HFS's car thread | Nearly-5000-miles update

[Davis]

Ooooh those are neat little cars. I've always had a soft spot for the funky lime green ones, but it seems like Insights don't exist at all anymore. I bet it's a fun little car being so light with a 5 speed.

 

[homeforsummer]

Ooooh those are neat little cars. I've always had a soft spot for the funky lime green ones, but it seems like Insights don't exist at all anymore. I bet it's a fun little car being so light with a 5 speed.

The guy I bought mine off has replaced it with a lime green one. Not sure how many they sold in the U.S, I think far more than they sold in the UK but obviously the States is rather bigger, so they're probably spread apart more. And realistically most of them are probably in California!

It's surprisingly fun to drive given the low power. Feels light on its feet. Would be even better with shorter gear ratios, but obviously that'd take away from the economy somewhat.

 

[niky]

Smug, sodding, hippie-enviromentalist-liberal, car-hating, eco-weenie.

I'm sure I'll find more words to describe my envy, but I'm still picking my jaw off the floor.

How're the batteries? Have heard you can still drive without them and get great economy, but performance will be (more) tepid.

Any chance the engine is compatible with L-series gearboxes?

 

[homeforsummer]

Batteries seem fine. Previous owner reported no problems with them, and they seem to charge and discharge roughly in line with what I'd expect.

Not sure on the gearbox. I suspect if there's any problem with mating another gearbox to the engine, it's that the current one might have some sort of space allowance for the electric motor in the bellhousing, and others probably don't. The motor is quite narrow but these sort of things make all the difference.

Gearbox itself is typically Honda-nice to use. Quite a short throw and all the slots are very close together. Due to the low seating position the shifter is in a nice place too.

 

[ExigeEvan]

After a quick browse on autotrader, may I ask, did you pay in the same region for this mk1 as you would for a mk2?

 

[homeforsummer]

Nah, bit less than that. I'd not realised how cheap 2nd-gen cars had got actually, but still less.

I drove a 2nd-gen Insight towards the end of last year. Actually quite like them and don't even mind that they're CVT-only. They still feel a bit more peppy than mine does (maybe because of the CVT) and obviously they're more practical. But in terms of design and engineering they don't really interest me.

Put another way, I don't think I could bring myself to spend £5k-6k on a mk2 Insight, but the price I paid for mine seems fair given the rarity/engineering/design etc.

I did seriously entertain the idea of a CR-Z for a bit, as I really like those. But they start at £7k+, and that would have required a loan, so I'd be paying £200 a month for the next three years instead of nothing a month. And to put that another way, after just 10 months of paying that I could save up for a replacement battery some point down the line if this thing ever needs it in my tenure. Which'd keep it going for another few hundred thousand miles.

 

[CDailey]

Interesting choice! I was seriously entertaining a CR-Z before the Abarth but had to disregard it as you can not fit a child seat in it, if/when the need comes.

It's interesting to see the Insight is not quite as boring as it appears.

 

[Clark]

What's the insurance like? I know you won't have issues like mine because you're not as young as me. I'm just curious to see ether it's really low because so little will have been involved in accidents etc.

And is it tax exempt?

 

[homeforsummer]

Insurance isn't bad at all - £200 for the year. One of the lowest I've paid.

Unfortunately this one isn't tax exempt - misses out by a few months. £130 a year under the old two-tier scheme, but still not a huge cost in the greater scheme of things. Just over a tenner a month, and I intend to save about £25 a month soon with a new phone contract so that's that paid for!

 

[Katiegan]

Slam it.

I dare you.

 

[Dennisch]

This thread needs more pictures.
Nice quircky non French car. 👍

 

[homeforsummer]

Slam it.

I dare you.

You're a bad influence...

This thread needs more pictures.

Will try and get some tomorrow 👍

 

[Crash]

Congrats on the purchase! Neat little cars these are. 👍

 

[homeforsummer]

Went and snapped a few quick phone pics, @Dennisch.

​

Drawing up a list of little jobs that need doing to the car. Minor stuff really - trip button doesn't work, little rattles here and there, needs a bit of a clean inside, headlights have yellowed so need refinishing, wheels need a refurb.

Drives nicely though. Little bit noisy at higher speeds through lack of sound deadening, though it actually drives better at higher speeds too. So little wind and tyre resistance that it seems to skim along quite nicely. Ride settles down too, as it's quite stiff at lower speeds.

 

[Dennisch]

I love it.

 

[CDailey]

Wow, that dash/instrument cluster is pretty awesome. I really dig it.

 

[homeforsummer]

Wow, that dash/instrument cluster is pretty awesome. I really dig it.

One of my favourite bits of the car. All-digital gauges are always a surefire way to get me to like a car.

 

[daan]

All-digital gauges are always a surefire way to get me to like a car.

Within limits, obviously.

 

[homeforsummer]

Indeed. Though a Maestro (it is a Maestro, isn't it?) with digi dials is still better than one without.

 

[Cano]

Dude wtF. Completely out of the blue. I know I'm way late on this but I have been more or less away from GTP this past week and a half.

Eclectic. From a miata to a bug to this thing. You need something completely opposite as your next vehicle. I want to see you in a lowered heap of rust. you know you want to.

 

[homeforsummer]

Hah, we'll see. I do like far too many different types of cars. Makes buying stuff a nightmare as I'm never sure how happy I'll be with it.

Insight appeals to the engineering geek in me though. Also it's small, light and a two-seater, so I can't go too wrong with that combination.

 

[Clark]

Also it's small, light and a two-seater, so I can't go too wrong with that combination.

 

[homeforsummer]

I'll get another at some point. Natural instinct is to go for a car I've not owned before though, hence the Insight.

 

[Moglet]

​

Well you've certainly got no excuse for not knowing what speed you were doing if you get pulled over

 

[homeforsummer]

Already found that it's not the speed I'm looking at - it's the little charge/assist gauge and the instant mpg slider along the bottom!

Actually, that image somewhat overplays the size of the instruments. The main interior shots show it better - they're actually surprisingly small.

 

[eiriksmil]

Slam it.

I dare you.

Love it.

The car will probably get even higher mpgs too I remember a US contributor for CAR magazine had one if these as a long termer end 90s. Ahead of its time for sure.

 

[Moglet]

Already found that it's not the speed I'm looking at - it's the little charge/assist gauge and the instant mpg slider along the bottom!

Actually, that image somewhat overplays the size of the instruments. The main interior shots show it better - they're actually surprisingly small.

The interior shots do give it a better sense of scale, they're smaller than they appear in the front on photo! If I had one I'd end up having an accident looking at that charge/assist gauge. It looks like it's been well looked after inside and out, but then I'd expect nothing less coming from someone who knows their stuff.

 

[homeforsummer]

Previous owner was a bit of an expert on them. This was his second, he's now on his third. It's the sort of car where all its previous owners will probably have looked after it quite well though. Right from the start people knew exactly what they were getting, and they've never been dirt cheap, so it isn't the sort of car people scrimp on.

 

[Turtle]

You always get the coolest cars. I love 1st gen Insights, I mean, they've got covers over the rear wheels, how can anyone not love these? Those seats look strangely comfortable too.

 

[homeforsummer]

Yeah, the seats are actually pretty good. Quite soft, nicely positioned and semi-supportive.