2000 Insight - TLC and ecomodding build

[samwichse]

I hope you did a full coolant bleed after installing that block heater... the Insight is painfully sensitive to air in the system.

[Ecky]

Originally Posted by samwichse

I hope you did a full coolant bleed after installing that block heater... the Insight is painfully sensitive to air in the system.

Any tips/special procedures? The coolant level in the radiator dropped a hair and I topped it off.

[Baltothewolf]

Originally Posted by Ecky

Any tips/special procedures? The coolant level in the radiator dropped a hair and I topped it off.

If you're not overheating don't worry about it. I would watch the engine temps though for the next month or so though.

[cowmeat]

Do you have a grid charger for it yet?

Nah, I'm not planning on getting one unless I need it, and it seems like every one I see is different, and expensive, and scary. I should check and see if a previous owner has put a port in Turtle for one, I have never opened the IMA area to check.

So far I'm able to keep the IMA fully charged (other than the recal it did after sitting) with my regen button, and I haven't had any further issues.

If I need one down the road I'll see if some of you guys want to go in on one together and just ship it back and forth when not needed, since it seems like you're only supposed to do it occasionally and it would just sit around most of the time. Maybe a community charger??

[Ecky]

Over Thanksgiving I'll be driving past Lakeland and could probably drop mine off, if you'd like to do a soak charge with it. One good charge should balance your battery for a good long while. Only thing is, you WOULD have to run some wires in the battery box, but it takes longer to get the box open than to put the wires in place.

EDIT: I could whip up a harness with some spare parts I have, would only take me maybe half an hour. What say you?

[HyperMileQC]

Originally Posted by Ecky

From what I've read, the block heater can only heat it so much before it levels out and the block loses heat as fast as it's added. 2 hours is into diminishing returns, and it's 400 watts, which is something like $500 per year to run 24/7.

With my setup I begin to see diminishing returns after 3 hours of electric block heating. I have a Fire Blanket to help insulate the engine bay and I added a 125w pad heater to the block. It can get up to ~65°C (~150°F) after 3 hours but after that there is only heat dissipation and the temperature is only spread to the other componants of the engine bay. Makes a big difference from only 2 hours of only EBH without insulation. HTH

[cowmeat]

Over Thanksgiving I'll be driving past Lakeland and could probably drop mine off, if you'd like to do a soak charge with it. One good charge should balance your battery for a good long while. Only thing is, you WOULD have to run some wires in the battery box, but it takes longer to get the box open than to put the wires in place.

EDIT: I could whip up a harness with some spare parts I have, would only take me maybe half an hour. What say you?

Thanks, man! That would be awesome!

Tell you what, if you're interested I'll trade you the use of your grid charger three or four times a year for the set of the moon discs sitting on my chest freezer in the utility room that I haven't installed yet! I can have all four re-furbed by then, but I'm just too busy to ever get time to put them on the car.

[Ecky]

Sounds like a plan. I'll probably put the moon disks on my brother's Saturn.

[cowmeat]

They're 14's and fit perfectly on the OEM Insight rims.
I don't know if they'd fit the Saturn, but they might

*Edit*
PM me whenever you get a chance and we'll work out the logistics!

[Ecky]

Speaking of grid chargers, today my 12v isolator and voltmeter came in!




The meter I installed reads about 1.1v higher than the Cen-Tech unit I got from Harbor Freight. Here they are installed:






Also, cowmeat, your grid charging harness is done!




EDIT: It seems that since I donated to the forum, I have lost the ability to send private messages. Trying to get that sorted out now.