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.
µ
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
Take your vehicle to an
authorized dealer as soon as
possible. If you ignore this
indication, your airbags may not
operate properly.
Even if your
airbags do not inflate, your dealer
should inspect the driver’s seat
position sensor, the f ront
passenger’s weight sensors, the
f ront seat belt tensioners, and all
seat belts and their anchors worn
during a crash to make sure they
are operating properly.
Your airbag systems are virtually
maintenance f ree, and there are no
parts you can saf ely service.
However, you must have your
vehicle serviced if:
Any airbag
that has deployed must be
replaced along with the control
unit and other related parts. Any
seat belt tensioner that activates
must also be replaced.
If no obstructions are f ound, have
your vehicle checked by a dealer as
soon as possible. If the indicator comes on with no
f ront seat passenger and no objects
on the seat, or with an adult riding
there, something may be interf ering
with the weight sensors. Look f or
and remove: Any items under the f ront
passenger’s seat.
Any object(s) hanging on the seat
or in the seat-back pocket.
Any object on the f loor that is
touching the rear of the seat-back.
Do not try to remove or replace
anyairbagbyyourself.Thismust
be done by an authorized dealer or
a knowledgeable body shop. We recommend against the use of
salvaged airbag system
components, including the airbag,
tensioners, sensors, and control
unit.
Additional Inf ormation About Your Airbags
T he SRS indicat or alert s you t o aproblem.
If your vehicle has a moderat e t osevere impact .
An airbag ever inf lates.Airbag Service
36
If this happens, pull to the side of the
road when it is safe, check which tire
has lost pressure, and determine the
cause. If it is because of a f lat tire,
replace the flat tire with the compact
spare (see page ), and have the
f lat tire repaired as soon as possible.
If two or more tires are underinf lated,
call a prof essional towing service.
Refer to page for more
inf ormation.If this indicator begins to f lash,
there is a problem with the tire
pressure monitoring system
(TPMS). You will also see a
‘‘CHECK TPMS SYSTEM’’
message on the multi-inf ormation
display. The indicator continues to
f lash f or a while (approximately 1
minute), then stays on. If this
happens, have your dealer check
the system as soon as possible.
For more inf ormation, see page .
This indicator normally comes on f or
a f ew seconds when you turn the
ignition switch to the ON (II)
position. If it comes on at any other
time, it indicates a problem in the
integrated motor assist (IMA)
system. With the IMA indicator on,
the vehicle may not accelerate as it
normally does. Have the vehicle
checked by the dealer as soon as
possible.
You will also see a ‘‘CHECK IMA
SYSTEM’’ message on the multi-
inf ormation display.
See pages and .
You will also see a ‘‘CHECK TIRE
PRESSURE’’ message on the multi-
inf ormation display (see page ).If it comes on while driving, it
indicates that one or more of your
vehicle’s tires are signif icantly low
on pressure.
This indicator has two f unctions: This indicator normally comes on f or
a f ew seconds when you turn the
ignition switch to the ON (II)
position.
1.
2.
281 283 289349
374
290
U.S. models only
Instrument Panel Indicators
Low Tire Pressure/
TPMS Indicator
IMA System Indicator
A uto Idle Stop Indicator
66
Help assure your vehicle’s f uture
reliability and perf ormance by paying
extra attention to how you drive
during the f irst 600 miles (1,000 km).
During this period:Avoid full-throttle starts and rapid
acceleration.
You should also f ollow these
recommendations with an
overhauled or exchanged engine, or
when the brakes are replaced. Your vehicle is designed to operate
on unleaded gasoline with a pump
octane number of 87 or higher. Use
of a lower octane gasoline can cause
a persistent, heavy metallic rapping
noise that can lead to engine damage.
Do not change the oil until the
scheduled maintenance time.
Avoidhardbrakingforthefirst
200 miles (300 km). Use of gasoline with these additives
may adversely af f ect perf ormance,
and cause the malfunction indicator
lamp on your instrument panel to
come on. If this happens, contact
your dealer f or service. Some
gasoline today is blended with
oxygenates such as ethanol. Your
vehicle is designed to operate on
oxygenated gasoline containing up to
10% ethanol by volume. Do not use
gasoline containing methanol. If you
notice any undesirable operating
symptoms, try another service
station or switch to another brand of
gasoline.
Break-in Period
Fuel Recommendation
Break-in Period, Fuel Recommendation
244
T o help prevent harmf ul f uel system
and engine deposits, use high quality
f uel containing detergent and additives.
In addition, in order to maintain good
perf ormance, f uel economy, and
emissions control, we strongly
recommend the use of gasoline that
does NOT contain harmf ul manganese-
based f uel additives such as MMT , if
such gasoline is available.
Your vehicle’s on board diagnostic
system will detect a loose or missing
f uel f ill cap as an evaporative system
leak. The f irst time a leak is detected
a ‘‘TIGHTEN FUEL CAP’’ message
appears on the multi-inf ormation
display.Turn the engine of f , and conf irm the
f uel f ill cap is installed. If it is, loosen
it, then retighten it until it clicks at
least once. The message should go
off after several days of normal
driving once you tighten or replace
thefuelfillcap.Toscrolltoanother
message, press the INFO button.
The ‘‘TIGHTEN FUEL CAP’’
message will appear each time you
restart the engine until the system
turns the message off.
Screw the fuel fill cap back on
until it clicks at least once. If you
do not properly tighten the cap,
you will see a ‘‘TIGHTEN FUEL
CAP’’ message on the multi-
inf ormation display. If the system
still detects an evaporative system
leak af ter retightening the cap, the
malf unction indicator lamp may
come on (see page ).
Push the f uel f ill door closed until
it latches.
6. 5.
365
CONT INUED
Tighten Fuel Cap Message
Service Station Procedures
Bef ore Driving
247
Park the vehicle, and set the
parking brake. Pull the hood
release handle located under the
lower lef t corner of the dashboard.
The hood will pop up slightly.
If the system still detects a leak in
the vehicle’s evaporative emissions
system, the malf unction indicator
lamp (MIL) comes on. If the f uel f ill
cap was not already tightened, turn
the engine of f , and check or
retighten the f uel f ill cap until it
clicks at least once. The MIL should
go off after several days of normal
driving once the cap is tightened or
replaced. If the MIL does not go of f ,
have your vehicle inspected by a
dealer. For more inf ormation, see
page .
If the hood latch handle moves
stif f ly, or if you can open the hood
without lifting the handle, the
mechanism should be cleaned and
lubricated. Put your f ingers under the f ront
edge of the hood near the center.
Slide your hand to the lef t until
you f eel the hood latch handle.
Push this handle to the lef t to
release the hood. Lif t up the hood.
1.
2.
365 Opening and Closing the Hood
Service Station Procedures
248
LATCH
HOOD RELEASE HANDLE
Pull
If you think you can saf ely drive a
short distance to a service station,
proceed slowly to the station, then
inflate the tire to the recommended
pressure.
Driving on a signif icantly under-
inf lated tire causes the tire to
overheat and can lead to tire failure.
Under-inf lation also reduces f uel
efficiency and tire tread life, and may
af f ect the vehicle’s handling and
stopping ability.
Becausetirepressurevariesby
temperature and other conditions,
the low tire pressure/TPMS
indicator may come on unexpectedly. If the tire is flat, or if the tire
pressure is too low to continue
driving, replace the tire with the
compact spare tire (see page ).
When the low tire pressure/TPMS
indicator is on, one or more of your
tires is signif icantly underinf lated.
Youshouldstopandcheckyourtires
as soon as possible, and inflate them
to the proper pressure as indicated
on the vehicle’s tire inf ormation
placard.
Your vehicle is equipped with a tire
pressure monitoring system (TPMS)
that turns on every time you start the
engine and monitors the pressure in
your tires while driving.
Each tire has its own pressure
sensor. If the air pressure of a tire
becomes signif icantly low, the
sensor in that tire immediately sends
a signal that causes the low tire
pressure/TPMS indicator in the
instrument panel to come on. If this
happens, you will see a ‘‘CHECK
TIRE PRESSURE’’ message on the
multi-inf ormation display.
If you cannot make the low tire
pressure/TPMS indicator and
message on the multi-inf ormation
display go out af ter inf lating the tires
to the specified values, have your
dealer check the system as soon as
possible. 348
CONT INUED
U.S. models onlyLow Tire Pressure/
TPMS Indicator
Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)
Driving
289