I have a 2007 Honda Fit Sport, 5A, with about 57K miles. I bought it about 3 weeks ago, and it’s been in the shop every week with the same problem. I’m not sure that the dealer can fix it, so I’ve come here for suggestions.
When I was test driving the car, I noticed a “clunking” or rattling noise coming from the front passenger side wheel/suspension area. It would happen both when going over bumps, but you could even hear it going over an otherwise smooth road. It’s a Honda Certified Pre-Owned, though, and the salesman said I could bring it to the service department if it had any problems. The car was otherwise perfect, and the Carfax report has nothing of concern such as a wreck, etc. So I bought it and have loved the car, except for the noise.
I took the car back to the dealer. They heard the problem, and the mechanic “tightened a few things up” on the suspension. That fixed the problem for 2 days until it rained, and then the noise came back. I took the car back. Again they “tightened up everything to factory specs”, and the noise went away for a week. It rained this past Wednesday, and the noise came back. I took it back to the dealer for a third visit that day. The dealer ordered a new strut for me, confident that would fix the noise for good. Yesterday I picked it up, and when I drove it off the lot, the noise was back as strong as ever. Supposedly the mechanic had driven it before I picked it up and could not hear the noise any more. Apparently he didn’t drive it enough.
This is just maddening to me. I didn’t hesitate to buy a Honda Certified car because of the great experience of another Honda Certified vehicle we have. I would have thought the Certified process would have caught (and presumably fixed) a problem like this. The rain (or water) seems to have something to do with the noise, though I’m not sure what.
If you have any thoughts on this, I’d be grateful. I’m planning to take it back to the dealer for the 4th time this morning. Thanks very much.
I had a similar problem with my 2000 Blazer. It turned out to be the hood that was rattling/clunking over bumps. The hinges bolts had some play in them. Replacing the washers with conical washers fixed the problem. I still have to tighten the hinge bolts occasionally.
Try wedging something into the hinge area to see if that makes a difference.
Good luck,
Ed B.