2000 Honda Insight Pricing ($7k too much? New IMA battery) - Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum

hawk2100n · 10-15-2012, 05:48 PM

Hey everyone, I would like to get an opinion on this 1st gen Insight. Clean and new battery. Asking $7k.

I would offer significantly less ($4-5k) as I don't know how much interest there would be at this price. It is in a rural area too. I could go and take a look at it in a day or two. What does the group think?

2000 HONDA INSIGHT HYBRID 65 MPG! NEW BATTERIES

rmay635703 · 10-15-2012, 06:59 PM

Insight prices seem ridiculous and stupid for the most part. Somebody is either paying it or the seller takes much less in the end.

$7k for a 2000 insight with 128k on the odo is about the price I would expect to pay for a 2004/06 with 100k (and to me that is also too much) but hence I don't own an insight either (guess why)

hawk2100n · 10-15-2012, 07:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rmay635703

Insight prices seem ridiculous and stupid for the most part. Somebody is either paying it or the seller takes much less in the end.

$7k for a 2000 insight with 128k on the odo is about the price I would expect to pay for a 2004/06 with 100k (and to me that is also too much) but hence I don't own an insight either (guess why)

I feel the same way. I would have to save a lot of fuel to make anything near 7 grand worthwhile, however for $4500 I would seriously consider it. I got a stupidly great deal on the Civic I am in now, but my gas bill last month was $400+ at 37 MPG. Plus the novelty of having a hybrid and manual transmission and automatic EOC.

I am highly mechanically inclined, maybe I should grab one that needs a battery and minor work and go for it. They are just hard to find around here. I've seen maybe 6-10 on the road in the last 18 months I've lived here.

rmay635703 · 10-30-2012, 03:29 PM

Well I finally got my wish, I found a beat up beauty nearby, straight on the bottom but bent up top for a price I can accept.

Sadly I will need to use deepcycles to keep it running since the DC DC works and so does boost but the power doesn't make it to the battery. (battery drains with or without the BDC trick)

Very odd issue, I will need to find all the technical resources I can showing the various wires and grounding locations (and photos of them) so I can figure out what wires on the harness (which may be damaged) are not making connection.

And a more pressing issue is the drivers door is a bit popped out and leaks, not sure how to do it without breaking the glass.

Any insight enthusiest in Oshkosh FDL or Wausau willing to take a quick looksie so I can diagnose and fix her up more quickly?

Cheers
Ryan

user removed · 10-30-2012, 04:10 PM

Show me some pics of the door and I might be able to help. In particular the gap to the fender at the front and the gap at the rear to the 1/4 panel. Shoot the pics from several angles. You can twist it pretty hard without breaking the window if you have it half way down. It's tempered glass and can really take a beating before it shatters into a million pieces.

regards
Mech

MetroMPG · 10-30-2012, 04:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rmay635703

Well I finally got my wish, I found a beat up beauty nearby, straight on the bottom but bent up top for a price I can accept.

Congrats!

Start a new thread announcing your new find & describing the issues - you'll get way more eyeballs & help that way!

rmay635703 · 10-30-2012, 11:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

Congrats!

Start a new thread announcing your new find & describing the issues - you'll get way more eyeballs & help that way!

I will but I taught myself everything I know but I didn't know anything so It took a long time and I don't know what to post.

payne171 · 11-06-2012, 04:31 PM

You may have been better served to check out the cost of a new battery before you judged the value of an Insight with a new battery. Best case scenario you will pay $2000 for a new battery. Also, the aluminum frame will never rust. The drivetrain routinely makes 250,000 miles without breaking a sweat (other than the battery), as the IMA system takes stress off the drivetrain. Brakes have been known to last the life of the car, depending on driving style. Not including the battery, the Insight is very reliable, even by Honda standards. And that one had a new battery. If you are spending $400 a month on gas at 37 mpg, you could save $170 per month on gas at the 64 mpg I average. That would cover the car payment on $7000. So it would basically be like getting the car for free. THAT is why the prices are what they are.

jwsherwinengr · 11-06-2012, 06:13 PM

Few vehicles match the economy of he IMA 997cc Honda insight from the 1st generation. feeling somewhat underpowered but frugal is what you get.
Ifound the low rolling resistance tires added tothe eco numbers but had a very low mileage expectations before requiring replacement. Cruising long didtances I wondered about a good programmable cruise control to allow variables like deccelerating to an adjustable speed when navigating a hill. I also had my reservations about being stuck with the auto transmission. I felt that the CVT should have an adjustment to tweek the ratio slightly to get a higher ratio when traveling at cruise speed and lowering the RPMs slightly. The factory drag coefficient was reported to be the lowest of any production vehicle. Some enthusiasts removed excessive weight by removing anything and everything imaginable. The lean seats were somewhat uncomfortable on long rides. for all the design work, hiding the wipers should have been a no brainer. I took it on several long trips from LV>Houston TX and found excellent mileage numbers. on my return trip thru NM I got a whopping 65MPG going on an uphill climb. It was night and had to have been a good tailwind. Overall i sold it with an average of 53MPG. I never really tried to master the highest economy at all times. Wish i hadn't trade it for the 2010Insight that fit a more traditional design but sadly retracted from the higher ratings of its predecessor. A soft top, interior gutting, electric motor with internal upgrades and a lithium battery pack coupled with an irradiant paint schema and all LEDlighting would've made a great SEMA entrant, oh yeah and an incremental drop kit on the fly would make it much more cooler beyond the rear fender skirts.

rmay635703 · 11-06-2012, 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by payne171

You may have been better served to check out the cost of a new battery before you judged the value of an Insight with a new battery. Best case scenario you will pay $2000 for a new battery. Also, the aluminum frame will never rust. The drivetrain routinely makes 250,000 miles without breaking a sweat (other than the battery), as the IMA system takes stress off the drivetrain. Brakes have been known to last the life of the car, depending on driving style. Not including the battery, the Insight is very reliable, even by Honda standards. And that one had a new battery. If you are spending $400 a month on gas at 37 mpg, you could save $170 per month on gas at the 64 mpg I average. That would cover the car payment on $7000. So it would basically be like getting the car for free. THAT is why the prices are what they are.

??? a variety of your assumpts are wrong in my case

1. Battery will likely never be replaced by new

2. Aluminum frame does not rust but other things like the brakes can

3. Aluminum frame although it doesn't rust is a pain to fix.

I don't disagree the car is reliable but a 10 year old car is a 10 year old car, I should not pay new prices for used, hence why I bought what I did at the price point I did, even with a 2k battery I am still ahead.

Cheers