Service HONDA FIT 2011 2.G User Guide

Before you begin driving your
vehicle, you should know what
gasoline to use and how to check the
levels of important fluids. You also
need to know how to properly store
luggage or packages. The
information in this section will help
you. If you plan to add any
accessories to your vehicle, please
read the information in this sectionfirst.Break-in Period
........................... 200
Fuel Recommendation ................200
Service Station Procedures .........201
Refueling ................................. 201
Opening and Closing the Hood ................................... 203
Oil Check ................................ 204
Engine Coolant Check ............204
Fuel Economy ............................. 205
Accessories and Modifications .......................... 208
Carrying Cargo ........................... 210
Before Driving
199
Before Driving
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Break-in Period
Help assure your vehicle's future
reliability and performance by paying
extra attention to how you drive
during the first 600 miles (1,000 km).
During this period: Avoid full-throttle starts and rapidacceleration.
Avoid hard braking for the first 200
miles (300 km).
Do not change the oil until the
scheduled maintenance time.
You should also follow these
recommendations with an
overhauled or exchanged engine, or
when the brakes are replaced. Fuel Recommendation
Your vehicle is designed to operate
on unleaded gasoline with a pump
octane number of 87 or higher. Use
of a lower octane gasoline can cause
a persistent, heavy metallic rapping
noise that can lead to enginedamage.
We recommend using quality
gasoline containing detergent
additives that help prevent fuel
system and engine deposits: In
addition, in order to maintain good
performance, fuel economy, and
emissions control, we strongly
recommend the use of gasoline that
does NOT contain harmful
manganese-based fuel additives such
as MMT, if such gasoline is available.Use of gasoline with these additives
may adversely affect performance,
and cause the malfunction indicator
lamp on your instrument panel to
come on. If this happens, contact
your authorized dealer for service.
Some gasoline today is blended with
oxygenates such as ethanol. Your
vehicle is designed to operate on
oxygenated gasoline containing up to
10% ethanol by volume. Do not use
gasoline containing methanol. If you
notice any undesirable operating
symptoms, try another service
station or switch to another brand ofgasoline.
Break-in Period, Fuel Recommendation
200
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Because the level of detergency and
additives in gasoline vary in the
market, Honda endorses the use of‘‘TOP TIER Detergent Gasoline ’’
where available to help maintain the
performance and reliability of your
vehicle. TOP TIER Detergent
Gasoline meets a new gasoline
standard jointly established by
leading automotive manufacturers to
meet the needs of today's advanced
engines. Qualifying gasoline retailers
will, in most cases, identify their
gasoline as having met ‘‘TOP TIER
Detergent Gasoline ’’standards at the
retail location. This fuel is
guaranteed to contain the proper
level of detergent additives and be
free of metallic additives. The proper
level of detergent additives, and
absence of harmful metallic additives
in gasoline, help avoid build-up of
deposits in your engine and emission
control system. For further important fuel-related
information for your vehicle, or
information on gasoline that does not
contain MMT, visit Owner Link at
owners.honda.com. In Canada, visit
www.honda. cafor additional
information on gasoline. For more
information on top tier gasoline, visit
www.toptiergas.com.
Refueling
1. Park with the driver's side closest to the service station pump.
2. Outside of the vehicle, push on theright side edge of the fuel fill door
in the middle. The fuel fill door will
pop up slightly. Pull it outward to
open it.
FUEL FILL DOOR
Push Pull out
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Fuel Recommendation, Service Station Procedures
201
Before Driving
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3. Remove the fuel fill cap slowly.You may hear a hissing sound as
pressure inside the tank escapes.
Place the fuel fill cap in the holder
on the fuel fill door. To prevent the
fuel fill cap from becoming lost, it
is attached to the fuel filler with atether. 4. Stop filling the tank after the fuel
nozzle automatically clicks off. Do
not try to ‘‘top off ’’the tank. Leave
some room for the fuel to expand
with temperature changes.
If the fuel nozzle keeps clicking off
even though the tank is not full,
there may be a problem with your
vehicle's fuel vapor recovery
system. The system helps keep
fuel vapor from going into the
atmosphere. Try filling at another
pump. If this does not fix the
problem, consult your dealer.
Gasoline is highly flammable
and explosive. You can be
burned or seriously injured
when handling fuel.
Stop the engine, and keep
heat, sparks, and flameaway.
Handle fuel only outdoors.
Wipe up spills immediately.
5. Screw the fuel fill cap back on until it clicks at least once. If you do not
properly tighten the cap, the
malfunction indicator lamp may
come on (see page 306). You will
also see a ‘‘CHECK FUEL CAP ’’
message on the information display.
6. Push the fuel fill door closed until it latches.
HOLDER
TETHER
FUEL FILL CAP
Service Station Procedures
202
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Opening and Closing the Hood
1. Park the vehicle, and set theparking brake. Pull the hood
release handle under the lower left
corner of the dashboard. The hood
will pop up slightly.
2. Put your fingers under the frontedge of the hood near the center.
Slide your hand to the left until
you feel the hood latch handle.
Push this handle up to release it.
Lift up the hood.
If the hood latch handle moves
stiffly, or if you can open the hood
without lifting the handle, the
mechanism should be cleaned andlubricated.3. Holding the grip, pull the supportrod out of its clip. Insert the end
into the designated hole in thehood.
To close the hood, lift it up slightly to
remove the support rod from the
hole. Put the support rod back into
its holding clip. Lower the hood to
about a foot (30 cm) above the
fender, then let it drop. Make sure it
is securely latched.
HOOD RELEASE HANDLELATCHSUPPORT ROD
GRIP CLIP
Service Station Procedures
203
Before Driving
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Oil Check
Wait a few minutes after turning the
engine off before you check the oil.
1. Remove the dipstick (orange loop).
2. Wipe off the dipstick with a cleancloth or paper towel.
3. Insert the dipstick all the way back into its hole.
4. Remove the dipstick again, andcheck the level. It should be
between the upper and lowermarks.
If it is near or below the lower mark,see Adding Engine Oil on page 255.Engine Coolant Check
Look at the coolant level in the
radiator reserve tank. Make sure it is
between the MAX and MIN lines. If
it is below the MIN line, see
Adding
Engine Coolant on page 258 for
information on adding the propercoolant.
Refer to Owner's Maintenance
Checks on page 252 for information
about checking other items on your vehicle.
DIPSTICK
UPPER MARK
LOWER MARK
RESERVE TANK
MAX
MIN
Service Station Procedures
204
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U.S. models only
Your vehicle is equipped with a tire
pressure monitoring system (TPMS)
that turns on every time you start the
engine and monitors the pressure in
your tires while driving.
Each tire has its own pressure sensor
(not including the spare tire). If the
air pressure of a tire becomes
significantly low, the sensor in that
tire immediately sends a signal that
causes the low tire pressure indicator
to come on.
Low Tire Pressure Indicator
When the low tire pressure indicator
is on, one or more of your tires is
significantly underinflated. You
should stop and check your tires as
soon as possible, and inflate them to
the proper pressure as indicated on
the vehicle's tire information placard.
If you think you can safely drive a
short distance to a service station,
proceed slowly, and inflate the tire to
the recommended pressure shown
on the driver's doorjamb.
If the tire is flat, or if the tire pressure
is too low to continue driving, replace
the tire with the compact spare tire
(see page 286). If you cannot make the low tire
pressure indicator go out after
inflating the tires to the specified
values, have your dealer check the
system as soon as possible.
Driving on a significantly under-
inflated tire causes the tire to
overheat and can lead to tire failure.
Under-inflation also reduces fuel
efficiency and tire tread life, and may
affect the vehicle's handling and
stopping ability.
Because tire pressure varies by
temperature and other conditions,
the low tire pressure indicator may
come on unexpectedly.
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Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)
237
Driving
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Changing a Tire with TPMS
If you have a flat tire, the low tire
pressure indicator will come on.
Replace the flat tire with the compact
spare tire (see page 286).
Each wheel (except the compact
spare tire wheel) is equipped with a
tire pressure sensor. You must use
TPMS specific wheels. It is
recommended that you always have
your tires serviced by your dealer or
qualified technician.
After you replace the flat tire with the
compact spare tire, the low tire
pressure indicator stays on. This is
normal; the system is not monitoring
the spare tire pressure. Manually
check the spare tire pressure to be
sure it is correct. After several miles
(kilometers) driving with the
compact spare tire, the TPMS
indicator comes on and the low tire
pressure indicator goes off.The low tire pressure indicator or the
TPMS indicator will go off, after
several miles (kilometers) driving,
when you replace the spare tire with
the specified regular tire equipped
with the tire pressure monitorsensor.
Never use a puncture-repairing agent
in a flat tire. If used, you will have to
replace the tire pressure sensor.
Have the flat tire repaired by your
dealer as soon as possible.As required by the FCC: This device
complies with Part 15 of the FCC rules.
Operation is subject to the following two conditions: (1) This device may not
cause harmful interference, and (2) thisdevice must accept any interference
received, including interference that maycause undesired operation.
Changes or modifications not expresslyapproved by the party responsible for
compliance could void the user'sauthority to operate the equipment.
This device complies with IndustryCanada Standard RSS-210. Operation issubject to the following two conditions:
(1) this device may not causeinterference, and (2) this device must
accept any interference that may causeundesired operation of the device.
Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)
239
Driving
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This section explains why it is
important to keep your vehicle well
maintained and how to follow basic
maintenance safety precautions.
This section also includes
instructions on how to read the
Maintenance Minder messages on
the information display, and
instructions for simple maintenance
tasks you may want to take care ofyourself.
If you have the skills and tools to
perform more complex maintenance
tasks on your vehicle, you may want
to purchase the service manual. See
page 337 for information on how to
obtain a copy, or see your dealer.U.S. Vehicles:
Maintenance, replacement, or
repair of emissions control
devices and systems may be done
by any automotive repair
establishment or individual using
parts that are
‘‘certified ’’to EPA
standards. Maintenance Safety
.....................246
Maintenance MinderTM............... 247
Fluid Locations ........................... 254
Adding Engine Oil ......................255
Changing the Engine Oil and Filter ....................................... 256
Engine Coolant ........................... 258
Windshield Washers ...................260
Transmission Fluid .....................261
Automatic Transmission Fluid ................................... 261
Manual Transmission Fluid ....262
Brake and Clutch Fluid ...............263
Lights .......................................... 264
Cleaning the Seat Belts ...............269
Floor Mats .................................. 269
Audio Antenna ............................ 270
Dust and Pollen Filter .................270
Wiper Blades .............................. 271
Tires ........................................... 275
Checking the Battery ..................281
Vehicle Storage ........................... 283
Maintenance
245
Maintenance
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All service items not detailed in this
section should be performed by a
certified technician or other qualifiedmechanic.
Important Safety Precautions
To eliminate potential hazards, read
the instructions before you begin,
and make sure you have the tools
and skills required. Make sure your vehicle is parked
on level ground, the parking brake
is set, and the engine is off.
To clean parts, use a commercially
available degreaser or parts
cleaner, not gasoline.
To reduce the possibility of fire or
explosion, keep cigarettes, sparks,
and flames away from the battery
and all fuel-related parts.
Wear eye protection and protective
clothing when working with the
battery or compressed air.
Improperly maintaining this
vehicle, or failing to correct a
problem before driving can
cause a crash in which you can
be seriously hurt or killed.
Always follow the inspection
and maintenance
recommendations and
schedules in this owner'smanual.
Potential Vehicle Hazards Carbon Monoxide poison from
engine exhaust. Be sure there is
adequate ventilation whenever you
operate the engine.
Burns from hot parts. Let the
engine and exhaust system cool
down before touching any parts.
Injury from moving parts. Do
not run the engine unless
instructed to do so.
Failure to properly follow
maintenance instructions and
precautions can cause you to
be seriously hurt or killed.
Always follow the procedures
and precautions in this owner's manual.
Some of the most important safety
precautions are given here. However,
we cannot warn you of every
conceivable hazard that can arise in
performing maintenance. Only you
can decide whether or not you
should perform a given task.
Maintenance Safety
246
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