The UK/EU Honda Hybrid IMA Expert.
Thank you for your enquiry. Please read this document carefully.
At present I only deal with
I do not currently deal with the Generation 2 Honda Civic Hybrid, Honda CRZ, or Generation 2 Honda Insight or any other make of hybrid. This may change after June 2014.
I own both a Honda Insight and Honda Civic Hybrid and I have researched the electronics and IMA systems in these vehicles over several years. Most people contact me about failing IMA batteries. This is now a common occurrence as these early hybrid vehicles are around ten years old and the IMA batteries are at the end of their natural life. The Honda IMA cars are great vehicles with lots of life left in them, and will most likely have given you a lot of pleasure and saved a considerable amount of money over the years with excellent reliability, low fuel consumption and cheap road tax. However when the IMA battery fails it’s time to re-invest some of that money saved in a replacement.
Unfortunately there is no cheap solution if you need a
replacement IMA battery.
Honda Dealers are not very interested in fixing these vehicles
or very knowledgeable about them. They are quite rare, with only around 250
Insights and 1000 Civics in the
So what services
do I offer?
1) I rebuild and fit replacement IMA batteries using brand new high spec Nimh cells with a higher capacity and performance than Honda cells. (Insight & Civic). I do not use second-hand, reconditioned cells or sticks.
Working closely with others in the
The cost of the IMA
2) I build and fit a special high voltage IMA battery charger. (Insight Only) (Civic coming soon!)
Again working with others, we have developed a special low
current IMA battery charger which can in some instances help to rebalance and
recover a failing IMA battery. This is a much cheaper option than a new battery
but carries no guarantee of success and is not a magic bullet. If your battery
is really bad and unlikely to be helped I will tell you on the day and you can
then decide if you wish to go ahead with a charger or fit a new battery. The charger
fitting process takes about one hour so involves minimal vehicle downtime. The benefits of an IMA battery charger fitted to a
suitable battery are increased mpg, restoration of IMA performance, lower
emissions, cleared fault codes and longer and stronger assist and regeneration.
The cost of the IMA
3) I build and fit a manual IMA control system IMAC&C (IMA Command & Control) for the enthusiast driver
wanting total control over how the IMA system works. (Insight & Civic)
This involves the fitting of a specially developed control
circuit to the car and additional wiring to enable the manual control of the
IMA system. This allows the user to control how and when the car assists or
regenerates, so the driver can help a weak battery last longer. It also enables
the sporty driver to use more assist for extra performance on demand. The
car’s own safety systems still have final control, and the IMA system
remains within safe limits even when modified. The fitting process takes about eight hours
in the Insight and two hours in the Civic. The
benefits of the IMAC&C system are manual IMA control, increased mpg,
increased performance, lower emissions, stronger assist and regeneration and
better management of the IMA battery condition.
The cost of the
IMAC&C device including installation is Insight £600 UK/EU Only. Civic £300 Worldwide.
4) I build and supply a special Honda IMA dedicated OBDII diagnostic and vehicle monitoring tool
OBDIIC&C (OBDII Command & Control) which displays a large range of vehicle parameters on a dedicated dash mounted instrument. (Insight & Civic)
It enables you to monitor in real time a huge list of system
parameters, read and clear vehicle error codes and it has a number of exclusive
IMA related functions. Over 150 of these are currently in use helping owners
get the best out of their cars. The benefits of the
OBDIIC&C system are real time system monitoring, increased mpg, lower
emissions, cleared fault codes and better management of the IMA battery
condition.
The cost of the
OBDIIC&C device is £125 including worldwide postage. Case not
supplied.
5) I can diagnose and repair difficult IMA related problems and I carry an extensive stock of expensive Honda
IMA parts. (Insight & Civic)
My hourly rate for
this service is £75. Parts extra. UK/EU Only.
6) I provide an IMA check up service when I will examine your car, take readings, and drive it, to give you an
assessment of the battery state of health and advice on any other issues or problems.
My hourly rate for this service is £50. UK/EU Only.
7) Other Services.
I work very closely with Steve Retchless at Auto-Tech Thirsk Ltd an independent specialist garage less than 5 miles away, who does my general hybrid repair and servicing work. I’ve known Steve for over 20 years and he now works on a lot of my customers Honda IMA Hybrids. He has my backup for any IMA or Hybrid problems, access to my diagnostic tools, stock of expensive spares, expertise and my full Honda workshop manuals. He can provide a courtesy car, and services the cars of a lot of customers who come to see me for IMA work.
Steve and his mechanics are familiar with the quirky issues that affect the Honda Hybrids (We have worked on them together for several years) and they can tackle a number of mechanical problems that a lot of Honda dealers or other garages won’t. For example the common Insight MK1 gearbox input shaft bearing failure.
Contacting Steve at Auto-Tech is only possible by phone on 01845 526192. He does not use the answer phone or e-mails, so you have to ring until you catch him. It’s a good way of killing two birds with one stone. Many visitors now book in with Auto-Tech for general service or repairs, stay overnight in the area and come to see me the following day for IMA work.
The rate for these
services is determined by Steve so contact him for details and availability. UK/EU Only.
Terms
& Conditions.
Due to the high voltage and danger presented by the IMA
hybrid system I do not supply
batteries, chargers or my IMAC&C system for others to fit. All the work is
done by me personally, at my workshop in
Payment is strictly via bank transfer before the fitting appointment or cash on the day.
I also accept Paypal for the OBDIIC&C and IMAC&C HCH1 device for international postal sales.
A signed disclaimer is required before I will fit any IMAC&C manual IMA control device.
To manage the high volume of enquiries I receive you must include your full name and address, Insight central username (if you have one) and your vehicle registration/identity number with any further communications.
To book my services once we have agreed the work and a suitable date, I require a non refundable deposit of £100 by bank transfer or Paypal(+5% to cover their fee). If I cancel for any reason your money will be refunded. If you cancel because you do not want the work doing anymore then the deposit is forfeit. If you cancel because the date booked becomes a problem then we will rebook a different date. Because my spare time is limited cancellations and no shows mean others have to wait longer for my service, that’s not fair on them or me. Parts ordered at your request for your vehicle will attract a 100% restocking fee if you cancel completely.
I’m probably one of the few people left who don’t regularly carry a mobile phone, so I don’t provide a number for routine communications. Everything is done by e-mail. You can however chat to me using my e-mail address and Google Talk/Chat if you have it installed on your computer.
Useful
Links.
There is a huge amount of information on the internet about these cars, and I am an active member of www.insightcentral.net. This is the best forum for discussion of all relevant technical topics pertaining to the Honda IMA vehicles. I strongly recommend you peruse the site.
For unsolicited testimonials this link covers a number of people who have had IMA batteries supplied and fitted by me. http://www.insightcentral.net/forums/modifications-technical-issues/20319-uk-betterbattery-upgrade-thread.html Feel free to Google me for hundreds of other links and information.
You can check Honda pricing for any
Insight http://www.lingshondaparts.com/honda_car_parts_block_selection_C30.php?mod_01=19734
Civic http://www.lingshondaparts.com/honda_car_parts_block_selection_C30.php?mod_01=8861
YouTube contains lots of my videos and project details. This link takes you to my channel.
http://www.youtube.com/user/retepsnikrep
If you need help in the US/CAN or outside the EU there are a number of very reliable US based companies who can assist with IMA problems and batteries.
Eli at http://www.bumblebeebatteries.com/ Batteries and OBDIIC&C/IMAC&C
Matt at http://www.hybridrevolt.com/ Batteries
Eric at http://www.evpowers.com/ Batteries & Sophisticated Chargers
Jeff at http://hybridautomotive.com/ Simple Chargers
Local
Accommodation.
People travel from all over the country and continental
Excellent. Clare
at Asenby http://www.asenbyhall.com/ (Less than 100
yards from me!) 01845 577034
Very Good. Denise
at Sandhutton http://www.carltonbarns.co.uk/ 01845 587381
Good. The
Bay Horse at Rainton http://www.bayhorsecountryinn.co.uk/ 01845 578697
Ok. The
Finally a little about me.
I will be retiring from my current full time job in June 2014 aged 52 and have been working on expanding my part time Honda Hybrid consultancy business for several years to take its place.
I’m well known in the hybrid and electric vehicle communities, and have been driving an electric vehicle or hybrid of some sort for the last 25 years. I look forward to meeting you and hope to be able to help.
Peter Perkins (The UK/EU Honda Hybrid IMA Expert)
Stoneleigh, Asenby,
Thirsk,
150mpg@gmail.com