Should I buy it (2000 MT Gen 1)?

[joecvt]

Originally Posted by Wocketman

Hey JoeCVT,

I see in your sig. that you are running a cooling fan with a solar panel. Is that cabin cooling or something else (battery, etc.)?....

It is only used for cabin cooling using 12v fans behind the two cargo rear vents. It is only a 5W panel so it doesn't have much power to spin larger fans. It does an ok job on very hot days to keep the cabin a bit cooler.

JoeCVT = Just your average CVT owner

[Wocketman]

Originally Posted by Eli

I'm interested to hear about your Italian solar cells.

I think most of the Insight enthusiasts are probably into alternative energy.

Just to throw some random information out there, the Insight seems to draw 9-11A with no accessories on. The headlights bump it up to ~25A. The radiator fan coming on bumps it up to ~40A.

They better be some pretty darn efficient solar cells.

Egads, that's a lot of juice. Aren't there some low-drain LED headlight bulbs available?

I need to do some measurements of the roof, but some of you probably have them? My solar panel sizes are here: Solar Power Solutions

Hopefully could fit at least one of the SP-100L's (100W)?

[Wocketman]

Hi folks,

Thanks for the help & advice. I didn't get the 2000 MT in Rockport, Maine if you want to check it out: 2000 Honda Insight Hybrid

I know they have some others interested.

Just don't have the bandwidth right now to diagnose and address all the issues with this one. Besides, I need to get the GF's VX out of the garage first anyway...

[Balboa]

It'll make a good budget beater car now that I see it if you run it as a gas car, but it's definitely not something you want to buy as the car you plan to own unless you think you can do the paint job yourself. You were smart to walk away.

The car has obviously been through hell and back, and then some. A good paint job is going to cost you about the price of a good used honda insight, lol. By good I mean you can find a nice one with 90k or so for like 6k and even less, maybe.

Not to mention that second hand insight parts aren't cheap, and dealer parts for the insight are through the roof. You can spend $45 at a dealer for just replacing gaskets to clean the egr plate.

Just by calculating what you could sell all the parts for the car alone...you might get $1300 out of it, not sure.

I'd talk the guy down to $900 and just fix it enough to use as a gasoline engine car. It's just not worth repainting or restoring. Too much time, money, and effort on a 12 year old Honda.

[Wocketman]

Yeah, I thought about a low offer. But didn't want to work them over. Also, it's the time involved that really drove my decision as much as the cost. Just too busy now. I've offered to let them keep some of the deposit since they gave a few days to think it over, when they had other offers.

[Eli]

Originally Posted by Balboa

It's just not worth repainting or restoring. Too much time, money, and effort on a 12 year old Honda.

I would agree if it were just a Civic or Accord, of which there are millions of them on the road.

The Insight needs to be treasured. It needs to be saved. They're already too rare to just throw them into the scrap heap nonchalantly.

When my fiancee and I buy a house next year, I hope to start a business specializing in fixing and reselling used and abused Insights.

The Insight is more than just a car. It's a way of thinking, a way of being. Your mindset is exactly what the Insight eschews. You don't get rid of the Insight and "buy another car", at least not yet. You buy another Insight, because there is nothing else out there like it. It's a special car, and it should be treated like one.. Not relegated to the scrap heap because a previous owner didn't know what they had.

[Wocketman]

Eli,

Hear hear!! I'm with you all the way. I knew that I can't do this car justice; I hope if winds up in the hands of someone like you who can treat her right.

FWIW, I've often thought someone should scour the earth for good CRX-HF's and Civic-VX's and restore them also. They are the highest mpg non-hybrids ever made and have a lot more room than the Insight. Especially the VX; you can fit a road bike in the back (after folding down the rear seats) without even taking the wheels off!

[Eli]

Yeah, I agree. I guess in reality the world is full of unique and special cars that the public at large has forgotten about. In that case, it's up to enthusiasts like you and me to keep them alive.

The Insight is nice because it's like a CRX-HF on MPG steroids, plus a few modern amenities and safety features.

I think you should find a decent non-basketcase car for your first Insight. Until you experience your first 80MPG tank, a lot of people would likely drive the Insight going "Why?". I would hate to see troubles sour your view of the car because you got one that was quite abused.

There are deals to be had. I bought Insight #3 for $1800 and it's in overall great condition. Just gotta keep your eyes peeled...and be parepared to either travel, or have it shipped.

[Balboa]

I definitely wasn't comparing it to a Civic or Accord.

Granted I can't knock a civic or accord as those cars can literally last forever and parts are so cheap and easy to find it's a great common sense economical car.

The Insight is great. It is very unique and rare and I like it for what it is, a good economical car, and fun car to drive. But being a rare car doesn't necessarily increase it's value. There are a lot of rare cars out there that are not worth anything.

I love the Insight but I guess me and Eli disagree with the collectible worthiness of it.

I think as tech advances and zero emission cars continue to come to rise and mpg isn't even a factor any more, the Insight will be remembered as a pioneering environmentally friendly vehicle, but it won't be the first hybrid...not even the first mass produced hybrid...so it loses in that regard.

What fame the Insight does have is being the most fuel efficient vehicle with the Prius right on it's tail. Now I'm talking about the official mpg numbers of the car. Not what people can get on this forum, or the best mpg that Prius owners have gotten in their forums...

I'm talking about the official mpg numbers labeled on the car when bought new.

First mass produced hybrid from what I've read is actually the Toyota Prius which debuted in 1997 in Japan.

The first gas/electirc hybrid came decades earlier, actually a little more than a century earlier.

So as far as being a collectible I don't think it's a certainty that the Insight is headed down that road, especially as zero emission cars become the norm in the next couple of decades.