So I got a new Insight and I think the excitement has worn off

[dirty hippie]

Now comes some concern and reflection. I guess in a test drive you can only do so much. Now that I have the car and can drive it though its "courses" with as much time as I need, I'm beginning to notice some things.

1. I've been keeping an eye on the coolant level and temp guage because the other day I had to replace the rubber tube that's inside the resevoir tank. That meant emptying the tank and refilling with fresh coolant. Also added some coolant to the radiator to the neck line. It looks like the resevoir tank is doing it's jub: during operation cooant spilled into it and when engine cooled it siphoned coolant from the tank. Today after a 10-mile drive, I popped the hood and noticed a bit of coolant splashed around the res. tank. Looking at it, I can see the coolant slightly "bubbling" to the surface. The coolant level is pass the MAX and about an inch from the cap. Air in the system? Is having coolant leaking out from the res. tank bad and damaging to the tank itself?

When I drive, temp reads 6 bars consistently. Now I'm reading about a blown head gasket?

2. No heat when I turn on heater. No matter what. I think at one point when I pressed OFF in the climate control and then dialed the knob to the red zone I could get heat for a few seconds and then just regular air. One time the AC kicked on. What's happening here?

3. Is it normal to hear a whizzing sound when turning the temperature knob? It seems to be coming from the passenger-side dash.

4. I noticed a very slight whine or whiz when I accelerate. Normal?

5. Sometimes I think I hear the compressor/belt unit make a whine sound, even when no AC.

6. Is it normal for the radiatorfan and AC fan to kick in at thes ame time? I noticed the AC fan turns on even when the AC is off.

7. How do I know if my shocks are shot? The rear squeaks, creaks, and scrunches every now and then, especially when I make a quick turn. Doesn't always do it over bumps. Sometimes I hear it from the front. I was told that the bushings may just need some greasing.

8. I checked the CVT fluid today per manual's instructions. The color is a very light amber and is just pass the upper hole. What color exactly is CVT fluid for the insight?

I've spent the past couple of knights doing searches here and online and I still need some reassurance.

[RobertSmalls]

1. The thing about following the slightly tedious coolant drain and fill procedure involving the bleeder valve and a funnel is it's pretty much guarateed to get air out of the system so you can move on to other things.

2. Start with #1, then check the temperature of the heater core hoses under the hood. If they're cold, then the water valve is probably closed. If they're hot, look for a problem with the air blend doors.

3. That's probably the blend door actuator, center dash.

4. Yep! The Inverter makes two kinds of interesting sounds for your amusement while you apply assist and regen.

5. Verify its tension and condition? Or as NPR's Car Talk would suggest, turn up the radio a little.

6. That sounds about right, if the A/C is on.

7. Google: bounce test. Also inspect for shock oil leakage. And yes, grease the bushings if they squeak.

8. I don't even know how to drive an automatic, can't help you there.

I think you'd love the factory service manual, if you don't have one already.

So, take a little time and work some of the squeaks and quirks out of it. Then learn to live with the rest of them. My Insight is a great car, and it's very reliable despite its age.

[griffga]

CVT fluid should be nearly clear if it's still good. It may have a slight reddish tint to it if it's over 20K miles since it has been changed. If it is amber though maybe you have the Honda ATF-Z1 fluid and not the CVT fluid in it? Either that, or it definitely needs to be changed. I'm not sure, someone else should comment. I just know that the Honda CVT fluid is slightly reddish much like aircraft hydraulic fluid.

[Cobb]

I have never had any luck with used cars no matter how hard you check them out. Sounds like you got some work, then you will have a nice car.

The CVT fluid is nearly clear new, slightly tan with 10 thousand mile use. Brown when abused. You may see an inline filter where it plumbs to the cooler in the lower radiator. I replaced mines already, but its an i2.

The radiator should be full of fluid, so it uses the overfow tank daily. If it bubbles when idling, you got a head gasket leaking.

Someone may of blocked the heater core to make the ac cooler, cant speak for the rest.

[dirty hippie]

Someone may of blocked the heater core to make the ac cooler, cant speak for the rest.

The PO had the AC serviced prior to selling. How can the heater be blocked? Can it be unblocked and how?

The radiator should be full of fluid, so it uses the overfow tank daily. If it bubbles when idling, you got a head gasket leaking.

About the overflow coolant tank. By bubbles, are we talking about lots of bubbles as in how when water boils? After a 10-mile drive, I popped the hood with engine idling and looked at the overflow tank. I don't know if I saw tiny bubbles surfacing to the top. There weren't many and really hard to tell if they were bubbles, just that I saw movement in the coolant. Is this normal when coolant is hot?

[devin1955]

Originally Posted by dirty hippie

About the overflow coolant tank. By bubbles, are we talking about lots of bubbles as in how when water boils? After a 10-mile drive, I popped the hood with engine idling and looked at the overflow tank. I don't know if I saw tiny bubbles surfacing to the top. There weren't many and really hard to tell if they were bubbles, just that I saw movement in the coolant. Is this normal when coolant is hot?

No, it's not.

[dirty hippie]

Okay, looks like things may be looking up. I'm getting things squared away.

I really like the car. I think when you spend serious money on a new or "new" car, you start thinking twice about your purchase when something is wrong or seems to be wrong.

I've not seen any serious bubbles or overfilled expansion tank since my last observation when I though I saw the coolant boil n the tank. I've bled the system via the bleeder bolt.

The PO is gonna look at the AC/heater.

The things I don't like about the Insight or any non-European car is the tin-can sound of the doors. I'm used to the vault-like thud of slamming a door on a M-B or Volvo. Also, don't like the road noise, but I knew about that before I got an Insight, so it's not a big deal. Do any of you have issues with closing the hood? The manual says drop it once hood is a foot away from latch. That seems to work well with me. I have a hard time latching the hood using the gentle pressing of the hood method.