IMA Battery never reaches full charge

[djdarren]

Hi,
I am the new owner of a 2002 silver CVT Insight. I bought it out near Torrance CA. It had 59,000 miles on it.
I started having problems after I drove it away. A dealer stated the IMA battery was bad. The IMA battery was supposed to have been replaced back in 2010 by the original owner. It is in Honda's records. Now I have another remanufactured battery according to the Honda Dealer in Torrance CA but I drove this car all the way home to Glenview ILL and the batter is always a few lights down from a full charge. The gas milage goes no higher than 41MPG. I tried to point this out to the dealer but they would not help me further. THe IMA battery only costed them $2000. I am thinking it might not be new. Or the electric motor up front is not working.
It is almost like it is running on the 1 liter engine alone because Smart cars use a 3 cylinder 1 liter engine, weigh about the same and get 41MPG

[aisbell]

Originally Posted by djdarren

I am the new owner of a 2002 silver CVT Insight.

Congratulations!

Originally Posted by djdarren

I bought it out near Torrance CA. It had 59,000 miles on it.
I started having problems after I drove it away. A dealer stated the IMA battery was bad.

Your IMA system should still be covered by the 10-year/157,500-mile warranty unless your car has a salvage title. Assuming no salvage title, Honda would replace the IMA battery at no cost to you. If the IMA warning light is not on, your IMA battery is probably not bad.

Originally Posted by djdarren

Now I have another remanufactured battery according to the Honda Dealer in Torrance CA but I drove this car all the way home to Glenview ILL and the batter is always a few lights down from a full charge.

That's pretty normal for a CVT Insight. When you climbed over the Rockies, did the assist gauge show assist? When you coast down a hill or brake when stopping, does the regen gauge show regen?

Originally Posted by djdarren

The gas milage goes no higher than 41MPG.

That's a bit low unless you were driving very fast. If your tires are not the OEM tire, 165/65R14 Bridgestone Potenza RE-92, or are under-inflated, your fuel efficiency won't be as good as it could be (at least a 10% fuel efficiency penalty for non-OEM tires).

Originally Posted by djdarren

I tried to point this out to the dealer but they would not help me further.

Dealers are clueless about Insights.

Originally Posted by djdarren

THe IMA battery only costed them $2000.

It would have cost them nothing if your car has no salvage title.

Originally Posted by djdarren

Or the electric motor up front is not working.

If the engine starts almost silently, the IMA motor is being used to start the engine and is working. If the assist gauge shows assist when accelerating, the IMA motor is working.

Originally Posted by djdarren

It is almost like it is running on the 1 liter engine alone because Smart cars use a 3 cylinder 1 liter engine, weigh about the same and get 41MPG

Your fuel efficiency should probably be better. We need to understand more about your driving habits, your tires, etc.

[Eli]

A 2002 Insight with 59,000 miles on it is still under warranty. It is likely the battery has been replaced.

The difficulty in getting the battery to full charge is a good thing.

If you're getting assist and regen and the IMA light is not on, everything is A-OK and is working properly.

Don't compare the Insight to a Smart. Just because they use the same size engine and weigh the same doesn't mean they should get similar MPG; the Insight is more efficient than a Smart car in every way and will easily beat it all else being equal.

Sounds like you just simply need to drive the car more and become more familiar with it. 41MPG is a bit low, depending on your driving conditions. What type of environment is this in? Highway, city, stop and go?

What tires are on the car? What are they inflated to? This could be your problem; our cars are extremely sensitive to tire inflation pressure and the brand of tires used.

[djdarren]

Thank you for responses to my problems.
I use the car for suburban driving but also go on the highway to get into Chicago.
It would seem that the IMA motor is working since I do get the assist indicator to come on during acceleration and charging when I have my foot off the gas.

Not sure what tires are on the car but would like to install lightweight 16 or 17 inch wheels to bring down the rpms at highway speeds for better gas milage. Also better handling.
I do notice that the dash lights go dim when I turn the headlights on. Maybe I need a new voltage regulator or standard car battery?
The car also seems to jerk sometimes in reverse.
I had platinum tip spark plugs installed, oil change and filter, trans flush and change, radiator flush and change, ceramic brake pads installed, new front rotors, K&N Air Filter.

The IMA battery was replaced under warranty twice now. It is not a salvage Title.

[Eli]

You've got a lot to learn.. We will help you.

I use the car for suburban driving but also go on the highway to get into Chicago.

Need more information. What speeds? Lots of stops?

but would like to install lightweight 16 or 17 inch wheels to bring down the rpms at highway speeds for better gas milage

Stop right there. That's not how it works. Any tire other than the original Bridgestone RE92 in P165/65R14 will reduce your fuel economy by 6-12%. It is imperative that you keep inflation pressure high. Many of us around here run 40-60PSI. Make sure they're at least inflated to 35/38 as per the door jam, but don't be afraid to bump it up a bit if you want the best economy.

I do notice that the dash lights go dim when I turn the headlights on. Maybe I need a new voltage regulator or standard car battery?

There is no voltage regulator or alternator. The Insight uses a DC-DC converter to convert the high voltage generated by the IMA battery and/or IMA motor into 12V to charge the 12V battery and power the 12V systems. The DC-DC converter is a strange beast, and does not operate all the time like an alternator does. This causes most people's 12V battery to be undercharged. This is normal and isn't a problem since our cars very rarely call on the 12V battery to do anything demanding like start the car. Turning your headlights on causes the DC-DC converter to come on if it wasn't on before.

I had platinum tip spark plugs installed

Uh oh. The Insight uses special indexed NGK iridium plugs. If they really installed platinum plugs, they are unindexed and incorrect.

[Need4Speed]

Do you run the climate control in auto or Econ? Does the car shut off at stops or keep running?

[djdarren]

most of my driving is at 40 to 45 miles per hour.

OK I will stick with stock rims and tires. I found a place on the internet that still sells OEM Honda Insight Rims brand new. I will do everything in the future to keep the car stock.
The tires are the stock ones you mentioned. Went outside with a flashlight to check. But they have poor tread and seem kinda dry rot from not being driven on. For some reason the car was only driven like 3000 miles a year for the last 3 years and sat outside.

[Need4Speed]

Can you provide answers to my questions?

[Eli]

Does the car not have the stock rims? That could be a few percent if they're steelies. The Insight's OEM rims are 11lbs; the RE92 tire adds another 11lbs. Most other tires are not only much heavier than this, but they're not low rolling resistance.

Your MPG woes could be due to a low tire. Check them when you can.

40-45mph is the sweet spot for the Insight. We have people here who can get 60-80MPG in the CVT and 80-100MPG in the MT at those speeds.

[aisbell]

Originally Posted by djdarren

Not sure what tires are on the car but would like to install lightweight 16 or 17 inch wheels to bring down the rpms at highway speeds for better gas milage.

The stock Insight wheels are very light and aerodynamic. There aren't many wheels that are better in both ways. And, as Eli stated, changing to anything other than a 14" wheel would mean that you could not use the special OEM tires designed for the Insight which are both lighter and have much less rolling resistance than any tire available so far. Unfortunately, at the moment, they are difficult to find. Hopefully, this is just a temporary shortage.

Originally Posted by djdarren

I do notice that the dash lights go dim when I turn the headlights on.

That's a "feature". The dash lights don't need to be so bright at night as during daylight hours, so turning on the headlights automatically dims the dash lights. You can manually increase their brightness if you so desire.

Originally Posted by djdarren

Maybe I need a new voltage regulator or standard car battery?

The 12 v. battery doesn't get much work because it isn't used for much other than powering the computers and running the 12 v. accessories. So 12 v. batteries can go bad without owners being aware until one day when there's insufficient voltage available to boot the computers which prevents the engine from starting. A partially shorted 12 v. battery could reduce the fuel efficiency, so it wouldn't be a bad idea to have your battery load-tested.

Originally Posted by djdarren

I had platinum tip spark plugs installed,

If they're platinum and not the original indexed iridium spark plugs available only from Honda, your fuel efficiency could suffer. There are 4 different versions of this spark plug which need to be matched to each spark plug hole on your engine. The version (A, B, C, or D) is stamped on the cylinder head beside each spark plug hole. If you didn't have the correct spark plugs installed, I suggest replacing them with the correct ones.

Originally Posted by djdarren

oil change and filter,

If 0W20 oil was not used, your fuel efficiency could suffer, especially in cold weather.

Originally Posted by djdarren

The IMA battery was replaced under warranty twice now. It is not a salvage Title.

You've given us no reason to suspect that your IMA battery needs replacing again, but if it fails, Honda would replace it again under warranty. I suggest asking Honda for the in-service date of your car. Your IMA warranty is in effect until 10 years after the in-service date.