I joined the Insight club!
 

On November 24th, I went and picked up sheepdog 44's 2000 Honda Insight. I don't need another project, but here I go again! I towed it the 225 miles home with a borrowed 2002 VW Jetta TDI and a tow bar. The TDI got an expected 45 MPG at 73 MPH on the way to get the Insight. And an unbelievable 53 MPG at about 55 MPH on the return trip with the Insight in tow! In the rain! Was the Insight acting as a boat tail? :)


https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...7&d=1543380636

https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...8&d=1543380647

https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...9&d=1543380664

https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...0&d=1543380672

https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...1&d=1543380683

Woohoo. Congrats!

Projects sometimes find you even if you aren’t looking for them! Eager to join the 100 MPG club with that thing?

I just gave away a silver front bumper with a small hole in it from a minor accident... all the attachment points were intact and it looked pretty good otherwise. :-/

Fun project car! Looking forward to following your build thread. The Insight bug just seems to infect us all, doesn't it? :D

Both bumper covers are inside the Insight! Rear was off already and I took the front off to attach a tow bar to the bumper beam. It's a complete car, despite its appearance. :)

Ah ok, that's good news, because your aero looks to be suffering a bit right now :)

It even runs! https://youtu.be/_In-RsZavI8

Welcome fren

Subscribed!

I might be the nearest member on here, and pretty soon I'll have an unneeded engine and transmission. I'm considering rebuilding the tranny and selling it, but I have no idea what to do with the engine. Yours leak or burn any oil?

Subscribed, late.



Congrats on the unplanned project, Fumes!

The engine seems OK. I haven't noticed any leaks or have any reason to believe it burns oil. It does get a little warm, I'm assuming it's just the thermostat.

Or it could need to be burped. Mine pretty typically gets to 100-105c during typical operation though even with a 93c thermostat, for whatever reason.

Or that. The idle sometimes bounces up and down too. What temp should the fan(s) come on?

I'm actually uncertain. I know it's over 100c, probably 105c?

They weren't on at a ScanGauge-indicated 245°F/118°C. About one bar over halfway on the temp gauge. Radiator was cold.

Maybe your radiator fan is broken or disconnected? 245°F/118°C seems way to hot for the fan not to be on.

bad time?
 

Is this a bad time to ask how the CRXFi project is coming along? :D

That's definitely not right. I don't know how it's wired but it's possible the temperature switch for the radiator fan is not the same sensor for the gauge. I'd burp it, and if that doesn't help, replace the thermostat.

Do you have the full wiring diagrams for the car?

It's right next to the Insight! They're getting along great! :D

The CRXFi is more of a long term project. It needs so much work. But I haven't given up on it! I'd like to find out which one I like better. And which burns less fuel!

Funny thing: I spotted a g1 Insight a couple of weeks ago (has become quite a rare sight around here - maybe 1 sighting a year).



Even more rare! A CRX showed up in town, same generation as yours. The lady is apparently daily driving it.

I do have the wiring diagrams downloaded from IC. I haven't tried to diagnose anything yet. Usually the fan, gauge and ECU have different sending units.

Will this help me? :D
https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...1&d=1544560756

Some interior improvement!
https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...1&d=1544563883

I don't know why people complain about my driveway! :)
https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...1&d=1544563928
https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...1&d=1544563955

Burping the air out of the cooling system stopped the overheating and the fans are working now! :D

Yeah, burping these engines takes a weirdly long time. My work Chevy pickup you can just keep adding coolant to the tank each time you stop driving until it stops going down. The Insight you have to have on perfectly level ground while idling and waving 3 witch hazel branches and doing the traditional coolant bleeding dance under only a 3/4 waxing moon while alternating the idle between exactly 641 and 1366 rpms every 3.15 seconds.

Love the the CRX beside the Insight. Separated at birth... by a couple of decades and a bit more engineering.

They are pretty similar!
https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...1&d=1545097441

Dang I did not realize the CRX was LIGHTER than the Insight!!

The '88 HF was the lightest 2nd gen CRX. The '91 Si was over 2100 lbs. The Insight's weight is impressive considering it has ABS, SRS, IMA, EPS, A/C, PW, keyless power locks, dual power mirrors and a rear wiper. Honda put a lot of effort into keeping the Insight light. Not much effort was made to keep the CRX light. It was just a much simpler car. It's fun comparing the two, literally side-by-side. :)

Yeah I bet with IMA removed and all of that stuff stripped, you could probably get an Insight under 1600lbs with a fully intact interior.

I plan to find out how light an Insight can get! :)

Fun fun!

I want to see! Do post pics as you progress in a build thread! :)

I've mostly been cleaning up what the mice left behind. The A/C evaporator housing was pretty bad! The A/C system had lost its charge anyway, so I'll be removing it for a 31 lb reduction in weight. I've also removed 20 lb of filthy sound deadening. There is no place in this car that mice didn't get into.

Nice before/after pic. No chance of any new mice moving in, or are the ones at your place more respectful of your property?

(Reminds me I haven't been in my vert for more than a couple of years... and I have seen a evidence of the odd critter around...)

I yanked the AC from the Miata too. But left the in dash bits. This is motivation! Looking forward to your running weight reduction tally.

My mice might be just as bad, but they prefer cars that don't move. The Insight was abandoned in a garage for over 3 years. I also might block access to the places the mice like with metal screens. Honda put screens in the IMA battery cooling vent system, which kept that rodent-free. Peppermint essential oil is supposed to repel mice, I've been trying that. I've hear dryer sheets and mothballs work too, but those will repel me as well! Also my cat patrols the driveway, looking for mice! :)

I expect the weight to end up in the 1400-1500 range. I can easily have it weighed on a truck scale, but I'll try to get a more accurate weight too.

1400-1500!!

Are you keeping the interior? I was sure glad to put my winter beater Metro's back in recently. The luxury!

PS yay for el gato.

Definitely interested in seeing how you end up removing that much weight when you're done. :)

I'm keeping at least the dash and door panels. It came without carpet or a headliner. And with the IMA stuff removed, most of the rear interior parts don't fit anyway. So not much interior! But I do want to add something lightweight to control road noise a bit. I've been driving the Civic Wagon with no interior for years. I sometimes use earplugs!