2010 EX destroyed, looking for another

[sbrown1977]

Yes, the steering wheel controls are really great, I agree. I didn't think about how difficult it might be to integrate them. Aftermarket navigation and bluetooth are really inexpensive but yeah, you're probably going to be doing touch screen only with the aftermarket units.

The original asking price for my Insight was $17,500. I only got the deal I did because I whined A LOT about the fact that the dealer (SF Honda) didn't Certify their cars and said I didn't feel like I was getting a good deal without the Certified inspection and warranty so they "split the difference" with me on the Honda Care 100K warranty - we each paid just under $1,000 (it was something like $1,990 total for the warranty), dropping the price of the car to $16,500 and when I still balked they knocked another $250 off the price to sweeten the deal. When I got to the finance guy he pulled out that sheet of extras like tinted windows and lojack and there was the additional 20k/1 year warranty option that was around $800 and I went for it because I have a 5 year loan on the car and wanted to be sure I have some warranty until the car is almost paid off. I know Long Beach has a lot of Honda dealers - you might try working them against each other by finding one that doesn't certify and asking them to do the same deal.

One thing I learned in the process that I think is VERY illuminating and I'll share with you - it costs a dealer about $2,000 to Certify a car and they usually pass that entire cost to the buyer. When I bought, I was deciding between the car I have now and an identical Insight with about 32k miles at another dealer - the only difference was the higher mileage Insight was Certified. My last Honda (2005 Civic) was Certified and I was under the impression that this meant it was a "better" car but after calling all the Honda dealers in the Bay Area and asking them point blank "why wouldn't a dealership certify a car? does this mean it's a shady dealership?" even the dealers that DO certify were shockingly honest and told me that no matter what, they do the 100 or whatever point inspection and provide a report to the buyer, and that the Certified program is mainly for marketing and to sell the extended warranty on relatively new, good condition used cars. They are Hondas, they rarely break down anyway, so the warranty is a boon for dealers and how they make cash over the sales price. I also asked the other dealers to verify that Honda Care is the same warranty that you get with a Certified car and they explained that it's actually a BETTER warranty because you get the roadside assistance with rental car/hotel reimbursement (if you're stranded) for the life of the warranty, something you don't get with the Certified warranty after 12k miles.

With that knowledge I went back to SF Honda, asked to see the inspection report and found there was one issue (leaking rear struts) and simply asked them to write the repair into the sales contract. I told them if they did that, they had a deal. To further illustrate the fact that the entire Certified program is simply a marketing ploy to sell the warranty, they didn't even try to negotiate, they just said "sure, as soon as you buy it, it's a covered repair under Honda Care" and they wrote it into the deal. This calmed me down as I was about to have a panic attack over purchasing what I still believed could be a "lemon" because it wasn't "Certified"... but as soon as they explained that all those repairs would be covered and that it was just a matter of me purchasing Honda Care - which is virtually the same thing you get with a Certified car, I relaxed. A week after I purchased the car I brought it in and had the repair done and now I have a virtually new car with a great warranty.

Bottom line: Certified is not a scam, per se, but if you're willing to do a little extra work and know how to read the inspection report they'll provide you, it might be worth going to a dealer that does not certify and negotiating a bit. If you were in the Bay Area I'd recommend SF Honda - they have terrible Yelp reviews, but I actually had a really great experience there. The sales guy was smart and didn't treat me like an idiot because I'm female. Now if I could just get my MPG above 38 I'd be truly thrilled with this car, but that's a topic for another thread...

[Cobb]

The aaa course I took suggests to dodge and swerge, dont get into a braking contest when it comes to close calls. Ive ducked down a few off ramps that I did not plan to take in my time as well as done a 180 in the center medium.

I was looking at buying a used prius when I had my accdent as a out right trade as is, but the warranties did not cover the synergy system nor was any additional warranty available. There was some back in forth about it being considered part of the emissions system, however one certified warranty exempt hybrid batteries and such parts from the "exhaust" part of the car.

[egads]

I'd look into getting a new EX. That level now includes bluetooth. The only reason we got navi was for the bluetooth. Try an auto buying service, like through Costco. (we used a "surrogate auto shopper" at our credit union)
Ended up paying around 21,500 for an EX NAVI in late 2010. Southern California is a big auto market with many dealers. Deals are out there to be had. And this is the very best time to get one. (end of the month, end of the year, just after Christmas, rain) We have bought at least 3 cars this way, often needing to drive 40-60 miles to pick it up. But the price is often better than one can get with hours of haggling. We never even see a "finance manager". Go right to the fleet sales guy who has all the paperwork ready to sign. The long part is when a salesmen has to go over the car's features with you. Honda Corp. insists on this being done. I thought we were going die from the salesmen's cologne. But we did leave with both of our phones paired......

[antartis]

Thanks for all your comments. They've been helpful in my search for a replacement. As of this evening, a (pre-owned) 2012 Ex w/ Navi. (this time in black) is sitting in my driveway. I was looking at 2010s & 11s as well but this particular 2012 came at a good price.

I considered EX without Navi. as well but I preferred having the bluetooth functions on the steering wheel so ended up going with the Navi. version. But for anyone in the market, I'd suggest looking at the aftermarket Navi.s, you could get a reasonably priced navi. with better features.

Sbrown77, thank you for your 'two bits'. I ended up purchasing a non-certified Insight. I will just purchase an extended Honda care warranty to go with it... FYI, if the car is under a certain mileage, it doesnt need to be inspected to qualify for the extended Honda Care warranty. I was quoted (by a different dealer) $2500 (after discount) for a 6 yr/ 120K warranty. I am going to shop around for a sweeter deal.

[egads]

So the new 2012 EX without NAV has bluetooth but not the steering wheel controls? I haven't really looked. You got a good deal in any case I guess. If the warranty on the totaled 2010 was Honda Care, you should contact them about getting a refund. We bought our Honda Care through gardiner@saccucci.com
at a really good price. They can now only sell to you through email & faxing or overnighting documents. But I would definitely contact them before paying that much.

[antartis]

egads, thanks for the saccucci email link, I will definitely get a quote from them.

As for the 2012 without navi bluetooth steering controls, I cant really confirm... maybe I was looking at the lx model.

[egads]

A moot point in your case as you already found a NAV equipped Insight. But I just checked the Honda site and EX models do have steering wheel controls for the bluetooth. In case anyone else sees this thread and wonders.