Unscheduled Repairs....... is our Honda a little on the lemon side?

InsightFTW10 · 12-10-2011, 03:30 PM

Hey everyone..... we have a Honda Insight 2010 EX (no nav) that almost at the 40K mark (39,882 miles) and for a Honda, I think we may have gotten one built on a Monday morning or Friday evening.....

At 12K miles, we had a complete IMA system failure that was due to the cooling system experiencing a partial meltdown. The car stayed in the shop for 4 weeks and the total repair costs were $0 under warranty

We just had our 40K mile service and since about 28K miles, we've heard a clunking sound from the front end whenever the car hits bumps or potholes..... the Honda guys diagnosed it as a bad front left Axle.... and while they were fixing the axle, they found that the drive shaft assembly was coming loose and looked as if it wasn't properly installed in the factory. Luckily, these repairs were done within a few hours at no cost but this is a little unusual I think for Honda......

We had the good sense to get the extended warranty which covers our car till 120K but I think after, we are getting a new one cause these problems that are showing up before 40K is scary.... I think the total costs of these repairs would have been 3000+..... and the warranty was only $1200!

What unscheduled repairs have you all come across?

jcbesq · 12-10-2011, 04:34 PM

did you buy it used???

InsightFTW10 · 12-12-2011, 06:04 PM

Nope. It was bought brand new in June of 2010. It was 1 of 4 insight's on the lot... 1 LX, 2 EX's no nav, and 1 EX with NAV. We didn't jump to the NAV cause it looked like something that came out of the late 90's.

Willie Williford · 12-12-2011, 10:08 PM

Location in your profile please.

Willie

InsightFTW10 · 12-13-2011, 09:20 AM

I live in Cleveland OH so it is a pretty rough climate here but still, I don't think thats an excuse for a drive-shaft problem at 39K miles......

But don't get me wrong..... I LOVE THE CAR! It gets about 55-60 MPG in city driving and about 45 MPG when I cruise at 70-75 MPH on the Highway in 30 degree weather right now.... couldn't ask for more.

And I think when they took my Insight for repairs, they reprogrammed the Auto-stop system because now it engages MUCH more often than it did before. It will now engage at temperatures below 30 degrees and in 5 MPH traffic stop and go, something that it didn't do before!

kjanracing · 12-21-2011, 03:59 PM

After they reprogrammed the auto stop, does it stay off longer? My 2010 will only idle stop for maybe 40 seconds. My wife's 2011 will stay off for about 1.5 minutes. Thanks, Kurt

Cobb · 12-21-2011, 06:06 PM

Interesting... Wished we knew someone who worked at Honda. I know without using the hvac it stays off for well over 6 minutes.

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cheesie · 12-22-2011, 02:47 AM

by clunking sound do you mean kind of a squegee?
i get that sound when going over bumps sometimes but now always... more often when i just start driving the car

i thout it was ball joint or something

thats the only problem ive had (knock on wood)
havent bothered to fix

InsightFTW10 · 12-30-2011, 10:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kjanracing

After they reprogrammed the auto stop, does it stay off longer? My 2010 will only idle stop for maybe 40 seconds. My wife's 2011 will stay off for about 1.5 minutes. Thanks, Kurt

Yes, it does stay off much longer. The longest ive had to keep the IMA system off is for about 3 minutes. But the mileage have gone from about 46 to about 49 overall once they reprogrammed the auto stop. Honda needs to take back all the 2010's and reprogram them pronto. It will give you a nice boost in mileage

If the list of problems couldn't get bigger, I just encountered another problem. After driving for a prolonged period on the highway (about 20-25 minutes), when I start city driving again, the IMA system will just suddenly quit when the car is accelerating and the car becomes gasoline only and revs to 4000 RPM. The only solution to this issue is restarting the car at a stop light. This has happened about about 3 of 10 times ive taken the same road and the IMA system just quits. I mean it dies. The ASSIST/RECHARGE needle moves to the middle and doesn't move and the car stays in power mode, even in cruising, cause the engine is so weak and can't function efficiently without the IMA system. I really am starting to wish that we got a Prius....

Cobb · 12-30-2011, 11:16 PM

The ima system just quits? I've had that happen after a negative recall, then 3 minutes later it's back to normal. Maybe with all you have gone through trading for a Prius 2 or a hch wouldn't be a bad idea? At least you could wheel n deal to get the most you can. If you financed the car, I would call the bank it is with and ask for a defer of payment for at least 3 months due to a hardship.this way you will not have to make a payment for a few months to save up for a down payment.

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