Insight into the Future

[cowmeat]

Nice first tank, way better than I did back in the day!

You'll soon realize that there's a lot more potential mpg than that to pull out of it, and the longer you drive it the better you'll do. I'm still tweaking my driving habits, my commute route, my mods, etc . . . on my second Insight.

There's a thread dedicated to G1 Insights here:

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...tml#post455603

Some of us also have pages dedicated to their Insights detailing the mods and issues we have, there's a lot of useful info throughout those pages

You should join the Gen-1 Insight team in the Team Challenge!

[foot to the floor]

I bought a 2001 insight last spring for $1200 with 224,000 miles on it. I haven't done a thing to it and can get 68 mpg tops. (I like to drive between 65-70) I live at 1400 feet and there are a lot of hills. I have noticed two grounds not connected on the right side when I purchased it and just haven't gotten around to fixin it yet. I had no idea it could effect gas mileage. I will eventually get under the hood and check the EGR and plugs as mentioned. I am now at 236K and probably should get around to it. Thanks for the info

[rwhyde]

WOW, I've looked at a few G1's and none of them looked that good and they were all 1500 higher even when they had the CVT. I'm still looking for the right one. Nice find!!

[Ecky]

You should check out my thread on the G1 Insight. I've had basically every issue stereotypical of the car, and nearly all of them were quick and simple fixes.

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...ild-29288.html

Lean burn took me a while to figure out, but here's my basic understanding of it:

In 5th gear, accelerating with 100% load, you're at 45-50mpg. If you let off the pedal gradually until you reach ~100mpg, after a moment the car will drop into lean burn and shoot up past 150. You can then press the pedal back in to around 75mpg. Anything beyond this and you're at ~100% load again and it will drop out of lean burn and begin electric assist.

[Xist]

I stopped reading this thread when I decided to go and check the grounds in my Forester. I am still trying to find all of them, but I am also going to have my starter tested today. I really want to pay someone to finish the small things. I could sell it as-is, but it could be something like your grounds, a small fix that makes a big difference, and someone else benefits from my loss. Mostly, I just wish that I knew why I am still burping it after two weeks.

Edit! I cleaned some more grounds and it starts easier now! I also found my coolant temperature sensor, connected it, and the gauge finally works properly, so who cares if it may have air!

[Ecky]

Another possible way for the grounds to break is a bad rear engine mount.

[pgfpro]

Originally Posted by Ecky

You should check out my thread on the G1 Insight. I've had basically every issue stereotypical of the car, and nearly all of them were quick and simple fixes.

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...ild-29288.html

Lean burn took me a while to figure out, but here's my basic understanding of it:

In 5th gear, accelerating with 100% load, you're at 45-50mpg. If you let off the pedal gradually until you reach ~100mpg, after a moment the car will drop into lean burn and shoot up past 150. You can then press the pedal back in to around 75mpg. Anything beyond this and you're at ~100% load again and it will drop out of lean burn and begin electric assist.

Have you done anything with index the spark plugs? I have some left over index washers that would work and I'm thinking about trying them. Thoughts?

[Ecky]

Originally Posted by pgfpro

Have you done anything with index the spark plugs? I have some left over index washers that would work and I'm thinking about trying them. Thoughts?

The Insight has indexed plugs already. Next to the hole where the plug screws into, there's a letter stamped on the block, and you need a matching plug for that hole (there are 4 variants of the plug). They have a tendency to back out over time, which un-indexes them, of course. Torqued to spec, the plug faces intake valve #1 and helps when running extremely lean.

[pgfpro]

Another question for you guys? I was driving the Insight the other day at
55 mph and all of sudden about 3 charge bars let up and I could feel the engine was under more load. It did this for about 20 minutes then the IMA battery bars went from 2/3 to a full charge. The car ran with less engine load again and my mileage increased back to where it was before this happen around 65 mpg after another 30 minutes of driving.

I remember when I first got the car it did this on the way home from buying it.

That was right around 750 miles ago.

[Ecky]

I haven't figured out the charge logic, but it seems that when you're above maybe 50mph, it will sometimes take the battery up to full. It's normal behavior.

It seems to like being at about 50% in-town, and at 100% on extended trips.