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2007 Honda Fit Sport: Additional Mystery Service?

Photo by Caroline Pardilla
So I dropped off the Fit at Honda of Santa Monica today because the yellow wrench light appeared , and the guy there said that judging from the mileage it would actually get the 10,000-mile service not the 15,000-mile one that the Edmunds Maintenance Guide suggested. OK, that's fine. But when I got back to the office and looked at the work order, it said the preliminary estimate is $165, not $77 (as the guide noted). Apparently in addition to the 10,000-mile service, I was getting fixed up with 32 fluid ounces of something called ZMax "for new and used car improved break-in improved performance." Wha?

Mike, the Vehicle Testing Assistant, called the garage right away to make sure they took that off and reiterated that we just want the suggested manufacturer service maintenance and the guy said that he took it off...
I can't help but wonder if that addition was a genuine mistake or if it was more sinister like thinking a "girl" wouldn't notice something like that? But, oh, I noticed.

Production Editor Caroline Pardilla at 10,823 miles

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11 Comments

bennetpullen says:

11:18 AM, 05/17/07

Hmmm, when I got my 10,000 mile service(B1 on the dash) it cost me $33.36. Sounds to me like that dealer's service dept is trying to rip people off!

SubyTrojan says:

11:51 AM, 05/17/07

Can you say "stealership?" At 10k miles, the car's already been broken-in. The Edmunds maintenance guide also forgot to include the price of the oil itself on the list. You probably should let someone in data know.
 
Like sodaguy said in your previous entry (http://66.160.188.111/roadtests/1055), all that probably should have been done was an oil service and tire rotation.
 
What does the technician's story/comments say on the repair order?

langjie says:

11:54 AM, 05/17/07

they are definitely trying to rip you off. zmax? come on now! if you wanted that crap in your car, you can go to autozone and buy it yourself for $30 a bottle

stingray454 says:

01:33 PM, 05/17/07

Yep, typical stealership maneuver. Another classic is charging for tire rotation on a car that has unidirectional staggered tires (which can't be rotated). Another classic rip off are the "inspect" services, where the owner's manual calls for inspecting heat shields, etc. At 15k miles, the chances of a heat shield falling off are very remote, so most dealerships don't even bother to look at them, check off the box that they did it, and charge $100 for checking the checkboxes.
 
One of the many reasons I do all the servicing on my vehicles myself. Honest dealerships are few and far between.

SubyTrojan says:

01:55 PM, 05/17/07

Having worked in the service department (not as a service advisor, but as a warranty administrator) of a BMW and an Acura dealership, I have to agree with most of what stingray454 said (I don't agree with not checking a heat shield because of low mileage. For example, 2004 Acura TLs have a know problem with noise caused by the intermediate shaft heat shield if I remember correctly).
 
For BMW oil services and inspection services, many of the technicians would just check off the boxes without actually inspecting everything on the checklist (some techs would just check the boxes while the oil is being drained). BMW of North America actually requires that these checklists be attached to the repair order for maintenance service performed under their Full Maintenance Plan. Let's just say there was a good number of times these checklists didn't make it to me with the repair order.
 
It's not only a matter of finding an honest dealership, but finding good, honest technicians to service vehicles.
 
It's a "pickle" because the dealerships are trying to move as many vehicles through as quickly as possible because that's how they make a significant amount of their money. You have techs who really care about the work they do and some who only care about getting the vehicle out of their stalls. The more maintenance services a tech can perform quickly, the more money the dealership and the tech make. The best ones are those who can do a good job and work quickly, which aren't around every corner.
 
The bottom line for me is:
Would I trust the establishment and the people working there with my vehicle?

desmolicious says:

05:51 PM, 05/17/07

Hah! That's the dealership that was asking $6k over sticker for the Element when it first came out....

minnie2 says:

04:01 AM, 05/18/07

For me I would trust the establishment and the people working there with my vehicle because Honda Cars produces excellent service like honda civic performance parts

sxty8stang says:

06:42 AM, 05/18/07

Stay off here spammer. Mods, you should remove that idiot's post.

greenpony says:

10:57 AM, 05/18/07

That's what I love about these long-term car tests. If the dealership KNEW you were with Edmunds, I'm sure they'd be on their best behavior. As it is, not only do these blogs help people make better informed decisions about which vehicle to buy, but also about which dealer to get service from. Maybe you should look for a different dealership.

bobw3 says:

06:13 AM, 05/23/07

I only took my Fit in for my first oil change/rotation. From this point on, I can replace my own air filter and I'll take my car to any number of local places who only charge $25 (and $5-10 less with a coupon that nearly always in some paper). Subtract the price of the oil and filter, and I'm paying someone else $10 to $15 to get dirty and dispose of the oil. Plus they normally top off the fluids.

vodka says:

07:36 PM, 08/ 2/07

I've driven many cars since I've been at Motor Trend, and I expected to be underwhelmed with the Fit, considering its low price. But this is truly a fun little car for the economy-minded. The Fit Sport comes with six speakers (the tweeters make a huge difference), 15-inch wheels, honda spoiler, foglights, cruise control, and a few other goodies-all for about $1300 more than the base model. And i have a news from my friends that it is easy to purchase one as going to the grocery store.

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