Things holding me back from buying a Honda insight 1st gen.

[vmirjamali]

I've been reading up on the Honda Insight battery issues and how the Ima battery goes out frequently. I'm wondering if i purchase a 2002 insight with 120k miles, and the battery goes out after the 150k mile or 10 year, is there any repercussions to run just on a 12v battery other then the assist?

Also any body been through a crash with one of these, are they safe?

Fascinated by the car and the mpg it gets, it's just the battery that a major stopper atm. Seems like a non hybrid civic hx or a tdi would be a better buy if the batteries are such an issue, any input on this?

Thanks!

[MN Driver]

Originally Posted by vmirjamali

I've been reading up on the Honda Insight battery issues and how the Ima battery goes out frequently. I'm wondering if i purchase a 2002 insight with 120k miles, and the battery goes out after the 150k mile or 10 year, is there any repercussions to run just on a 12v battery other then the assist?

Also any body been through a crash with one of these, are they safe?

Fascinated by the car and the mpg it gets, it's just the battery that a major stopper atm. Seems like a non hybrid civic hx or a tdi would be a better buy if the batteries are such an issue, any input on this?

Thanks!

Battery issues, I think that people notice the battery issues more when reading the forums because you don't usually hear about people who have good experiences but rather usually when you hear of bad ones. If the battery goes out you lose some performance because you don't have the electric assist during acceleration, you don't have autostop to stop your engine from idling while sitting in neutral when stopped, you live with a light on the dash indicating there is a problem with the IMA system, the car starts off the 12volt battery like a normal car instead of the high voltage pack with the IMA system. The biggest issues are that you lose the extra power and you lose regen. I personally wouldn't mind either of those two things but since I'm looking to install MIMA to manually control my assist and regen and grid charge the pack instead of having the gas engine recharge it as I drive down the road, I want that pack working, otherwise I'd be inclined to remove it as the benefits aren't much as I can't regen much anyway with my highway commute.

Hope This Helps!

[Varak]

The way I look at it is that the IMA battery is just another major component that may or may not go out.

They don't go out 'frequently' since most seem to last 60-100K miles.

If it does go out, you can get it rebuilt by one of our members for $750-$1250.

If you want to look at it from a mathematical standpoint, the car will save enough money in gas to replace the battery in less than 2 years of average driving.

Quick and dirty math numbers:

Gasoline - $3/gallon

Insight - 60MPG = 5 cents/mile
Civic - 30MPG = 10 cents/mile

5 cents per mile savings * 12K miles/year = $600 in savings per year.

For people, like myself, who drive significantly more than 12K miles/year the savings is even greater.

I've had my car 15 months and have put 75K miles on it and have saved $3750 in gas.

So I'm going to come out well ahead even when I have to rebuild the battery sometime down the road.

It is also worth mentioning that the repair costs on this car are significantly lower than most other cars. The basic wear and tear items last much longer on this car due to its extremely low weight.

My car has 172K miles and it still has the original rear brakes (30% left). The first set of front brakes last 97K miles and the second set lasted 68K miles.

The Bridgestone OEM tires are rated at 40K miles, but seem to last 60-80K (varies by driving conditions obviously).

Spark plugs are expensive, but are 105K miles between replacements.

For myself, at least, this car has the lowest operating cost of any vehicle I've ever owned.

Over 75K miles it has cost me:

Gas cost - 4.43 cents/mile
Repairs - 1.47 cents/mile

Total - 5.9 cents/mile

Nothing else can come close to that bottom line number.

And even if I had to spend $1K on a new battery, that would only be 1.3 cents/mile.

[jkbrushaber]

The civic is a good choice. A TDI is a good choice. The Insight is a good choice. It depends on what you want. The civic will give you good mpg. The TDI will do better, but deisel is more expensive. The insight with give you insane mpg but is only a 2-seater, and could require a battery replacement. Read as much here as you can and decide for yourself. Most of the people here were able to justify their purchase, and are very happy with their decision. No car is for everyone. Try to decide what you need/what, and make sure and ask any needed questions here.

Kevin

[vmirjamali]

I see, I only drive 5k miles a year at the moment. Will definately need to do more research. The issue with batteries is it's like another engine every 5-6 years.

Just wondering do these batteries wear down due to age or mileage? Since I drive only 5-6k miles a year, will they just wear down due to age causing me to replace them every 5-6 years, or every 30-35k miles or do they actually last 60-100k miles?

[TexasCommuter]

Originally Posted by vmirjamali

I see, I only drive 5k miles a year at the moment. Will definately need to do more research. The issue with batteries is it's like another engine every 5-6 years.

Just wondering do these batteries wear down due to age or mileage? Since I drive only 5-6k miles a year, will they just wear down due to age causing me to replace them every 5-6 years, or every 30-35k miles or do they actually last 60-100k miles?

I read somewhere (here or elsewhere) that it's long-term parking (for weeks or months) that does the most damage to the hybrid battery. If this is so, driving 100 miles per week every week totalling 5,000 mi/year should be OK; driving once every few months for long distances totalling 5000 mi/year, not so good.

I was in a wreck in my Insight (at 25mph, I hit the left rear side of a red-light-running SUV, totalling my car). I was not only unhurt, I was astounded at how well the Insight's passenger cage protected me, and how solidly the car was built. I bought that first Insight for the stellar mileage, but I bought its replacement for the stellar mileage AND its super-strong, super-safe construction.

Good luck!

[vmirjamali]

Interesting good to know, and how long has your battery lasted in your insights? And avg mpg? Thanks

[Varak]

My battery was replaced under warranty by the previous owner.

The new battery has gone ~100K miles (75K by me) and is starting to feel a bit weak.

I'm currently building a grid charger to extend its life, but I expect to have to rebuild it within the next 25-50K miles.

[vmirjamali]

I see. When I'm trying to figure out at the moment, is whether it's time that kills it or miles. I'm starting to think it's time like 5-6 years rather then miles. Which is why we see cars with less miles who are older with dead batteries. Anyway here who noticed the same?

[Varak]

The biggest killer is letting the car sit for extended periods of time without driving it.

The car needs to be driven regularly (at least once a month I think?) in order to exercise the batteries.