2012 Honda Fit problems & reliability
113 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2012 Honda Fit, alongside 11 safety recall campaigns. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
3 complaints report injuries (3 injured).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 2012 Honda Fit vehicles were involved in 18 fatal crashes with 10 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Air Bags | 41 | 36% |
| Steering | 16 | 14% |
| Power Train | 14 | 12% |
| Engine | 12 | 11% |
| Electrical System | 9 | 8% |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 8 | 7% |
| Unknown OR Other | 5 | 4% |
| Seat Belts | 3 | 3% |
| Suspension | 3 | 3% |
| Electronic Stability Control (esc) | 2 | 2% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 50,500 miles (middle 50% between 18,500 and 79,000 miles), based on 68 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“The contact owns a 2012 Honda Fit. The contact stated that while making a turn from a complete stop at the exit of a gas station, the vehicle became immovable, and there was an abnormally high-pitched grinding sound coming from the front end of the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to AAA Auto Body Shop, where the…”
Power Train · filed Mar 12, 2026
“The electronic steering power assist failed several times in the past two weeks. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. The safety of occupants was put at risk because of the difficulty of steering safely in traffic. The car has not yet been taken to my dealer for evaluation. The vehicle or component…”
Steering · filed Jun 4, 2024
“While driving my regular commute to work with the radio on, the radio and interior lights (not sure if headlights because I can't see them) flashed on and off and the power steering warning light flashed on and off. At that time, the car jerked and I lost power steering for a moment. This happened several times and…”
Unknown OR Other · filed Jan 22, 2024
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- Electrical overstress
Engineering Analysis EA19001 · opened Apr 19, 2019 · closed Sep 19, 2024 · led to recall 20V024
Technical service bulletins
44 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2012 Honda Fit. The 10 most recent:
Service Bulletin - Warranty Extension: Customer Support Program For Driver's Airbag Inflator for 2007-11 CR-V and Other Listed Years and Models.
A18-048 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 28, 2026
"Service Bulletin - There are several A/C leak detection tools available. -Refrigerant Gas Leak Detector -Ultrasonic Leak Detector -Leak Dye"
A07-030 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 23, 2021
Service Bulletin - This bulletin is a notification of a class action settlement relating to airbag inflators. American Honda is offering a Customer Support Program (Warranty Extension) to cover any manufacturing defects…
A20-016 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 10, 2020
Service Bulletin - This bulletin is a notification of a class action settlement relating to airbag inflators. American Honda is offering a Customer Support Program (Warranty Extension) to cover any manufacturing defects…
A20-011 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 10, 2020
Warranty Extension: Customer Support Program For Front Passenger's Airbag Inflator for 2010-12 Accord and Other Listed Years and Models (Expires September 30, 2028)
19-003-1 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 13, 2019
Service Bulletin - American Honda is conducting an inspection of certain vehicles that have previously had the passenger's airbag inflator replaced as part of the Takata Passsenger's Airbag Inflator recall. If you…
A18-115 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 10, 2019
Service bulletin - This bulletin is a notification of a class action settlement relating to airbag inflators. American Honda is offering a Customer Support Program (Warranty Extension) to cover any manufacturing defects…
A19-002 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 18, 2019
Service bulletin - American Honda is conducting an inspection of certain vehicles that have previously had the passenger's airbag inflator replaced as part of the Takata Passsenger's Airbag Inflator recall.
A18100B · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 13, 2018
Service bulletin - This bulletin is a notification of a class action settlement relating to airbag inflators. American Honda is offering a Customer Support Program (Warranty Extension) to cover any manufacturing defects…
A18-055 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 8, 2018
Service bulletin - This bulletin is a notification of a class action settlement relating to airbag inflators. American Honda is offering a Customer Support Program (Warranty Extension) to cover any manufacturing defects…
A18-052 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 7, 2018
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 2012 Honda Fit has 11 NHTSA recall campaigns — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2012 Honda Fit?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 50,500 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.