Parts for your 2005 Honda Fit-Steering bushes

2005 Honda Fit (GD) steering bushes — are they actually used?

Short answer: steering bushes are not a separate, serviceable part on the 2005 Honda Fit (GD series, a.k.a. Jazz in AU/NZ). According to the Honda Fit/Jazz 2001–2008 (GD) Service Manual (Steering – EPS), the rack-and-pinion assembly is bolted directly to the front subframe, and Honda does not specify separate rack-mount rubber bushes for this model. The Electronic Parts Catalogue (EPC) for GD1/GD3 further backs this up by listing the steering gearbox, brackets and bolts, inner/outer tie-rods, and column components, but no standalone steering rack bushes. The EPS column’s internal bushings are part of the column assembly and are not serviced individually.

Why it’s built this way: the GD Fit uses column-assist electric power steering. Honda engineered the steering rack to mount solidly to the subframe to keep steering feel precise and reduce compliance. NVH (noise, vibration, harshness) control is instead handled by other chassis bushes — especially the front lower control arm bushes and stabiliser (sway) bar bushes — rather than soft rack mounts. If looseness develops in the steering on this model, it’s typically due to inner/outer tie-rod wear, the rack guide, or play in suspension bushes, not failed steering rack bushes.

What owners usually mean when they ask about “steering bushes” on a 2005 Fit is one of the following:

• Front lower control arm rear bushes (very common wear item and a big contributor to steering feel and braking stability)
• Stabiliser (sway) bar D-bushes and link bushes (can creak or clunk over bumps)
• Inner tie-rods (rack ends) and outer tie-rod ends (cause play or knock and uneven tyre wear)
• Steering column universal joint wear or stiffness

Practical servicing tip: if the steering feels vague or there’s a clunk on a 2005 Fit, a good workshop will check inner/outer tie-rods, the rack for axial play, control arm bushes, sway bar bushes/links, and confirm the subframe and rack fasteners are torqued to spec. If internal EPS column bushings are worn, Honda’s documentation calls for column replacement rather than a bush-only repair.

Technical references consulted: Honda Fit/Jazz 2001–2008 (GD) Service Manual, Steering (EPS) section – Steering Gearbox Removal/Installation and Exploded View, Honda EPC for GD1/GD3 steering gear and column diagrams. Both sources show no separate, serviceable steering rack mount bushes on this model.

• Does a 2005 Honda Fit have replaceable steering rack bushes?
  Not as a separate part. The rack mounts solidly to the subframe and Honda doesn’t list stand-alone rack bushes for the GD Fit/Jazz. If there’s play, look first at inner/outer tie-rods and the rack guide, then at suspension bushes.
• What usually causes steering looseness if not the rack bushes?
  Common culprits are worn inner tie-rods (rack ends), outer tie-rod ends, front lower control arm rear bushes, or sway bar bushes/links. Any of these can make the steering feel vague or cause knocks over bumps.
• Can aftermarket polyurethane steering rack bushes be fitted?
  There isn’t a mainstream, model-specific rack bush kit for the GD Fit because the rack isn’t designed with separate mount bushes. Poly kits do exist for other Hondas, but for the GD Fit the smarter spend is on control arm and sway bar bush upgrades if crisper steering is the goal.