We first took delivery of our 2019 Honda Insight back in January 2019, and despite some long road trips, a trip to the test track, and using it as a surf mobile, we have had almost an entirely trouble-free experience. Somewhere around the 11,000-mile mark on the odometer, the left-hand gauge in the instrument cluster started to ping us with alerts that we were soon due for service. Close to the 12,000-mile mark, that message changed to “past due.”
So we Googled the nearest Honda dealership, which happened to be Scott Robinson Honda in Torrance, California, and used its online booking tool to make an appointment. Very simple. On the service appointment page, you can see what services will be done and how much it should cost. For those wary of getting upsold at the dealership, this is a nice feature, as everything is relatively clearly articulated in plain English, and there appear to be coupons (though not for our particular service.)
We took the first appointment on offer and arrived just after 7:30 a.m., to a clean, buzzing dealership that looked ready to take in a lot of incoming vehicles. Our mileage when we dropped it off: 12,879, or 958 miles past due for the A-1 service, as the gauge helpfully told us. Intake was quick and efficient if a bit impersonal. The service writer took down our Insight’s VIN, checked the odometer, and confirmed our mileage without even looking at us. “OK, the A-1 service should take an hour to 90 minutes. Will you be waiting, or can we drop you off somewhere?” she asked, handing us back some paperwork, eyes glued to her computer. It was only when we told her that we wanted an intermittent dash creak investigated that she looked up, seemingly surprised. We handed the paperwork back, and she took down notes as to the creak’s location (passenger side dashboard, above the glove box) and conditions (when driving over bumpy roads or when the motor-generator kicks on).
“We’re going to need it until 5 p.m. If it’s sooner, we’ll call you,” she said. Like many dealerships, Scott Robinson Honda runs a free customer shuttle, but because our drop-off location was just outside its coverage zone, the dealership offered us a free Lyft ride. It was a new pilot program, the receptionist explained, and soon after we gave her our mobile number, the app on our phone signaled that a ride was on the way.
Honda’s A-1 service is usually the first on the maintenance schedule. A-1 is shorthand: “A” means oil change, and “1” means they’ll check the condition and pressure of the tires and rotate them as needed. Sounds about right for the Insight’s first 12,000 miles.
At approximately 3 p.m., we got the call from the dealership that the car was ready to be picked up. We took another Lyft (not covered by the dealership) and arrived just before closing. Checkout was nearly as quick as drop-off. A different service writer handed over the keys and gave a brief overview of what was done. The A-1 service was performed with no complications or surprises. As for the dash squeak, apparently the mechanics couldn’t quite replicate it, but they did notice that the tires weren’t properly inflated, which they believed to be the problem. Cost for the job, $89.99 (as advertised) with no additional charge for checking the creaky dash. Total cost at checkout: $96.05.
Our Insight had not been washed by the service team, but the interior looked and smelled as if it had received a bit of a wipe-down. We noted that the mileage had not budged, so there was certainly no joyriding—but it also didn’t seem that the technicians drove it much when attempting to diagnose the dash squeak. Could they have driven it under a mile and decided that was enough? Nyeh, maybe. Suspicious of such a quick and easy fix, we drove the car home with the radio off, and over any rough patch of pavement we could find. Not a squeak or a creak from the dash, so maybe it was just underfilled tires. We’ll let you know in our next update.
Read more about our 2019 Honda Insight EX long-termer:
- Arrival: Third Gen’s A Charm?
- Update 1: The 1,100-Mile Road Trip
- 5 Quick Insights on the 2019 Honda Insight
- Update 2: How Prius Performance Compares to Our Hybrid Honda
- Five Insights After Seven Months and 7,000 Miles
- The Safest Hybrid on the Road?
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Source: WORLD NEWS
