that kind of luck! :)