Honda: Honda Fit Valve adjustment, mazda design, honda fit

Question
Hi Gary,
Thanks for your very informative answer. The reason I wanted to check the valve adjustment is that I first heard a sound like loose valve since the car was almost new. This clicking occurred at 3000 rpm, light throttle, engine not fully warmed up. Now this clicking has gotten louder and seems to occur when the engine has warmed up in addition to when cold. I have been a mechanic since 1968, Mercedes Benz, VW, Moto Guzzi, Subaru. All of these were in the 1970's and solid lifters. So I am fairly familiar noises that engines make. I have a 1995 Ford Escort which made a similar noise, I kept listening and not quite sure what it was, I kept driving over a period of months and a few thousand miles. Then one day I heard a bang and a rattle sound. I thought the clutch cover blew apart since it came from the clutch end. I listened some more and reve'd the engine and the noise got louder. So I had the car hauled to my shop. I took compression and there was none in 2 and 4. So I took the head off and found the intake valve seat # 4 had come out of the head, the piston broke it into pieces and it migrated to the other 3 cylinders! Head and pistons were ruined.
So how does this relate to the Honda Fit? The noise is very similar to the noise in the Escort!
I will go to the Vo-Tech nearby and borrow the OBO tester and check the voltage, as you told me to. I guess I am just too far out of date to think of checking valve clearance with MAP voltage! B-)
Thanks for the help!
Danny

Answer
Well, the MAP reading will be very helpful. I'm not sure which engine your Escort had. Was it a Mazda design twin cam? I haven't seen any valve seat issues on the Honda engine except for the older CR-V engine. Those would get a bit of a rough idle or even a cold misfire as the seats wore and the valves got too tight.