Hatchback cylinders don't hold panel up!

I remember reading somewhere in the forum that others who own 2000 Insights had similar problems. I think the newer hatch shocks are bigger and hold up the hatch better. My 01 Insight hasn't exhibited this problem. Yet, anyways.

Hi Elbo:

___The Yahoo Honda-Insight/Hybrid forums have made mention of this as well. I think the fix is to get the newer lifts but it’s the cold weather you are in that is killing them right now. IIRC, they will work fine once it warms up again …

___Good Luck

___Wayne R. Gerdes
___Hunt Club Farms Landscaping Ltd.
___[email:1weesy0k][email protected][/email:1weesy0k]

Thanks Wayne.

I'll hold up on any repairs until the weather warms up again...although i am starting to doubt that it will ever be warm again.

elbo

Yes, it's a somewhat common issue. Best bet, if your gonna replace em order em now because likely they'll have to come over on a boat from Japan which will take a while. You will want to keep a really good eye on em because they are likely to start leaking oil soon enough. Maybe this will be the opposite in the cold, but they do this in the heat anyways. If they do start working again watch your head! That thing is heavy.

A friend had this happen in his Insight. They waited like 6 weeks to get the shocks. But the new ones are much much better and should last a lot longer. In the mean time mine are starting to get weak so I'm woundering if they'll survive the summer.

Struts like that do wear out over time - I've replaced several on different cars. Check your local auto parts olace first. I'm not sure about the Insight, but they're usually a standard item: a particular length & mount style will be used on many different makes & models.

james said:

Struts like that do wear out over time - I've replaced several on different cars.

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Me too. The gas eventually leaks out of the cylinder and/or the spring inside weakens, breaks, or deforms. The former is the worse of the two because you rely on the gas inside to slow down the hatchback and keep it from guillotining your head. By the way, there is a little-known neck-detection feature built into most hatchbacks that triggers rapid hatch fall and subsequent cranial detachment. So watch out for that.

Recently replaced one of the struts on my CRX. The dealer wanted 180 dollars. I went less than a mile to Canadian Tire and got one for 31 dollars. I installed it and it works great.

I have never verified this but I believe there is no actual "spring" inside the strut, just a pressurized gas like freon. That is why the cold temps have such an effect on them. (lower vapor pressure.)

b1shmu63 said:

Recently replaced one of the struts on my CRX. The dealer wanted 180 dollars. I went less than a mile to Canadian Tire and got one for 31 dollars. I installed it and it works great.

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Same experience here. I have an 88 Civic in addition to my HX and when I got the 88, the hatch struts were effectively destroyed. I have no idea what they cost from the dealer, but I'm sure it's a fortune. I got replacements from a place called BAP Import Parts for $35 or something about 3 years ago and they still work great.

b1shmu63 said:

I have never verified this but I believe there is no actual "spring" inside the strut, just a pressurized gas

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Yeah, I think you're right. Makes sense, too, so that as the gas leaks out you get both a decreased ability to hold the hatch up and a faster speed of the hatch dropping onto your head.