Thank you for catching the typo.

In 5-speeds, the driver has more control....to either get the most out of the car or to mess it up. livvie is correct in the CVT version is harder to stress the Assist and drain the batteries.

This is not a fault of Honda per se, but you always have a few that try to push the envelop of a car beyond what it's intended for.

 

Update - took the car to a different dealer in town for an oil change. Asked some pointed questions. Left with more.
Such as - if you REALLY have worked on a lot of Insights here, how come I had to show your service associate how to read the mileage? And why did it take 4 people standing around scratching their heads before they decided whether or not the car could go through your car wash? (It did, and it's fine. Dealer #1 did not let it go through.)

Finally talked with the LaCrosse dealership. They have a salvage battery pack if I want it ($1500) but they're concerned it would have the same problems, since it is old. That's certainly valid. The service guy also told me that if the IMA light stays out, and the car is running normally (not doing recals, etc, regular mpg) that there was no real rush to do this. Drive it a while and see if it was just a 1-time overheat. This person seems knowledgable - knows about the recal issue, knows exactly what the update to the battery packs involved with recharging levels, etc.

I'm feeling reassured now. I'll take it for a long drive tomorrow and see how it does.

 

Took it for a long drive today - IMA light is on again. This time, I didn't lose the display. Odd. It is still charging/assisting, although the charging seems slow.

Anyway, I ordered the new battery pack (~$5000) and will be going to LaCrosse on Friday. I just have to keep reminding myself - "it's not a problem, it's just an expense." (phrase courtesy of J. Rosenberg)

 

It sounds like you will be in good hands, but that is a bite out of the paycheck!

I drove 20 or so miles to the dealer with the IMA out - got 80mpg. To me it seemed to run find, but that is not to say it would run well over thousands of miles without the IMA. The IMA is the primary starter and the flywheel. My dealer took the ultra cautious route and said don't drive without it.

 

Got the new battery yesterday - $5800 total. Ouch. But the car is driving very, very well - more power on the assist and great mpg. I was able to take hills at 55mph and still average 74 mpg on the 160-mile drive home.

The dealer experience was great. Honda Motorwerks in LaCrosse is very dedicated to hybrids. When I drove in, there were 2 other Insights in the service area, and one parked across the street. 4 used Insights on the lot. And the dealer's own cars (the ones with the logos, etc.) were all Civic hybrids. Instead of a clueless "service associate", I checked in with the service guy who had quoted the work to me, and talked knowledgably about the IMA system. The replacement took about 2.5 hours (well, it was over lunch break, too.)

Walking around downtown LaCrosse, I noticed two Insights parked on the main street by stores, and another down by the riverfront park. 3 within 5 blocks of each other. That's in a town of 52,000. Gee, ya think a dealer who cares about these cars, promotes them, and gives good service on them might make a difference in sales?

Today I'll see how it does in city driving.