Honda Insight Mk1

[benlovesgoddess]

I still rate cars in size as:
Fiesta
Escort
Sierra
Granada
Or
Small
Medium
Large
Extra Large
On this Ford reference scale from the 1980s, the Prius compares to at least a Sierra (i have semi owned 3 Sierras), so i would class it as large.
I definitely group it with the Xantia and Rover 75, and not with Escort sized Citroen ZXs or Vauxhall Astras that i have also owned.

[Draigflag]

I've never owned a large car really, never needed to. I've always had fairly new cars (my first car was just 4 years old with 26,000 miles and only cost £1000!) so performance has always been pretty good what with modern VVT, EFI, Turbocharges etc, small = light = quick! The Clio is probably the biggest car I've owned so far, my Fiat 126 was the smallest.

[benlovesgoddess]

Was your first car a Yugo?! I've had a wide selection of sizes, often bought on prices, locality or necessity rather than for perfect fit.

[Draigflag]

No it was a Perodua Nippa (I actually had 3 in a row!) a Toyota rebadged as a Daihatsu, then rebadged by the Malaysians as a Perodua. Britain's cheapest new car at the time at £4700 new, hence why a nearly new one was just £1000, and I still see it locally, 16 years old going strong, very reliable. Just proves what excellent value for money it was!

[LDB]

I've had way too many cars, being stupid about them for far too long, most stupid with one pickup and one convertible. I am very happy with my Prius and will have it until at least Sept. 6, 2023 if not forever. I guess the largest ever was a Mercury Grand Marquis for a while when my first daughter was a baby, around 1983 and the smallest probably a Mazda RX3 that was my first car.

[benlovesgoddess]

Nice little car - mum in law bought a Suzuki Alto in 2014, at £6,995 joint cheapest uk car (with the Dacia Sandero). Shes very happy with it, looks cute in pink. Least sensible car was a Nissan Terrano, as 27 mpg was its best mpg and it cost a bomb to fix after i took it off roading regularly. Only bonus was running it on heating oil...!

[Draigflag]

Had the chance to tinker with the Honda tonight. So I decided to save the risk of damaging the battery any further, I will disconnect the IMA, so following the guide someone showed me on insight central, I successfully did it. Fairly straight forward, everything is pretty easy to work on given its a Honda and well thought out. At least I can safely use the car until i'm able to find the time to get someone to fit a grid charger for me. Car started fine, but sounded weird using the starter motor, like a regular car I guess, it usually just fires up using the electric motor. Pics attached.

[benlovesgoddess]

Interesting to see (i have no idea what my electric/battery stuff looks like or where it is even!). Just the other day i noticed for the first time , have 2 separate coolant fillers under the bonnet. ..
good luck - will a grid charger fix the existing battery back to normal?

[Draigflag]

A grid charger will allegedly revive a battery in about 75% of cases. It charges the battery to max, breaks down the crystallisation and more importantly, rebalances the pack so the cells hold even charge. Some guys have over 200,000 miles on their original batteries so I'm remaining hopeful!

[benlovesgoddess]

Will a grid charger also work as a very limited plug in system - ie: starting your day with a fully charged battery?
I usually try and end my day by draining the battery, wringing out the last mile or so in EV.
I suspect from the times I haven't, and started the day with mostly charged battery, that the latter is a better option for overall economy.
I should resist the urge to push up my mpg as I arrive home tonight...