Hi - I'm new to this board, and don't actually own a Fit...yet.

I am considering buying one soon, and I'm wondering whether I could solicit your opinions. The exact car I like is the 2008 Fit Sport with MT in white (I think you call this the GD3).

I found one from a dealership, but it is 2 hours away. There are no other white 2008 honda fit sports with MT, except those sold by private sellers, who live just as far away.

Other issues:
- there are 115,000 kms on the car
- it is missing the silver honda logo plaque thing at the front
- the dealership didn't say anything about the car in the ad. no 'highway miles' or 'great condition' or 'honda certified'.

Good things:
- price
- it looks clean

So I guess my questions are:
1. Have you ever bought a car from far away before, and what is your experience.
2. What is your opinion on buying a Fit with that many kms on it?
3. Can I buy the chrome honda logo somewhere?

Link to the car in question: http://wwwa.autotrader.ca/a/Honda/Fi...howcpo=ShowCPO

Thanks!

 

If the car that you really want is 2 hours away - I would go for it. I understand it is far but you'll get what you are looking for and I am sure they must offer a some sort of warranty to go along with it.

In regards to the mileage (kms)...that is not high by any stretch of the imagination and is nothing to worry about.

As far as the logo goes...you can get those almost anywhere.

 

I'm not sure how helpful I'll be, but here goes...

1. I guess I've bought a car from far away (5-6 hours), but that was a bit of a different circumstance. I had been in an accident that totaled my car, and happened to be visiting some relatives in Syracuse over Thanksgiving, so did some car shopping there since I had the time and since there were more options than around me. No problems at all; the car and dealership were just fine. (With used cars such as this, there's not going to be a long warranty anyhow....)

2. The odometer isn't out of line for the age of the car. If it's been well cared for and reasonably gently driven, there shouldn't be any problems. If it's been abused and hooned, it could be trouble. I would check to see what maintenance records are available; in particular, if the valves haven't been adjusted, I'd insist that the dealer do that prior to the sale as it's definitely due.

3. The logo is there, it's just covered up (with paint or plasti-dip or something) or worn off. The emblem is molded into the plastic grille—at least on the newer ones, I think it's the same here. Replacement grilles are certainly available and not hard to install, but the price may be a bit much. If it's plasti-dip or tape that's covering up the chrome, you should be able to remove it without too much trouble.

And a couple of observations. First, give a decent check on the condition of the tires. In the pictures, they look like they're pretty close to being worn out, but it's really hard to tell. That's not a reason to reject the car, but something to keep in mind for your budget.

Second, the blacked out emblem and the decal and possibly being lowered suggest that perhaps the previous owner was not a granny going back and forth to the grocery store, if you catch my drift. That doesn't necessarily mean that the car was abused or wasn't well taken care of; but do keep your eyes and ears open when you look at the car, and be prepared to walk away empty handed if needed. That's actually pretty good advice whenever purchasing a car.

 

Thank you so much! This is extremely helpful! I just thought the logo was off. Upon closer inspection, the tail pipe looks odd too, and the back chrome 'Fit' logo might have been changed. So yah, not a granny driver :-)

Thanks again!

 

Ahhh, that reminds me of my 2007 Fit Sport . Mine came with door visors, a set of 14" Integra rims for winter, Honda HFP muffler, suede shift boot, center armrest and red badges. Oh and a remote starter! I guess it's a bit of a stretch but I feel that someone that has taken the time to do these kind of tasteful mods probably knows cars well and knows about maintenance. Granted, he might be racing the car or driving like an idiot but somehow I find that unlikely.

I see you are in Ontario. I'd be concerned with rust and corrosion on a car that old. Try to get a look underneath the car and see if there are rust spots on the exhaust system, axles, suspension. When those parts rust out, they'll have to be changed and once you start changing out parts, it gets expensive. I'd say the car looks like a good buy although the miles are slightly on the high side. Got mine with 76k kliks for 9000$

 

P.S. Since my purchase I've added clazzio black leather seats, a dead pedal, 51r battery (I really recommend this cheap battery upgrade for the harsh Canadian winter), rear bumper appliqué, performance summer and winter tyres and a full cargo mat for the trunk and rear seats when folded. Also forgot to mention that window tint is a must, a white car will look badass with legal tint. I also have a blue sunstrip across the top of the windshield. Also, be sure to do the gutter guard mod (search fitfreak for the DIY) to protect the AC condenser from damage from rocks.

 

Thank you MTLian! So helpful! Do you know if this gutter a/c condenser problem is limited to the 2007-2008 style of Fit?

I'm nervous about rust, and was hoping the dealer could tell me whether there was rust on the bottom before I made the trip to Montreal. Unfortunately, these guys are either lazy or just don't care, because they don't seem to want to make the effort to look under the hood for me.

I might just wait (and wait and wait) for something to become available where I live, so I can see the car.

 

You misunderstood me. The Honda Fit does NOT have issues with the AC condenser. It's just that like with many modern cars, it has a rather large opening in the front bumper cover (for a sporty look). However, the AC condenser is located right behind that opening and rocks or road debris could fly in there at high speeds (from the traffic ahead) and strike the condenser causing damage. People (like me) tie gutter guard on the inside of the bumper as a protective net to protect the condenser. It's not an issue with the car, just a preventative measure that costs about 10$ to install with stuff from Home Depot.

Pictures and discussion here:
https://www.fitfreak.net/forums/2nd-...rotection.html

So you are thinking of buying a car in Montreal? If you tell me where it is I could go take a peek for you if it's in town. I'm off work this week (hurray)! I must warn you, many montrealers drive like a-holes however the black logo mod looks like something someone from the burbs would do. Montreal has no car culture, it's all the surrounding cities that have car enthusiasts. Also, the road salt they use in Quebec can probably burn a hole through the hull of an aircraft carrier so I'd enquire with the dealer to see if any rust proofing was ever done.

Most importantly, GET a carproof report (Canadian carfax). Get the more expensive one. When I was shopping for a Fit, three different sellers attempted to sell me a VGA, (véhicule gravement accidenté = rebuilt title). It also lets you know if the car has LEAN on it. I found out the car I bought had lean on it and made sure the seller paid for the lean at the bank. Also, you can know if the car was ever licensed in another province and if any insurance claims were ever made on the vehicle. If you are buying from the dealer, request that HE produces the carproof for you, free of charge.

Are you a member of CAA? If I were you, I'd get a membership and call 'em up, they give great car advice and they will give you the list price for any vehicle+mileage.

 

BTW, looking again at the pics it looks like the muffler is a Honda HFP muffler (like mine). That part costs about 300$ and is way cooler than the stock bathtub faucet honda calls a tailpipe. It's a nice upgrade and is made by Honda.

Winter is coming, I might try and negotiate a little if you can. I haven't had luck negotiating with car salesmen in Montreal. Most montrealers don't know how to negotiate, I've only had luck with immigrants (except Chinese) and Italians. From the pics, it seems the car is from excel honda which is where I test drove a GE (before deciding the older GD model was the one I liked). The salesman looked like some sort of Mediterranean (Greek/Italian) and he seemed very open to knocking some $$ of the price

 

Thank you agian, MTLian, and your kind offer to go check vehicles for me, lol! I'm laughing because it is so nice.

I'm semi-aware of how Montrealers drive -- they tailgail like crazy and cut in front of you if you leave a car-length's opening. Hey, I'm cool with that if I know that's the culture. (I am more of a granny driver.) Overall, though, they are more competent drivers than in Ottawa.

Anyway, my chief concern with these 2008s is rust...nobody seems to undercoat their cars (I guess they buy new and sell after 5-10 years, so no need to).

Would you say rust-proofing (undercoating) is a must for buying a 2008 in our climate? Or can I get away with an un-treated car and start the undercoating now?

Should I consider buying a new 2013 and just paying the depreciation for 5 years and then selling it (just like everyone else does)? That option will cost me around $10 (so about 1$K more than simply buying an 2008). It might even cost less if I can show rustproofing records.

I prefer the 2008 though.

Would appreciate advice.

 

Oh, and my friend has a CAA membership so I can tap him for that.

 

Nifty, as you may have read, I just purchased my 2007 in May from a guy 2.5 hours away. I bought the car sight unseen over the phone. I believe you are way better off buying from an individual than from a dealer any day of the week. You can look the person in the eye and pepper him/her with questions they should know the answers to. A dealer will know NOTHING of the history of the used cars they sell. In my case, I looked the owner "in the eye" over the phone. He told me everything I wanted to know and much, much more. I had no doubt that the person was telling the truth, but then again, I'll admit, I'm trained in that specialty. It did take me two times to get it right though. With the first person, I was dealing with a guy who truthfully knew nothing of cars other than turning the key. He was totally honest with me, which prompted me to take a train trip down to see him and the car. The car turned out to have water on the floor and in the spare tire wheel well, both of which I did not know were "common" problems with the GD (rear hatch crack and failures to inner door plastic), but fixable. I decide that the carpet tear down and replacement was too much work for the money he was asking. He also had not done any fluid changes other than the oil. I ended up taking the train home (obviously) empty handed. Taking 1.5 hours of crawl-around time on that first guy's car helped me to make an easy inspection of the second guy's Fit once I drove the 2.5 hours to his house. Buying that car, now mine, was a no brainer. I got a unbelievable deal. Rewards go to the risk takers Nifty. I encourage you to venture out and find your perfect car at a great price. You'll be even more satisfied when it happens. For the record, I prefer the GD over the GE only because I got it for $6500 @ 94,000 miles, auto, Sport. I'm noticing a lot of people foolishly dumping their GDs on cars.com right now. There are bargains to be had on the GD.

 

Also, be aware that the 2013 Canadian Honda Fit is made in China. I wouldn't buy a Chinese car. I know they tend to have rust problems, even after only a year of ownership, Mazda style!

I personally really like the GD. The GE (2009 and later) is cool to but I felt the GD was more fun and I believe the VTEC kicks in at lower RPM than the GE (which means slightly worse mileage).

I would definitely get rustproofing. Many people do.

BTW, any driver from anywhere is more competent than a Montreal driver. Most montrealers are pretty chill but why they turn into raging idiots when at the wheel of a car is besides me.

 

Hi - back after a bit of a hiatus.
MTLian, I am worried about made in china aspect of the 2013s.
I think I'll stick with a used car in good condition--less exposed to interest rates since I'm borrowing less.

So the rustproofing is a must, and wow, they're hard to find on the used market.
Found one rustproofed car (yes, just one!)
It's a 2009, red, DX-A. Pretty far from what I want, style-wise, but the rustproofing is a huge lure for me. They're asking $10,500 (86,000 kms) but the ad has been up a while on kijiji so maybe there's a deal to be had.

As far as I'm aware, the 2009s in Canada are still built in Japan, correct?

 

2 hours away is the other side of the city for a lot of folks. Run the VIN to check the history.

 

Buying used when you get it for the right price is the best way to go. In the long run you will save money. Saving money on cars and housing will pay dividends for a very long time.

 

Ok but make sure you test drive some GD and GE fits in Ontario first, you might be like me and love every GD you try and be left lukewarm about the GEs. I don't know if rustproofing is all that important, it depends of pride of ownership. Did the person wash it frequently? Park it outside in winter? Don't like it your search to only rust proofed cars, you might find a garage parked car that's in better shape than a rust proofed one that was parked outside all winter.

Run the VIN as the above poster recommended before you get out of your way. I ran about 3 VINs before I found the right car, I saved a lot of time and hassle by doing that. I believe that a car made in Japan with have a VIN that starts with J. I do believe the 2009 is made in japan but a quick google searc will get you a definitive answer.

 

Japanese made cars have a VIN that starts with J and Chinese cars start with an L