Thinking of Buying a 2001 Insight?

[leejm12]

Found a 2001 Insight with 133k in VA. Thinking of buying it. From what I've
been reading it seems the Automatics are less reliable then the MTs. Does
anyone have any feedback on this? They want $5400 which seems to me
to be a good deal for that mileage. Haven't done a car-fax yet but thats my next move. Do the MTs really get up to 70+ mpg vs 50 for the automatic? Also anyone have any knowledge of the 3rd party battery replacement folks? Are they as good or better than the Honda batteries? Thanks, -J

[Eli]

Hmm. I'm not sure about the CVT Insights being less reliable. I don't think that's the case.

Yes, the manual transmission Insights have a much higher peak fuel economy than the CVT. The CVT tops out at about 60-70MPG, the MT tops out at around 90-100MPG.

There is only one aftermarket battery available, the BetterBattery from Hybrid Battery Repair. It is much better than the Honda battery in every conceivable way. There are only a couple of people who refurbish batteries, Hybrid Battery Repair and Hybrid Re-Volt.

[gilbertguy]

Both Hybrid Battery Repair and Hybrid Re-Volt can rebuild your battery but the basic problem is they are still using older previously used batteries. I have experianced rebuild failures and I know of others also that have been experianced it. If you go rebuilt get a grid charger to keep the battery healthy or it will just be a matter of time before it throws a code. (that actually applies to a new battery also but will take a lot longer)

For the money I'd pay a little more and get the Better Battery, cost a little more but you get way more for your money and piece of mind.

[Balboa]

Originally Posted by Eli

Hmm. I'm not sure about the CVT Insights being less reliable. I don't think that's the case.

Yes, the manual transmission Insights have a much higher peak fuel economy than the CVT. The CVT tops out at about 60-70MPG, the MT tops out at around 90-100MPG.

There is only one aftermarket battery available, the BetterBattery from Hybrid Battery Repair. It is much better than the Honda battery in every conceivable way. There are only a couple of people who refurbish batteries, Hybrid Battery Repair and Hybrid Re-Volt.

That 90-100mpg has to be the most ideal conditions, probably 5th gear going 45-50mph, no head wind, etc. I have seen this in my insight a few times when being extremely sensitive with the throttle.

Real world driving with mixed city and highway I think the auto won't be that far behind.

[timny1984]

Both cars are extremely reliable in my opinion. I bought my 1st insight CVT with 171,000 miles on it. I can't say i'd ever buy another vehicle with that many miles on it and use it as my daily driver.

My real world driving... CVT - i averaged about 76mpg round trip to work in the summer. MT same weather conditions i average 87mpg round trip while driving 5-7 mph faster. take that as you will, but those are my real numbers. (58.3 mile one way commute) You numbers will greatly vary depending on driving conditions.

70mpg in the CVT takes work, and takes lots of work if you aren't on the highway. 70 mpg in the MT is much much much easier. These numbers do depend on driving distance. 5 miles and less you need to work hard to get overall high numbers because the engine heating up.

with beyond perfect conditions i can see the CVT just barely scratching 100mpg. With those same conditions i think the MT will see well over 120mpg. But over 100mpg in the MT is about as much work as getting 85 in the cvt. I'll have much more knowledge of the MT high mpg numbers come next summer... only 6-7 months away!

I still average above 80mpg but the temps have dropped to 40's here. only modification is the radiator block.

Good luck with the searching, if you buy the car congrats! you probably won't regret it at all. and if you do (really don't think you would) you can turn around and sell the car very quickly.

Tim

ps i paid that much for my 1st insight. Prices are low currently for some reason. Good for those buying, bad for those selling.

[Eli]

Originally Posted by Balboa

That 90-100mpg has to be the most ideal conditions, probably 5th gear going 45-50mph, no head wind, etc. I have seen this in my insight a few times when being extremely sensitive with the throttle.

Real world driving with mixed city and highway I think the auto won't be that far behind.

You really underestimate the Insight's capabilities. But I did say peak fuel economy, which implies ideal or near ideal conditions. Sounds like I was a little low on the CVT numbers though.

If I didn't have a silly 2 mile commute, it wouldn't be difficult for me to average 70MPG at all, even through the winter. Heck, I managed 76MPG on a road trip last winter with temps ranging from the 20s to below zero. Real world driving, as you say.

Don't underestimate how much impact your incorrect tires are having. I know that most people don't think about tires, but it can have a fairly big impact on any car. The NHTSA did a study on just this. (link)

[kennysmith]

It takes a lot of work to get the mileage Eli & Timney report (they are my heros). They are not talking about driving the car like the average driver and possibly their terrain or state of tune is better than most. I'm anxious for Eli to move back to my area so he can teach me to drive. Most Insight drivers probably don't understand the fine points or care (and they don't hang out here) and I believe they probably get 55mpg in the MT and 46 with the CVT. Those numbers are very consistent with what I've seen on the lifetime fuel mileage gauge that these cars have.

[Eli]

Originally Posted by kennysmith

It takes a lot of work to get the mileage Eli & Timney report (they are my heros). They are not talking about driving the car like the average driver and possibly their terrain or state of tune is better than most. I'm anxious for Eli to move back to my area so he can teach me to drive. Most Insight drivers probably don't understand the fine points or care (and they don't hang out here) and I believe they probably get 55mpg in the MT and 46 with the CVT. Those numbers are very consistent with what I've seen on the lifetime fuel mileage gauge that these cars have.

I would say that's pretty accurate.

My average fuel economy is ~60MPG. I'm able to get 65-80mpg in the summer, but it plummets to ~45MPG in the winter due to my short commute, hence the average of just under 60.

Part of getting high numbers is definitely driving slow; I'll be the first to admit that. I try to keep it around 55-60.

I'm looking forward to being back in the Pacific Northwest myself. It's been so long since I drove at sea level! Being 7,000' in elevation is really a drag. ETA is Spring 2012.

[Eli]

dp........

[BrianZ54]

Originally Posted by leejm12

Found a 2001 Insight with 133k in VA. Thinking of buying it. From what I've
been reading it seems the Automatics are less reliable then the MTs. Does
anyone have any feedback on this? They want $5400 which seems to me
to be a good deal for that mileage. Haven't done a car-fax yet but thats my next move. Do the MTs really get up to 70+ mpg vs 50 for the automatic? Also anyone have any knowledge of the 3rd party battery replacement folks? Are they as good or better than the Honda batteries? Thanks, -J

LeeJM -
I'm with Kenny, Eli and Tim do a great job hypermiling and tracking their results. I just kind of drive my 2002 CVT and I get 53mpg in the Summer and 48 mpg in Winter. 75% of my commute is Interstates and flow of traffice is well above 70 mph. I've had single tanks as high as 60 mpg and 50-80 mile round trips as high as 76 mpg. If you were to average all the mileage reports I think you'd find the MT is consistently 20-30% more efficient than a CVT.

A couple questions: where are you located? Try to put it in your posts, sometimes it makes a difference. Are you looking for a CVT?

Brian