- #23 of 30
-
Re: Crashed due to brakes? [shelley04]
by dadof6
-
Apr 25, 2009 (11:19 am)
-
|
|
Replying to: shelley04 (Apr 23, 2009 9:19 am)
1st--Your Honda dealer is not allowed to get in the middle something like this as it's a liability issue with Honda America. You'll have to deal with Honda directly. Speak with Honda customer service telling them you had an accident you feel was caused by a defect in the car.
2nd-Is the car equipped with cruise control?
|
- #24 of 30
-
Re: Crashed due to brakes? [dadof6]
by shelley04
-
Apr 25, 2009 (11:53 am)
-
|
|
Replying to: dadof6 (Apr 25, 2009 11:19 am)
I spoke to Honda American constumer service and they refused to do anything to help me or admit that there can be any problem. They say that I must have hit the accelerator and am therefore liable for everything. They refused to convey any kind of message to Honda and refused to give me the district manager's contact information, as did the dealer. I am in the process of writing a letter to Honda American and copying the dealer and the dealer I purchased it from [who refuses to speak to me.] Also I am going to have to spend money to retain a lawyer since they refuse to speak to me or do anything. My insurance company is trying to put pressure on Honda but they said they don't have much leverage.
The car has cruise control but that was not involved in any of these jumping forward incidents as they all happened when the car was stopped with the brake pedal on or moving at very low speed. We've only used the cruise control once or twice, as we have not driven the car long distances, and it worked fine.
|
- #25 of 30
-
Re: Crashed due to brakes? [shelley04]
by dadof6
-
Apr 25, 2009 (2:59 pm)
-
|
|
Replying to: shelley04 (Apr 25, 2009 11:53 am)
Keep at it with Honda America---you have to be more stubborn than they are.
I take it this is an automatic transmission? Is it the Fit Sport?
Is it factory cruise control & listed on the factory window sticker?
The thing about stepping on the wrong pedal happens more than you would think--this is why they are harping on that point of veiw.
|
- #26 of 30
-
Re: Crashed due to brakes? [shelley04]
by blue_car
-
May 29, 2009 (6:42 pm)
-
|
|
Replying to: shelley04 (Apr 23, 2009 9:19 am)
I found your post because I was looking for others having the same problem as I'm having. I have a 2008 FIT. I haven't crashed (yet) but it's certainly very disconcerting. It usually occurs at very low speed, when I step on the brake the engine surges, but only occassionally. The first time it happened I thought maybe I'd accidentally stepped on the accelerator, but since I've NEVER done that before, I thought it was a bit weird that I'd do something like that. It's happened 3 more times since then, and each time I've verified that my foot is on the brake peddle. I have to really mash down on the brake to stop the car. It has happened both when going straight and when turning, so I don't think that has anything to do with it, and road conditions have always been dry.
I will be taking it to my Honda dealer next week, but since it's not something that happens every time, I expect that it will not occur during the test drive. I hope Honda America will take this seriously and correct the problem before someone gets hurt, as could very easily happen if it occurs when there's a pedestrian or bicyclist near the front of the car.
|
- #27 of 30
-
Re: Crashed due to brakes? [blue_car]
by shelley04
-
May 29, 2009 (7:48 pm)
-
|
|
Replying to: blue_car (May 29, 2009 6:42 pm)
The dealer won't do anything. They have had my car since April 4, and they say it has not done it for them, and they have checked brakes and other relevant systems. Honda America will not allow them to replace anything as nothing is defective. We are going in to negotiate with them next week, but the best we can do is for them to say they have checked everything and nothing is defective. I am going to have to try to sell the car myself as I don't think I can drive it again. They are blaming me because I walk with a cane and they say I don't push the pedal down far enough. However it only happened about once a week, at low speeds, and certainly after the first time I pushed that pedal down until my leg ached. It also happened to my boyfriend when he was driving it, and he is very strong. The car lept forward while it was stopped at a stoplight and he had to slam the brakes again. They clearly do not believe that this happened. I printed out all of the threads from this site and also from Car Talk, but they will not do anything. We consulted a lawyer who said we have a very weak case. By the way, it cost me $2800 to hit a parked car at low speed so crashing into anything is a very bad idea!
So [violins playing] I am a handicapped senior citizen who will have to pay $18K for a car that won't stop, so it can't be driven. I live in a rural area and am trapped without a car. This is the 4th Honda I have owned and I will probably never have another one. I only bought it because I thought it would be a good idea to have a car with automatic instead of my 5-speed CRV.
Good luck and let me know what happens when you go to Honda. You're right, it won't happen again on a short test drive or even if they keep it and drive it slowly around a parking lot. Whatever it is leaves no traces on the computer record.
|
- #28 of 30
-
Re: Crashed due to brakes? [shelley04]
by shelley04
-
Jun 02, 2009 (9:22 pm)
-
|
|
Replying to: shelley04 (May 29, 2009 7:48 pm)
The dealr officially told me today that they will not do anything to the car or to help me get rid of it. Someone from Honda America is coming next week to talk to them about it, but the official policy is that they have never heard of this problem before so it is only this car, or more likely this driver that caused the failure to stop. They will not even give me a trade-in price for it, citing the serious hail damage as a major detriment to resale--even though their body shop has repaired it and you can't see a single mark in bright sunlight. They will give me a service report saying that the car works. From what I can tell, from the other cases and this one, it is due to a problem with the computer telling the car to speed up when the car is going too slow. They are not going to replace the computer or reprogram it when only a few cars have this problem. Either there are only a few cars that have this problem, or they have managed to keep it covered up by blaming "wrong pedal" or other driver error.
So unless we can find something other than a Honda to trade it in for, I will have to sell it myself.
I intend to write a blistering letter to Honda America, to the dealer who sold me the car [who never replied to any of my phone calls] and to my state attorney general about this, and I can't ever see buying another Honda. Prominently displayed on the agent's desk was a survey citing Honda as the No. 8 most trusted company in the US.
|
- #29 of 30
-
Honda Fit Sport 2009 Brakes Failed Crash
by grateful1
-
Aug 16, 2009 (3:07 pm)
-
|
|
On June 25th I was in an accident. I was going only 25 mph or less. I tapped my brakes and nothing happened. I did it again and nothing happened. I put my foot to the floor and nothing happened. I sat there saying to myself "It's a new car. It will stop." It only stopped because I hit the truck in front of me. Since my car was low, the impact did not hit the sensor for the airbags. There was about $9500 of damage. It could not be totaled because it has to be 75% of the value of the car. I still don't have my car back. Honda dealership said that they did a thorough check and there was nothing wrong. I was told by my insurance agent that when the brakes go out they don't come back. So there isn't a problem with the brakes. I am afraid to drive my car again.
|
- #30 of 30
-
Honda Fit 08 Brake Failure
by kathyd226
-
Nov 23, 2009 (8:12 am)
-
|
|
I was in an accident, dry road conditions, 50 mph with plenty of space to stop. I am waiting on the adjustor. Looks like it's totalled, hoping so at this point as I too am terrified to drive the car. The car skidded for 30+ feet and rear-ended a rav4. Air bags did not deploy. Hit the brakes, they went to the floor, abs was vibrating but car would not stop. Anyone have any suggestions on contacting honda? this is the 2nd time this has happened. It happened 2 weeks after I bought the car, again, car skidded at 25mph and t-boned another car. And again, no air bags.
|
![[F]](http://a332.g.akamai.net/f/332/936/12h/www.edmunds.com/media/townhall/webxicons/site.gif){kind=small}
Forums
Hatchbacks 
