Problems owners report
Complaints filed with NHTSA about the 2002 Honda Insight, by the system named in each complaint. One complaint can name several.
- Exterior lighting8
- Electrical system2
- Tires1
- Power train1
NHTSA ODI complaints (public domain) · updated 23 Oct 2026 · 0 injuries and 0 deaths reported
Compared with other years
NHTSA ODI complaints by model year
New York safety inspections
At its first New York inspection the 2002 Honda Insight failed the safety check 5.48% of the time — 173% more often than the average 2002 passenger car (2.00%). Median odometer at inspection: 194,343 miles.
NY DMV Vehicle Inspections (vezn-fmmk), initial inspections since Aug 2021 · how we count
In the United Kingdom
27 cars built in 2002 were licensed for the road at the end of 2025, and 18 more were declared off the road (SORN).
Department for Transport and DVLA, vehicle licensing statistics (table VEH0124, year of manufacture) · Open Government Licence v3.0
In New Zealand
1 2002 cars are on the New Zealand register; 100% arrived as used imports, 0% were sold new in New Zealand.
NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi, Motor Vehicle Register (March 2026) · CC BY 4.0
Fuel consumption
Official Canadian test results for 1 variant: combined 4.5 L/100 km (about 52 mpg US), CO₂ 104 g/km.
| Variant | City | Highway | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| Insight · Two-seater · Regular gasoline | 4.9 | 4.0 | 4.5 |
Litres per 100 km. Natural Resources Canada, Fuel consumption ratings (open.canada.ca) · Open Government Licence – Canada
Recalls
ON CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES, THE LOW-BEAM TERMINAL ON THE HEAD LIGHT WIRE HARNESS CAN OVERHEAT AND COULD CAUSE THE LOW BEAMS TO FAIL WITHOUT WARNING.
Whether a recall was fixed on a particular car is known only to the manufacturer: check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
NHTSA recalls · summaries in NHTSA's own words
Service bulletins
What Honda told its dealers about the 2002 Honda Insight: known faults, fixes and updates.
| Bulletin | Summary |
|---|---|
| 637994 | INFORMATION ON RETRIEVING IMA DIAGNOSTIC TROUBLE CODES, SAE OR HONDA CODES. *TT |
| 636753 | INFORMATION ON TESTING FOR INTERAL LEAKS WITH DIAGNOSTIC TROUBLE CODE P1456 OR P1457. *TT |
| 636738 | SUBJECT REGARDING CUSTOMER COMPLAINTS THAT THE ENGINE HESITATES BRIEFLY WHEN ACCELERATING. *TT |
| 633655 | INFORMATION REGARDING THE ELECTRONIC CONTROL UNIT OFFERED AS A FIX FOR MALFUNCTION INDICATOR LIGHT ON WITH CODE P1164 OR P1486 IS INEFFECTIVE. *TT |
| 633554 | WHEN YOU USE THE AUTO FUNCTION TO LOWER THE WINDOW, THE WINDOW GOES DOWN ONLY 3 OR 4 INCHES. THE WINDOW GOES DOWN ALL THE WAY IF YOU PUSH THE POWER WINDOW SWITCH LIGHTLY AND HOLD IT. *TT |
| 631027 | CUSTOMERS MAY COMPLAIN OF A BRIEF HESITATION WHEN ACCELERATING AT HIGH ENGINE SPEEDS. *TT |
| 630886 | CUSTOMER COMPLAINTS OF VERY LITTLE OR NO IMA BATTERY ASSIST AND/OR STALLS AFTER A STOP AND DOES NOT RESTART WHEN PUT INTO GEAR. *TT |
| 629959 | ON SOME VEHICLES, THE IMA BATTERY LOSES CHARGE OVERNIGHT. *TT |
| 626767 | SUBJECT REGARDING VEHICLES WITH TYPE II IMMOBILIZER SYSTEM, STARTER MOTOR WILL CRANK BUT THE ENGINE WILL NOT START. *SLC |
| 10186009 | "Service Bulletin - There are several A/C leak detection tools available. -Refrigerant Gas Leak Detector -Ultrasonic Leak Detector -Leak Dye" |
| 10128559 | Dealer message - On Monday, June 23, 2014, American Honda announced three recalls for various 2001-11 Honda models. As of July 23, 2014, affected VINs have been identified, and service bulletins 14-040, Safety Recall: Accord, Civic, and Others ? Front Passenger?s Airbag Inflator Can Be Over-Pressurized, 14-045, Recall: Front Driver?s Airbag Inflator May Produce Excessive Pressure After Long-Term Exposure to High Absolute Humidity Recall, and 14-046, Recall: Front Passenger?s Airbag Inflator May Produce Excessive Pressure After Long-Term Exposure to High Absolute Humidity have been posted to I |
| 10128531 | Dealer message - On Monday, June 23, 2014, American Honda announced three recalls for various 2001-11 Honda models. As of August 4, 2014, affected VINs have been identified, and VIN status inquiry has been updated. |
| 10107371 | SERVICE NEWS ARTICLE - PLANNING ON USING A LEAK CHECK DYE TO HELP FIND A LEAK? HERES THE CURRENT LIST OF VEHICLES THAT YOU SHOULDNT USE DYE ON. |
| 10053545 | HONDA: TROUBLESHOOTING OF DIAGNOSTIC TROUBLE CODES (DTC) P1456 AND P1457. DEALERS ARE TO RUN EVAP FUNCTION TEST TO FIND IF THERE IS A LEAK SO THE VEHICLE CAN BE REPAIRED. *KB |
| 10051966 | HONDA: PRODUCT UPDATE FOR A MANUFACTURING PROBLEM WITH THE ROOF MOLDING MAY ALLOW THE ROOF MOLDING TO COME LOOSE. *KB |
| 10041726 | HONDA: MIL WILL COME IF 3-WAY CATALYTIC CONVERTER OR NOX ADSORPTIVE 3-WAY CATALYST IS DETERIORATED DUE TO SENSOR INPUTS BEING MISINTERPRET BY SOFTWARE. *PE |
| 10038350 | HONDA: SEE DOCUMENT SEARCH BUTTON FOR OWNER LETTER. BATTERY SYSTEM LIGHT COMES ON WITH TROUBLE CODES STORED. *RM MODELS 2000-2004 INSIGHT. UPDTED 5/14/13. *PE |
| 10032953 | HONDA: WARRANTY EXTENSION-VEHICLE WARRANTY MILEAGE. CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT ALLEGING THAT THE ODOMETERS ON CERTAIN 2002-2006 HONDA MODELS WERE OVERSTATING MILEAGE. FEDERAL COURT PROVIDED FINAL APPROVAL OF SETTLEMENT ON 12/29/07. NO MODELS LISTED. *PE |
| 10026884 | HONDA: HYBRID BATTERIES CAN BE AFFECTED AND DAMAGED BY EXCESSIVELY HIGH TEMPERATURES. *PE |
| 10025523 | LOAD CARRYING CAPACITY REDUCED LABEL FOR ALL HONDA VEHICLES. *PE |
| 10024665 | WARRANTY EXTENSION: IMA BATTERY. *NJ |
| 10024568 | HONDA SERVICE CAMPAIGN: SEE DOCUMENT SEARCH BUTTON FOR OWNER LETTER. WARRANTY EXTENSION: CVT START CLUTCH JUDDER. CSC WAS RECEIVED. *NJ |
| 10024567 | HONDA SERVICE CAMPAIGN: SEE DOCUMENT SEARCH BUTTON FOR OWNER LETTER. WARRANTY EXTENSION: INSIGHT IMA BATTERY MODULE. CSC WAS RECEIVED. *NJ UPDATED 3/8/13. *PE |
| 10024563 | HONDA SERVICE CAMPAIGN: SEE DOCUMENT SEARCH BUTTON FOR OWNER LETTER. PRODUCT UPDATE: PREMATURE IMA BATTERY MODULE FAILURE. CSC WAS RECEIVED. *NJ |
| 10024235 | HONDA SERVICE CAMPAIGN: SEE DOCUMENT SEARCH BUTTON FOR OWNER LETTER. WARRANTY EXTENSION: CVT DRIVE BELT SLIPPAGE -- ON AFFECTED VEHICLES, THE CVT (CONTINUOUSLY VARIABLE TRANSMISSION) DRIVE BELT MAY SLIP DURING ACCELERATION. CSC WAS RECEIVED. *NJ UPDATED 4/24/08. *NJ |
NHTSA manufacturer communications (public domain)
NHTSA investigations
Pedestrian alert sounds
NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation