My first tank with Insight 2002 Manual
Hi all,
I wanted to share with you a little about my first experiences with my Insight. I bought my Insight two weeks ago. It has a manual transmission and had 63K km when I bought it.
Here are my results:
Distance traveled on a full tank of gas: 1,132.2 km (703.2 miles)
Average fuel economy 3.3 l/100 km (70.0 MPG)
Last 50 km were traveled with low fuel light on.
I drove only in the city in heavy traffic and on city highways. I inflated the tires to 42 psi front and 40 psi rear.
My driving style is rather gentle. I managed 5.7 l/100 km with my old 2001 Honda Civic manual. I also have a 2006 HCH and polished some of my techniques with that car as well.
What I noticed when it comes to driving style with Insight is that the acceleration style doesn't really matter untill you go to extremes. I was driving very gently at the beginning and achieved 3.2 l/100 km for the first 300 km and then when I started driving short distances more often it climbed to 3.4 l/100 km and stayed there for next 500 km. I decided to try to change the way I accelerate. I started accelerating rather quick with accelerator 3/4 to the floor and shifting later than the lights indicated. My pattern was 1, 2, 4, 5 or 1, 2, 3, 5 depending on condition and traffic ahead. I was supprised when the fuel economy actually improved back to 3.3 l/100 km (70.0 MPG) by the end of my fist tank. Now I only drive accelerating fast and try to get into lean burn ASAP. It doesn't hurt the fuel economy and also show the people around that hybrids are not slow and weak vehicles but can be very fun to drive.
My observations are:
- look ahead and conserve energy. Don't brake in last minute. Use the distance ahead for cushioning.
- Don't drive too fast. Watch spead limits.
- inflate your tires
- don't be affraid to use that IMA. You have to brake sometimes and if you have your batteries full the energy of braking is lost because it has nowhere to go. I use the batery power for aceleration and try to recover it whenever I can like: helping to stay within speed limits when going downhill or when braking.
Overall I am very hapy when my Insight. It is the best car I had so far. Only my 2006 HCH comes close.
Mark
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Mark
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