2003 HONDA INSIGHT driver

2003 Insight Online Reference Owner's Manual
Use these links (and links throughout this manual) to navigate through\
this reference.
For a printed owner's manual, click on authorized manuals or go to www.h\
elminc.com.
Contents

Owner's Identification Form
Introduction
........................................................................\
................................................................. i
A Few Words About Safety ........................................................................\
........................................ .ii
Your Car at a Glance ........................................................................................................................... iv
Driver and Passenger Safety ........................................................................\
...................................... 5
Proper use and care of your car's seat belts, and Supplemental Restraint\
System.
Instruments and Controls ................................................................................................................. 59
Instrument panel indicator and gauge, and how to us e dashboard and steering column controls.
Features ............................. .................................................................. 161
How to operate the climate control system, the audio system, and other c\
onvenience features.
Before Driving .................................................................................................................................. 243
What gasoline to use, how to break -in your new car, and how to load luggage and other cargo.
Driving ........................................................................\
...................................................................... 261
The proper way to start the engine, shift the transmission, and park, pl\
us towing a trailer.
Maintenance ..................................................................................................................................... 297
The Maintenance Schedule shows you when you need to take your car to the\
dealer.

Taking Care of the Unexpected
...................................................................................................... 347
This section covers several problems motorists sometimes experience, and\
how to handle them.
Technical Information ..................................................................................................................... 377
ID numbers, dimensions, capacities, and technical information.
Warranty and Customer Relations (U.S. and Canada) ................................................................393
A summary of the warranties covering your new Honda, and how to contact \
us.
Authorized Manuals (U.S. only) ...................................................................................................... 397
How to order manuals and other technical literature.
Index ........................................................................\
........................................................................\
.... .I
Service Information Summary
A summary of information you need when you pull up to the fuel pump.

Event Data Recorders
This vehicle is equipped with an event data recorder (EDR).
The main purpose of an EDR is to record, in certain crash or near crash-like situations, such as an air bag deployment
or hitting a road obstacle, data that will assist in understanding how a vehicle’s systems perf ormed. The EDR is
designed to record data related to vehicle dynamics and saf ety systems f or a short period of time, typically 30 seconds
or less. The EDR in this vehicle is designed to record such data as:How various systems in your vehicle were operating;
Whetherornotthedriverandpassengersafetybelts
were buckled/f astened;
How far (if at all) the driver was depressing the
accelerator and/or brake pedal; and,
How fast the vehicle was traveling.
These data can help provide a better understanding of the circumstances in which crashes and injuries occur.
NOTE: EDR data are recorded by your vehicle only if a non-trivial crash situation occurs; no data are recorded by the
EDR under normal driving conditions and no personal data (e.g., name, gender, age, and crash location) are recorded.
However, other parties, such as law enf orcement, could combine the EDR data with the type of personally identif ying
data routinely acquired during a crash investigation.
To read data recorded by an EDR, special equipment is required, and access to the vehicle or the EDR is needed. In
addition to the vehicle manufacturer, other parties, such as law enforcement, that have the special equipment, can
read the information if they have access to the vehicle or the EDR.
Thedatabelongstothevehicleownerandmaynotbeaccessedbyanyoneelseexceptaslegallyrequiredorwiththe
permission of the vehicle owner.
Introduction
ii

AFewWordsAboutSafety
iv
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To help you make inf ormed
decisions about saf ety, we have
provided operating procedures and
other inf ormation on labels and in
this manual. This inf ormation alerts
you to potential hazards that could
hurt you or others.
You will f ind this important saf ety inf ormation in a variety of f orms,
including:
preceded by a saf ety alert symbol and one of
three signal words: , , or .
These signal words mean:
such as Important Saf ety Reminders or Important
Safety Precautions. such as Driver and Passenger Safety.
This entire book is f illed with important saf ety inf ormation please read it
caref ully.
Your safety, and the safety of others,
is very important. And operating this
vehicle safely is an important
responsibility.
Of course, it is not practical or
possible to warn you about all the
hazards associated with operating or
maintaining your vehicle. You must
use your own good judgement.
on the vehicle.
how to use this vehicle correctly and safely.
Saf ety Messages
Saf ety Headings
Saf ety Section Saf ety L abels
Instructions
DANGER WARNING CAUTION
You WILL be KILLED or SERIOUSLY
HURT if you don’t follow instructions.
You CAN be KILLED or SERIOUSLY
HURT if you don’t follow instructions.
You CAN be HURT if you don’t follow
instructions.

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Ref er to the navigation system manual.
1:
2: If equippedCONT INUED
Your Vehicle at a Glance
Your Vehicle at a Glance
3
MULTI-INFORMATION
DISPLAY
(P.72) (P.62)
INSTRUMENT PANEL INDICATORS
GAUGES
ECON BUTTON
DOOR LOCK TAB
POWER DOOR LOCK
MASTER SWITCH
POWER WINDOW
SWITCHES PASSENGER’S
FRONT AIRBAG
(P.
10)
AUTOMATIC
TRANSMISSION
(CVT)
EX model with navigation system is shown. MIRROR CONTROLS
(P.72,
75)
HOOD RELEASE HANDLE CLIMATE CONTROL
SYSTEM
DRIVER’S FRONT AIRBAG
(P.10) NAVIGATION SYSTEM
AUDIO SYSTEM
(P.147) (P.127)
(P.133)
(P.133)
(P.149) HAZARD WARNING
BUTTON
(P.125)
USB ADAPTER CABLE
PADDLE SHIFTERS (P.168)
(P. 162 )
(P. 271 )
(P.197, 205)
(P.276)
(P.248)2
1
1

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This section gives you important
inf ormation about how to protect
yourself and your passengers. It
shows you how to use seat belts. It
explains how your airbags work. And
it tells you how to properly restrain
inf ants and children in your vehicle.
.........
Important Safety Precautions . 6
.......
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features . 8
.......................................
Seat Belts .9
.........................................
Airbags .10
.........
Protecting Adults and Teens . 12
.....
1. Close and Lock the Doors . 12
...........
2. Adjust the Front Seats . 14
............
3. Adjust the Seat-Backs . 15
...
4. Adjust the Head Restraints . 16
5. Fasten and Position the .............................
Seat Belts .17
6. Maintain a Proper Sitting ................................
Position .18
.....
Advice f or Pregnant Women . 19
...
Additional Safety Precautions . 20Additional Inf ormation About
.......................
Your Seat Belts .21
..
Seat Belt System Components . 21
......................
Lap/Shoulder Belt .22
Automatic Seat Belt ...............................
Tensioners .23
...............
Seat Belt Maintenance . 24
Additional Inf ormation About ...........................
Your Airbags .25
......
Airbag System Components . 25
How Your Front Airbags .........................................
Work .28
...
How Your Side Airbags Work . 32
How Your Side Curtain Airbags .........................................
Work .33
..
How the SRS Indicator Works . 34
How the Side Airbag Of f ......................
Indicator Works .34
How the Passenger Airbag Of f ......................
Indicator Works .35
.............................
Airbag Service .36
...
Additional Safety Precautions . 37
Protecting Children General ................................
Guidelines .38
All Children Must Be ...............................
Restrained .38 All Children Should Sit in a
.................................
Back Seat .39
The Passenger’s Front Airbag .........
Can Pose Serious Risks . 39
If You Must Drive with Several ...................................
Children .41
If a Child Requires Close ..................................
Attention .41
...
Additional Safety Precautions . 42
Protecting Inf ants and Small ...................................
Children .43
.......................
Protecting Inf ants .43
.........
Protecting Small Children . 44
.....................
Selecting a Child Seat .45
....................
Installing a Child Seat .46
...............................
With LATCH .47
.........
With a Lap/Shoulder Belt . 49
..............................
With a Tether .51
...........
Protecting Larger Children . 52
...............
Checking Seat Belt Fit . 52
..................
Using a Booster Seat . 53
When Can a Larger Child Sit in .........................................
Front .54
...
Additional Safety Precautions . 55
.............
Carbon Monoxide Hazard . 56
...................................
Saf ety Labels .57
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
5

Engaging in mobile phone
conversation or other activities that
keep you f rom paying close attention
to the road, other vehicles and
pedestrians could lead to a crash.
Remember, situations can change
quickly, and only you can decide
when it is saf e to divert attention
away f rom driving.
Excessive speed is a major f actor in
crash injuries and deaths. Generally,
the higher the speed, the greater the
risk, but serious injuries can also
occur at lower speeds. Never drive
faster than is safe for current
conditions, regardless of the
maximum speed posted.Having a tire blowout or a
mechanical f ailure can be extremely
hazardous. To reduce the possibility
of such problems, check your tire
pressures and condition f requently,
and perform all regularly scheduled
maintenance (see page ).
338
Pay Appropriate Attention to the
Task of Driving Saf ely
Control Your Speed K eep Your Vehicle in Saf e
Condition
Important Saf ety Precautions
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
7

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Your vehicle is equipped with seat
belts in all seating positions.
Seat belts are the single most
effectivesafetydeviceforadultsand
larger children. (Inf ants and smaller
children must be properly restrained
in child seats.)
Not wearing a seat belt properly
increases the chance of serious
injury or death in a crash, even
though your vehicle has airbags.
When properly worn, seat belts:
Keep you connected to the vehicle
so you can take advantage of the
vehicle’s built-in saf ety f eatures. Help keep you f rom being thrown
against the inside of the vehicle
and against other occupants.
Keep you f rom being thrown out
of the vehicle.
Help keep you in a good position
should the airbags ever deploy. A
good position reduces the risk of
injury f rom an inf lating airbag and
allows you to get the best
advantage f rom the airbag.
Of course, seat belts cannot
completely protect you in every
crash.Butinmostcases,seatbelts
can reduce your risk of serious
injury.
Always wear your seat belt, and
make sure you wear it properly.
Your seat belt system also includes
an indicator on the instrument panel
and a beeper to remind you and your
passengers to f asten your seat belts.
Help protect you in almost every
type of crash, including:frontal impacts
side impacts
rear impacts
rollovers
In addition, most states and all
Canadian provinces and territories
require you to wear seat belts. Seat Belts
Why Wear Seat Belt s
What You Should Do:
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
Driver and Passenger Saf ety
9
Not wearing a seat belt properly
increases the chance of serious
injury or death in a crash, even
though your vehicle has airbags.
Be sure you and your
passengers always wear seat
belts and wear them properly.

Your vehicle has a supplemental
restraint system (SRS) with f ront
airbags to help protect the heads and
chests of the driver and a front seat
passenger during a moderate to
severe f rontal collision (see pagef or more inf ormation on how
your f ront airbags work). Your vehicle also has side airbags to
help protect the upper torso of the
driver or a f ront seat passenger
during a moderate to severe side
impact (see page f or more
information on how your side airbags
work).
In addition, your vehicle has side
curtain airbags to help protect the
heads of the driver, f ront passenger,
and passengers in the outer rear
seating positions during a moderate
to severe side or f ront impact (see
page f or more inf ormation on how
your side curtain airbags work).
28 32
33
Airbags
Your Vehicle’s Saf ety Features
10