NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
Engine complaints
40 reportsClear category filter51,000 miles · Mar 10, 2019
Engine
WHILE IN MOTION, THE PLASTIC ENGINE SPLASH GUARD CAME OFF AND WAS DRAGGING ON THE ROAD AT 80 MPH. ONLY 1 PIN WAS LEFT IN ON INSPECTION. IT MAKES A HORRIBLE NOISE LIKE A TIRE WENT FLAT. THIS GUARD MUST BE REMOVED TO CHANGE THE OIL AND IT WAS CHANGED BY DEALERSHIP 2 WEEKS PRIOR. THIS IS THE 2ND TIME IT HAS HAPPENED IN THE 14 MONTH…
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WHILE IN MOTION, THE PLASTIC ENGINE SPLASH GUARD CAME OFF AND WAS DRAGGING ON THE ROAD AT 80 MPH. ONLY 1 PIN WAS LEFT IN ON INSPECTION. IT MAKES A HORRIBLE NOISE LIKE A TIRE WENT FLAT. THIS GUARD MUST BE REMOVED TO CHANGE THE OIL AND IT WAS CHANGED BY DEALERSHIP 2 WEEKS PRIOR. THIS IS THE 2ND TIME IT HAS HAPPENED IN THE 14 MONTHS I'VE OWNED THE CAR. THE CLIPS THAT HOLD IT IN ARE PLASTIC, THEY DO NOT HOLD AND HAVE TO BE REPLACED AFTER EVERY OIL CHANGE. THIS IS A SAFETY AND ROAD HAZARD TO OTHER DRIVERS. THERE ARE MANY, MANY COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS IN HAND FIT FORUMS. IT IS A DESIGN FLAW AND MANY OWNERS HAVE TAKEN TO PUTTING ON ZIP TIES AFTER OIL CHANGES.
NHTSA ODI #11185694
64,203 miles · Jan 28, 2019
Engine
VALVE TIMING CONTROL (VTC) ACTUATOR IS DEFECTIVE AND CAN CAUSE CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE. THE ISSUE MANIFESTS ITSELF AS AN OCCASSIONAL INNOCUOUS RATTLE AT COLD-START (AFTER SITTING OVERNIGHT). AMERICAN HONDA HAS ISSUED SERVICE BULLETIN 16-088 (FEBRUARY 2017) TO ADDRESS DEFECTIVE VARIABLE VALVE TIMING CONTROL (VTC) ACTUATORS ON…
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VALVE TIMING CONTROL (VTC) ACTUATOR IS DEFECTIVE AND CAN CAUSE CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE. THE ISSUE MANIFESTS ITSELF AS AN OCCASSIONAL INNOCUOUS RATTLE AT COLD-START (AFTER SITTING OVERNIGHT). AMERICAN HONDA HAS ISSUED SERVICE BULLETIN 16-088 (FEBRUARY 2017) TO ADDRESS DEFECTIVE VARIABLE VALVE TIMING CONTROL (VTC) ACTUATORS ON THE 2015 HONDA FIT (HTTPS://TESTING-PUBLIC.CARMD.COM/TSB/DOWNLOAD/118695/A16-088) AND MANY MORE SERVICE BULLETINS FOR DEFECTIVE VTC ACTUATORS IN OTHER OF ITS VEHICLES OVER THE YEARS (E.G. HTTPS://STATIC.NHTSA.GOV/ODI/TSBS/2016/SB-10088283-2280.PDF). WE WERE LUCKY ENOUGH TO VIDEO-RECORD ONE OF THE EPISODES AND GET THE CAR TO THE DEALER - WHERE THEY DIAGNOSED THE ISSUE AND PERFORMED REPAIR. IT IS UNSETTLING THAT HONDA IS NOT BEING PROACTIVE IN ADDRESSING THIS ISSUE BEFORE AN EXPLODING EYING CAUSES HARM.
NHTSA ODI #11172677
42,000 miles · Jan 8, 2019
EngineVehicle Speed Control
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2015 HONDA FIT. WHILE DRIVING 55 MPH, THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED AND FAILED TO RESPOND. AFTER SEVERAL SECONDS, THE VEHICLE INDEPENDENTLY ACCELERATED. PARKER HONDA (LOCATED AT 5327 HWY 70 W, MOREHEAD CITY, NC 28557, (252) 247-2488) WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE COIL…
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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2015 HONDA FIT. WHILE DRIVING 55 MPH, THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED AND FAILED TO RESPOND. AFTER SEVERAL SECONDS, THE VEHICLE INDEPENDENTLY ACCELERATED. PARKER HONDA (LOCATED AT 5327 HWY 70 W, MOREHEAD CITY, NC 28557, (252) 247-2488) WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE COILS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 42,000.
NHTSA ODI #11165871
48,000 miles · Jan 4, 2019
EngineFuel/propulsion System
VEHICLE HAS 48,000 MILES. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON, TOOK IT INTO DEALERSHIP FOR DIAGNOSIS. ALL FOUR FUEL INJECTORS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED DUE TO GUMMING (NOT DUE TO QUALITY OF FUEL). THE VEHICLE RECEIVED A SAFETY RECALL SERVICING IN 2016 THAT COULD AFFECT THE FUEL INJECTORS, BUT NO ISSUES WERE RECORDED BY THE DEALERSHIP. THE V…
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VEHICLE HAS 48,000 MILES. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON, TOOK IT INTO DEALERSHIP FOR DIAGNOSIS. ALL FOUR FUEL INJECTORS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED DUE TO GUMMING (NOT DUE TO QUALITY OF FUEL). THE VEHICLE RECEIVED A SAFETY RECALL SERVICING IN 2016 THAT COULD AFFECT THE FUEL INJECTORS, BUT NO ISSUES WERE RECORDED BY THE DEALERSHIP. THE VEHICLE IS UNDER A SERVICE BULLETIN ON FAULTY FUEL INJECTORS FOR ALL VIN'S OF THE HONDA FIT 2015, AND THE NTSB NUMBER FOR THAT IS: A16-034. BOTH SERVICE TECHS AND CUSTOMER SERVICE AT HONDA FOUND THE ISSUE TO BE ABNORMAL ESPECIALLY BECAUSE THE ISSUE EFFECTED ALL FOUR INJECTORS, NOT JUST ONE.
NHTSA ODI #11165290
48,000 miles · Jun 26, 2018
EngineFuel/propulsion System
MY VEHICLE BEGAN RUNNING ROUGHLY AND ALL THE DASH LIGHTS CAME ON. I WAS TOLD THERE IS A MISFIRE IN ONE OF THE CYLINDERS AND THIS COULD BE AN EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE REPAIR. MY VEHICLE HAS 48000 MILES ON IT AND THIS SHOULDN'T HAPPEN. FROM DOING SOME ONLINE RESEARCH, THIS SEEMS TO BE A RECURRING COMPLAINT BY SEVERAL PEOPLE.
NHTSA ODI #11104102
Mileage unknown · Apr 24, 2018
EngineUnknown Or Other
DEAR NHTSA, MY 2015 HONDA FIT RATTLE'S ON COLD START INITIALLY WHEN YOU START THE ENGINE. AFTER ABOUT 6-8 HOURS AFTER LETTING THE ENGINE COOL THE NOISE WILL REAPPEAR. THE ISSUE IS THE VTC ACTUATOR. BEING A FAIRLY NEW VEHICLE FOR IT'S AGE IT'S VERY DISAPPOINTING TO HEAR SUCH DISTURBING NOISE EVERY TIME I START UP THE CAR. …
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DEAR NHTSA, MY 2015 HONDA FIT RATTLE'S ON COLD START INITIALLY WHEN YOU START THE ENGINE. AFTER ABOUT 6-8 HOURS AFTER LETTING THE ENGINE COOL THE NOISE WILL REAPPEAR. THE ISSUE IS THE VTC ACTUATOR. BEING A FAIRLY NEW VEHICLE FOR IT'S AGE IT'S VERY DISAPPOINTING TO HEAR SUCH DISTURBING NOISE EVERY TIME I START UP THE CAR. I HAVE BEEN EXPERIENCING THIS FOR THE PAST YEAR, STARTING IN JUNE 2017. AT FIRST, MY UNDERSTANDING WAS THAT IT WAS THE ENGINE SPLASH GUARD. LAST YEAR I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY (70MPH ZONE) AND ALL OF A SUDDEN I HEAR A SCRAPPING NOISE. THE ROAD WAS COMPLETELY FREE OF DEBRIS, AND WHEN I PULLED OVER THE ENGINE SPLASH GUARD CAME UP, ALONG WITH BREAKING BOTH TABS ON THE FRONT BUMPER. I HAD ENGINE SPLASH REPLACED 3 MONTHS AGO USING BRAND NEW CLIPS (PLASTIC WHICH ACTUALLY ENDS UP BREAKING) AND SCREWS. EVEN AFTER FIXING THE ENGINE SPLASH GUARD, THE VTC RATTLE NOISE STILL APPEARED. RECENTLY, THE ENGINE SPLASH GUARD STILL MANAGED TO POP OFF ON THE FREEWAY. AT THIS POINT, I'M FED UP WITH THE TERRIBLE DISAPPOINTMENT THIS VEHICLE HAS GIVEN ME ALONG WITH ITS BUILD QUALITY. ANOTHER THING TO NOTE IS THE DOOR PANEL MAKING A RATTLING NOISE. AFTER TAKING OFF THE DOOR PANEL, I NOTICED THE THE PLASTIC LINING IS DETACHING FROM THE BLACK GLUE THAT IS KEEPING IT IN PLACE. POSSIBLY, THE HEAT IS CAUSING THE BLACK GLUE TO MELT.
NHTSA ODI #11089792
5,000 miles · Apr 13, 2018
Engine
WHEN USING THE ECON BUTTON, MY VEHICLE ENGINE OFTEN DIES AT A STOP. I'VE CHECKED IT OUT SEVERAL TIMES AND IT ONLY DOES THIS WHEN THE ECON SYSTEM IS ACTIVATED. TAKING IT TO DEALER ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS, BUT IT NEVER HAPPENS FOR THEM AND IT NEVER THROWS A MALFUNCTION CODE. WORKS FINE DURING NORMAL OPERATION. ONE OTHER PROBLEM, WHE…
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WHEN USING THE ECON BUTTON, MY VEHICLE ENGINE OFTEN DIES AT A STOP. I'VE CHECKED IT OUT SEVERAL TIMES AND IT ONLY DOES THIS WHEN THE ECON SYSTEM IS ACTIVATED. TAKING IT TO DEALER ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS, BUT IT NEVER HAPPENS FOR THEM AND IT NEVER THROWS A MALFUNCTION CODE. WORKS FINE DURING NORMAL OPERATION. ONE OTHER PROBLEM, WHEN THIS ISSUE ARISES IS THAT I CANNOT RESTART THE CAR WITHOUT GETTING OUT OF THE VEHICLE AND TAKING THE KEY FOB OUT OF RANGE FOR AT LEAST 30+ SECONDS. ONCE THE ELECTRONICS RESET, I CAN ONCE AGAIN START THE VEHICLE. AS YOU CAN VISUALIZE, THIS IS SOMETIMES A DANGEROUS SITUATION OUT ON A BUST ROAD OR STREET.
NHTSA ODI #11084914
Mileage unknown · Apr 8, 2018
Engine
MY CAR MAKES A HORRIBLE GRINDING SOUND WHEN IT TURNS ON. IT'S DONE IT SINCE I GOT THE CAR AND MY DEALER WOULD NOT FIX IT WHEN IT WAS UNDER WARRANTY.
NHTSA ODI #11083876
13,000 miles · Jan 31, 2018
Engine
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2015 HONDA FIT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE ENGINE SPLASH GUARD SEPARATED SEVERAL TIMES AFTER THE VEHICLE RECEIVED ROUTINE MAINTENANCE AT SPREEN HONDA (25050 REDLANDS BOULEVARD, LOMA LINDA, CA 92354, PHONE (909) 799-7070). THE DEALER REPLACED THE ENGINE SPLASH GUARD; HOWEVER, THE CONTACT WAS CHARGED FOR TH…
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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2015 HONDA FIT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE ENGINE SPLASH GUARD SEPARATED SEVERAL TIMES AFTER THE VEHICLE RECEIVED ROUTINE MAINTENANCE AT SPREEN HONDA (25050 REDLANDS BOULEVARD, LOMA LINDA, CA 92354, PHONE (909) 799-7070). THE DEALER REPLACED THE ENGINE SPLASH GUARD; HOWEVER, THE CONTACT WAS CHARGED FOR THE ENGINE SPLASH GUARD REPLACEMENT. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 13,000.
NHTSA ODI #11066088
56,863 miles · Sep 28, 2017
Electrical SystemEngine
THE STARTER IN MY 2015 HONDA FIT DIED. I PURCHASED THE CAR SEPTEMBER OF 2014 AND THE STARTER DIED SEPTEMBER 2017, THAT'S A THREE YEAR LIFE CYCLE ON THE PART.
NHTSA ODI #11030401
Official recalls
4Oct 23, 2015
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2015-2016 Fit LX-trim vehicles manufactured April 11, 2014, to July 02, 2015 and not equipped with a sunroof. In the affected vehicles, the rear grab handle brackets were not manufactured properly, and as a result, the brackets may puncture the side curtain air bags upon their deployment. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 214, "Side Impact Protection" and number 226, "Ejection Mitigation".
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the side curtain air bags are punctured upon deployment, the outboard seat occupants may be at a higher risk of injury during a crash.
Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear grab handle bracket, free of charge. The recall began on December 18, 2015. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is JV8.
Additional source detail variants (2)
Structure
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2015-2016 Fit LX-trim vehicles manufactured April 11, 2014, to July 02, 2015 and not equipped with a sunroof. In the affected vehicles, the rear grab handle brackets were not manufactured properly, and as a result, the brackets may puncture the side curtain air bags upon their deployment. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 214, "Side Impact Protection" and number 226, "Ejection Mitigation".
Consequence: If the side curtain air bags are punctured upon deployment, the outboard seat occupants may be at a higher risk of injury during a crash.
Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear grab handle bracket, free of charge. The recall began on December 18, 2015. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is JV8.
Air Bags:side/window
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2015-2016 Fit LX-trim vehicles manufactured April 11, 2014, to July 02, 2015 and not equipped with a sunroof. In the affected vehicles, the rear grab handle brackets were not manufactured properly, and as a result, the brackets may puncture the side curtain air bags upon their deployment. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 214, "Side Impact Protection" and number 226, "Ejection Mitigation".
Consequence: If the side curtain air bags are punctured upon deployment, the outboard seat occupants may be at a higher risk of injury during a crash.
Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear grab handle bracket, free of charge. The recall began on December 18, 2015. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is JV8.
Sep 15, 2015
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2014-2015 Civic vehicles manufactured January 16, 2014, to November 6, 2014 and 2015 Fit vehicles manufactured March 12, 2014, to May 12, 2015. The software settings that control the transmission operation may result in damage to the transmission drive pulley shaft.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the transmission drive pulley shaft is damaged, it may break, and the vehicle may lose acceleration or the front wheels may lock up while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will update the software for the transmission, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin October 30, 2015. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are JU2 (Civic) and JU3(Fit).
Sep 3, 2015
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2015 Fit vehicles manufactured December 6, 2013, to August 28, 2014. The affected vehicles may experience damage to the wires inside the Plug Top Ignition Coils (PTC) due to improper protection against electrical noise.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the wires become damaged, the coil may overheat and cause the engine to stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the Plug Top Ignition Coils with new design, free of charge. The recall began on October 9, 2015. Owners may contact Honda Automobile Customer Service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is JT9.
Jul 30, 2014
American Honda Motor Co. (Honda) is recalling certain model year 2015 Honda Fit vehicles manufactured April 11, 2014, to June 9, 2014. The affected vehicles may have been assembled with an A-pillar interior cover designed for vehicles without side curtain air bags.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: The affected vehicles are equipped with side curtain air bags and in the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the side curtain air bags, the incorrect A-pillar interior cover may adversely affect the performance of the side curtain air bags increasing the risk of occupant injury.
Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the A-pillar interior cover and install the correct A-pillar cover, as necessary, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on September 25, 2014. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-800-999-1009. Honda's number for this recall is JF9.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
1EA19001 · Electrical Overstress
Opened Apr 19, 2019 · Closed Sep 19, 2024
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Air Bags: Air Bag/restraint Control Module
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation to determine if the failure of airbags to deploy during severe crashes, in certain vehicles, was the result of a safety related defect. During the investigation a complex failure was studied that can result in non-deployment of subject vehicle air bags and other restraint system devices in severe crash events. The subject vehicles may be equipped with an airbag control unit (ACU) for the supplemental restraint system (SRS) Electronic Control Unit (ECU) manufactured by ZF-TRW. The ECU receives signals from crash sensors mounted in the vehicle and deploys the vehicle air bags and seat belt pretensioners in accordance with manufacturer design specifications. The ECU in the subject vehicles contains a model DS84 application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) which controls the communication of the crash sensor signal, firing commands (i.e., when to deploy the airbag(s) and/or pretensioners), and fault information (e.g., diagnostic trouble codes). In September 2016, FCA announced recall 16V-668 for certain model year (MY) 2010 to 2014 Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep products manufactured with the subject ZF-TRW ACU. In this recall, FCA discussed an EOS condition that resulted in a failure of the subject DS84 ASIC, which caused air bag non-deployment. FCA noted that the defect condition had only been observed in vehicles equipped with sensor harnessing routed across the front of the vehicle. Other FCA vehicles that also used the subject ACU, but were not equipped with cross-car harnessing, had not experienced EOS failures, despite similar time in service. During the course of this investigation, ODI sent two separate Information Request (IR) letters to six vehicle manufactures (including FCA, Hyundai, Honda, Kia, Mitsubishi, and Toyota) and one IR letter to ZF-TRW. These IR letters resulted in ODI receiving comprehensive data from these manufacturers and suppliers. Studies of this data found that the DS84 ASIC does not have sufficient protection against negative electrical transients or electrical overstress (“EOS”) that can be generated in certain severe crashes. An electrical transient occurs when the electrical power supplied to a circuit changes momentarily over a short duration of time. In these severe crash cases, the crash sensors and other powered wiring can be damaged and short circuited so as to create a negative electrical transient of sufficient intensity and duration (that are outside the vehicle manufacturer's specification) to damage the ASIC before the restraint device deployment signal is received by the SRS ECU. This damaged signal can lead to incomplete or nondeployment of the air bags and/or pretensioners. Airbag non-deployment and/or lack of pretensioner operation can increase the risk or severity of injury in a crash.A total of 8 fatalities and 14 injuries were associated with known EOS events. The common element in all investigated manufacturers vehicles is the SRS ECU containing a DS84 ASIC manufactured by ZF-TRW. The risk associated with the ASIC is equally shared among all OEMS involved in the investigation. The actual real-world risk can be mitigated by other factors which were assessed by ODI during this investigation. The first mitigating factor involves protections built into the ACU design which protect the DS84 ASIC from damage. There are multiple strategies and levels of protection employed by different OEMs that provide effective EOS mitigation. The two most common strategies at the ACU level are circuit protection diodes on the remote senor signal lines, and current limiting resistors that protect critical components. The second mitigating factor is found at the vehicle level and involves the location and routing of the wires leading from the crash sensors to the SRS ECU. If the wires are well protected in a crash and are not routed with other power wires carrying large currents, the risk for an EOS event is significantly reduced or eliminated. These design specific factors combine to produce a spectrum of risk for the vehicles equipped with ACUs using the DS84 ASIC. Given the many of years of field exposure, it is possible to divide the subject population into two groups; vehicles which have experienced EOS events, and vehicles which have not experienced EOS field events. Four of the six OEMs involved in this investigation have experienced EOS field events on at least one of their models equipped with a DS84 ASIC. All vehicle models (including the Toyota models identified in the Failure Report Summary of the opening resume for this investigation) with field events have been recalled. In an abundance of caution, ODI kept this investigation open five years to monitor field performance and did not identify any field events on vehicles not included in existing safety recalls. Given the spectrum of risk identified in this investigation and that all vehicles with a demonstrated unreasonable risk have been recalled, ODI is closing this investigation. ODI is closing this investigation with the following manufacturer safety recalls: 16V-668, 18E-043, 18V-137, 18V-363, and 20V-024. With the recall actions taken by the subject vehicle and equipment manufacturers, this investigation is closed. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exists on other model or model year vehicles outside of the recall scopes. The agency reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.
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