Not happy,
I have just shy of 50 000kms on my 2009 standard Honda Fit. Yesterday it started making this very distinct whine when starting in first gear on an uphill slant. I took it in to my local Honda dealer (Pacific Honda in North Vancouver) but they were too busy to do a ride along to listen to it. I spoke with the guy behind the desk who basically told me that it may very well be a fairly major clutch problem, and that Honda considers clutch problems like brake pads... normal wear and tear...

Not happy, some guidance would be really awesome right now, because I certainly cant afford a new clutch.

Has anyone had to battle for a warranty on their clutch with Honda before? Were you successful and if so how did you go about it?

 

...69 views no responses... gear heads, anyone???

 

I doubt it's your clutch. Is it slipping? One way to test if your clutch is slipping is when on 5th gear, floor your gas pedal and see if your rpm raises. This indicates worn clutch. I don't see any corelation with worn clutch and whining noise.

Only thing with your problem is that you state you're hearing whining noise when on 1st gear when going uphill. This IMO is normal. I hear some whining noise too when in 1st gear and turning around 2-3000 rpms even on flat surface.

What is your driving condition? do you do a lot of stop and go, up hill driving? These conditions involve you driving in lower gear selections which is harder on the MTF.

IDK with how it will go with warranty claim. I doubt it's your clutch being worn out but if it is, it'll be hard as like you said, it's a wear item. When I was still a mechanic at Nissan, there was an Xterra with a M/T that had a worn out clutch at only 14k miles. Warranty was denied and they coughed up the money to get it replaced.

But, if your whining noise is being caused by a throw out bearing, it should be covered under warranty.

 

@onemiglandicho awesome thank you for the reply. I don't think my clutch is slipping at all, it seems to be all okay as per usual, just this weird noise, I will try the fifth gear test tomorrow.

I do not do a lot of stop and go or particularly uphill driving, it is mainly highway kms. The reason I am nervous is because the noise just showed up recently (past 3 or 4 days) and it can be pretty distinct when I'm on an uphill slant.

I have since done a bunch of looking around and I think it may be a lubrication problem with a spring connecting the pedals to the clutch (sorry for my limited mechanical knowledge) Apparently this has happened to a few other people...

I am going into Honda tomorrow and hopefully I will have some answers to post here.

 

Hello blogosphere, I come back with updates after doing a ride along with a Pacific Honda Mechanic named Arthur who's job it is to identify noises. We were able to re-create the noise, he told me "He has never heard anything like this in his career" and that the noise was definitely "not normal and out of place"

We went back to the shop and put it on the lift. Nothing out of the ordinary, no fluid leaking no vibrating exhaust (just some strange oil in my front grill that he suspects was from another vehicle) No conclusions and no theories, just a recommendation to drive it for a week to see if it goes away then bring it in for diagnostic time...

Can anyone out there positively identify this noise, or give me more theories to go back to Honda with? If so it would be really helpful and might save me hundreds in "diagnostic time"

Thank you fit freaks
Pat

 

Diagnosing sounds is difficult in person, even worse over the 'Net. "Back in the day" of my shade-tree mechanic youth I'd have said a "whining" may be a throw-out bearing going bad, but usually that was more of a shrill metal-on-metal sound, and I don't know why it would be limited to uphill starts. If the clutch disc was worn it would slip, and I don't think a cracked/broken "finger" on the pressure plate would cause a "whine". Are you sure you're not just hearing the normal transmission gear whine, which would be more pronounced in low gear?

 

A whining noise can be a lot of things. As mentioned by Doug, identifying a noise in person is already hard enough sometimes, it is even harder on the web.

How about try making a sound/video clip of the said noise?

When you go back to the dealership, try replacing your MTF and see if it goes away. You'd have to cough up the money on it but at this point, it's the only advice I can give. Besides, you're already at about 30k miles so maybe your MTF is due for drain and fill anyway. I know the recommended change interval is around 100k (or was it 60k?) miles before replacing the MTF but I think that's too much of a stretch. in severe duty, at least for A/T, the owner's manual states to replace the tranny ATF initially at 60k miles and every 30k miles there after. I know it does not concern you as you have an MT, just a food for thought.

Before you go ahead and decide to drain and fill your MTF, see what your mechanic has to say first.

 

Hey Pat, did you ever get this diagnosed? Mine started making the same sound a few weeks ago.

Thanks!

 

Mine just started making this noise to. Any updates?

 

Miles on car? Have you changed the fluid yet?

 

throwout bearing, maybe.

but at 50K km, who knows. it could be the car or your driving habits that caused it.
have the dealer take a look. nothing more you can do at this point unless you take it to another private mechanic for replacement work or consultation.

i would look at the drivetrain warranty details while you wait.

 

The throwout bearing is in use only when the clutch pedal is depressed. Release the clutch pedal and start moving the throwout bearing isn't used.

Your description sounds like a transaxle noise to me.

Clifton