10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
6 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
52,969 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2008 Honda Fit engine problems

engine problem

Find something helpful? Spread the word.
Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2008 Honda Fit:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

2008 Honda Fit Owner Comments

problem #14

Apr 152016

Fit

  • 30,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2008 Honda Fit. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle stalled with the check engine warning light illuminated continuously. The vehicle was able to restart after waiting. The failure recurred four times. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the ignition coils needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure persisted. The contact mentioned the vehicle was shuddering while accelerating the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the cylinders, valves, spark plugs, and head gasket needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 30,000.

- Charlottesville, VA, USA

problem #13

Jun 092021

Fit

  • 106,340 miles
The contact owns a 2008 Honda Fit. The contact stated that while turning into a parking lot approaching a parking space without warning the vehicle accelerated forward. The contact slammed on the brake pedal, however the vehicle failed to stop. The contact depressed the brake pedal again and the vehicle came to a complete stop. The contact shifted the vehicle gear into park. The vehicle has not been diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure however no further assistance was taken and the manufacturer informed the contact that the warranties had expired, and to contact NHTSA to log a complaint. No dealer was contacted. The contact mentioned NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V770000 (Power train) as a possible solution to the failure however, the VIN was not included. The failure was approximately 106,340.

- Dallas, TX, USA

problem #12

Mar 112020

Fit

  • 58,191 miles
The contact owns a 2008 Honda Fit. The contact stated that while driving 5 mph, the vehicle independently accelerated. The contact stated she turn the steering wheel to right and depressed the brake pedal. The contact stated the vehicle began to move forward. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to independent mechanic however, the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The contact called paragon Honda located at 57-02 northern blvd, woodside, NY 11377, 718- 508-5000 and plaza Honda located at 2722 nostrand ave, brooklyn, NY 11210, 718-253-8400, but was unable to speak to a representative at neither dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The contact was also unable to reach a representative with the manufacturer. The failure mileage was 58,191.

- Brooklyn, NY, USA

problem #11

Nov 152017

Fit

  • 77,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I was pulling into a space at work with my foot on the break. The car was straight at that point. All of a sudden the engine revered and accelerated and hit the garage outside wall/pipe. Car bounced back about 6 feet.

- Olympia, WA, USA

problem #10

May 292017

Fit

  • 108,000 miles
Car has been stalling taken it to several mechanics plus the dealership and they can't find the problem. Today was the worse it stalled 3 times at a drive thru and twice while at a busy intersection. It seems the car stalls more often if the air condition is on I do not feel safe driving around with my windows rolled down plus high temps. Today I noticed the car accelerated after idling at a traffic light since I am not the primary driver I don't know how long this has been going on. Between the stalls and speed acceleration I am a nervous wreck driving this car. The mileage on car 108000 and it is an automatic VIN# [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #9

Apr 232017

Fit 4-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 96,000 miles
The contact owned a 2008 Honda Fit. While driving 70 mph with the cruise control activated, a tractor trailer pulled in front of the vehicle. The brake pedal was depressed to disengage the cruise control; however, the vehicle accelerated instead. The contact stated that the brake pedal was depressed a second time and the vehicle accelerated again. The vehicle crashed through several bushes in the median of the highway and came to a stop on the opposite side of the highway towards oncoming traffic. The contact was not injured and a police report was not filed. The contact stated that the shift lever was in the park position; however, the cruise control indicator was still illuminated and the engine revved independently. The vehicle was turned off and towed to an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired and the insurance company deemed the vehicle destroyed. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 96,000...updated 06/06/17 updated 9/28/18

- San Francisco, CA, USA

problem #8

Mar 172014

Fit

  • 36,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

My 2008 Honda Fit sport began having a "surging" issue from the 2nd week after I bought it new in 2008. I would tap the brakes to slow down and the engine would surge. Hitting the brakes a second time usually stopped it but throwing it into neutral helped too. I reported it frequently to the Honda dealer and they could not find the problem and said they had never heard of it. It continued for 4 years, and then seemed to stop for the next two years. This past March, it started again, and I was able to stop the car before an accident occurred. Then it happened while I was coming down the hill I live on. The car was in 2nd gear (using the shifter), and I tapped the brakes to slow a bit. The engine began accelerating and going faster. The brakes did no good; neither did the emergency brake; finally, the brakes gave out and my foot was flat on the floor. I finally put it into park and it slowed down to a stop. I had it towed to the dealer and they found no problem, even though I put it into park while moving, nor could they find any reason for the acceleration. American Honda is no help either. They did buy the car back, but have sold it as a used car, and I fear for the person who purchased it. I'm sure they did not look into the problem further. On your website, I found seven (7) similar reports for the 2008 Fit and five (5) more for the 2009. Owners have reported this problem on edmunds.com for several years, yet the Honda sales manager did not want to look at the printout I gave him. Here are the NHTSA id#S that report a similar problem: 10523098, 1049187, 10425811, 10344231, 10323002, 10317179, 10282552, 10266390, 10368077, 10329557, 10308988, 10280593. Please investigate this matter - it is very serious.

- Honolulu, HI, USA

problem #7

Oct 302013

Fit 4-cyl

  • 86,000 miles
The car suddenly lost acceleration on the highway, with the check engine light flashing. The mechanic later found fault with ignition coils. All coils were replaced, but they keep failing one after another, creating potential dangers (e.g., loss of power and crash on the highway).

- Glenside, PA, USA

problem #6

Jan 102011

Fit 4-cyl

  • 32,540 miles
Parking on a side street behind another car applying brake, and woosh! car took off in what I've later learned was an "unintended acceleration, " running into the car in front and smushing in the hood of my car. I thought I had let my foot slip or had skid on some ice, but later similar incidences made me wonder. This last time (May 30, 2013), again was parking car and applying break in a parking lot (full of lawyers' cars!) and as I approached the space, car very quickly sped up and I nearly crashed into a light pole and/or beautiful new (expensive) car to my right. I'm sure anyone witnessing this would see a driver slowing down and then car jerking amazingly forward, like a horse at the beginning of a race. I was so very lucky in that I was able to steer racing car into parking spot and make an abrupt stop (I don't know how). Quite scary! I looked up what could be the cause of this phenomenon and discovered this as an unacknowledged "known issue" with supposedly no known fix. Dangerous!

- Independence, MO, USA

problem #5

Sep 232012

Fit 4-cyl

  • 34,000 miles
When I backed out of my daughter's driveway, I tried to shift the automatic transmission from park to reverse. It clicked but would not go in reverse as I lifted my foot from the brake. It rolled forward slightly. I put it back in park again and decided to try once more. There was no floor mat on the floor. There were no cars coming at this point. I shifted into reverse and removed my foot slowly from the brake. The car flew into the street with rapid acceleration and I couldn't brake for an oncoming car, which I crashed into. The Fits left tail light and bumper were hit at such an angle and impact that my car spun forward and the transmission moved into drive. The air bag did not deploy. The brakes would not stop the car and it went zooming across my daughter's lawn, almost hitting a huge palm tree and a utility pole. It then spun around and finally stopped before it almost crashed into my daughter's house where my grandson was watching behind the window. The occupants of the other car in the crash said they had never seen anything like this and were willing to testify to that fact. The police report lists mechanical failure as the cause. The Honda Fit was towed to an auto body shop and repaired at a cost of $4400. The repair people would not test drive it because they were afraid to. They demanded that the car be towed to the Honda dealer for inspection. The tow truck driver experienced the rapid acceleration problem too as he was moving the car to the tow truck. He had to remove the key. The Honda dealer said they inspected the car and could find nothing wrong. I won't drive that car again and traded it in at Honda. They said the car was going to auction. Whoever buys that car could have a major problem.

- Fitchburg, WI, USA

problem #4

Sep 162011

Fit 4-cyl

  • 14,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

After backing slowly out of a parking place, I put the automatic transmission into drive. My foot was still touching the brake pedal and the car suddenly accelerated rapidly. I slammed my foot down on the brake, but it continued to move forward. I quickly moved the gearshift to neutral, the engine raced and then slowly returned to idle. I immediately stopped and checked the floor mat, but it was flat on the floor. My foot was not on the accelerator when the acceleration occurred, and if the mat were interfering with the accelerator pedal, the engine speed would not have raced and then slowly decreased after I put it in neutral. This was clearly a malfunction. I have an engineering background and know the difference between driver foot error and equipment malfunction.

- Homer, AK, USA

problem #3

Jun 222007

Fit

  • 43,200 miles
The contact owns a 2008 Honda Fit. While driving 5 mph and attempting to make a U-turn she shifted from drive to reverse as her foot was on the brake pedal; the vehicle lunged forward and crashed into a wall. There were no injuries. The front bumper was damaged. The police were not notified. The insurance company was notified about the crash. The vehicle was towed from the scene to a repair shop. The dealer was called and informed of the incident and advised her to bring the vehicle in for diagnostic testing because they never heard of the failure. The Toyota manufacturer was not notified. The failure and current mileages were 43,200.

- San Diego, CA, USA

problem #2

Feb 132010

Fit

  • 20,000 miles
The contact owns a 2008 Honda Fit. The contact was driving approximately 2 mph when he attempted drive in reverse, the vehicle suddenly accelerated causing the vehicle to crash into three parked vehicles. The contact was transported to the hospital; however, there were no injuries. The vehicle was damaged. A police report was not filed for the incident. The vehicle was towed to a collision center. The manufacturer had a specialist inspect the vehicle with no findings to determine the cause of failure. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer one year ago after it accelerated. The technician was unable to locate the problem. The failure and current mileages were 20,000.

- Rehoboth Beach, DE, USA

problem #1

Dec 012007

Fit

  • 300 miles
The contact owns a 2008 Honda Fit. While reversing from a parking space at approximately 2 mph; there was a sudden increase of acceleration. The driver stated the accelerator pedal was positioned extremely close to the brake pedal. The failure occurred on six separate occasions. The manufacturer was unable to assist when notified of the malfunction. The failure mileage was 300. The current mileage was 13,064.

- Fort Wayne , IN, USA

Not what you are looking for?