2019 Honda Insight: True Cost, Problems & Verdict
98 NHTSA owner complaints · 8 recalls · data-computed verdict. No opinions — public data only.
Owner complaints: 98 filed with NHTSA
Complaints per year on the road: 14.0
What owners say
Verbatim reports filed with the United States safety regulator (NHTSA) by owners of this exact model year. Public record.
The car was last driven and parked at about 8:30pm local time. At around noon the next day, we noticed that the dashboard in the vicinity of the passenger airbag was melted with an approximately 12-inch hole. There was soot staining the interior of the vehicle, and the windshield was burned and cracked above the hole in the dashboard.
Car was put into reverse to perform a T turn to drive in the opposite direction on 1/14. The "D" button was depressed to place the car into Drive. The car quickly accelerated backwards and crashed into the mailbox. Service Advisor at the David McDavid Honda Dealership was contacted yesterday regarding the issue but no response has been received yet. It is unknown if the backup camera was visible since attempts were…
Back up camera stopped working, no blown fuses and the system updates I can do on the car from the touch screen say everything is up to date. My car has no open/not repaired recall for this.
Recalls: 8 campaigns (7 severe)
| Campaign | Component | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| 23V158000 | Seat Belts:Front:Buckle Assembly | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2017-2020 CR-V, 2018-2019 Accord and Accord Hybrid, 2018-2020 Odyssey, 2019 Insight, and 2019-2020 Acura RDX vehicles. A manufacturing issue with the front seat belts may cause the seat belt buckle channel to interfere with the release button, preventing the seat belt buckle from latching. |
| 20V771000 | Electrical System:Body Control Module:Software | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2020 Accord Sedan, Accord Hybrid, and 2019-2020 Insight vehicles. A software error may cause intermittent or continuous disruptions in communication between the Body Control Module (BCM) and other components. |
| 18V629000 | Back Over Prevention: Sensing System: Camera | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018 Honda Accord and 2019 Honda Insight vehicles. In certain scenarios, the back-up camera center display may not function properly. |
| 23V858000 | Fuel System, Gasoline:Delivery:Fuel Pump | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2013-2023 Honda Accord, Civic Coupe, Civic Sedan, Civic Hatchback, Civic Type R, CR-V, HR-V, Ridgeline, Odyssey, Acura ILX, MDX, MDX Hybrid, RDX, RLX, TLX, 2019-2022 Honda Insight, Passport, 2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid, 2018-2019 Honda Clarity PHEV, Fit, and 2015-2020 Honda Accord Hybrid, Pilot, Acura NSX… |
| 26V332000 | Air Bags:Sensor:Occupant Classification:Front Passenger | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2021, 2023 Acura TLX, 2019-2024 RDX, 2017-2020, 2022-2026 MDX, 2017-2021, 2023, 2025 Honda Ridgeline, 2017-2022 Pilot, 2019-2021 Passport, 2018-2026 Odyssey, 2019-2022 Insight, 2019-2021 HR-V, 2018-2020 Fit, 2020-2022 CR-V Hybrid, 2017-2022 CR-V, 2017-2018, 2021 Civic Type R, 2017-2021 Civic… |
| 21V215000 | Fuel System, Gasoline:Delivery:Fuel Pump | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Acura MDX, MDX Sport Hybrid, RDX, TLX, Honda Accord, Civic Hatchback, Insight, 2019 Acura ILX, Honda Accord Hybrid, Civic Coupe, Civic Coupe Si, Civic Sedan, Civic Sedan Si, Civic Type R, Fit, HR-V, Odyssey, Passport, Pilot and Ridgeline, and 2018-2019 CR-V vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump… |
| 18V664000 | Seat Belts:Pretensioner | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2019 Honda Insight, Odyssey, and Ridgeline vehicles. The Supplemental Restraint System (SRS) control unit may have a manufacturing error, possibly resulting in the air bags or seatbelt pretensioners not deploying in the event of a crash. |
| 20V314000 | Fuel System, Gasoline:Delivery:Fuel Pump | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Acura NSX, 2019 Acura RDX, RLX and RLX Sport Hybrid, 2018-2019 Honda Accord, Civic Hatchback, Civic Type R and HR-V, 2019-2020 Insight and 2019 Fit vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail. |
What it costs to buy — and what owning it really takes
Class-level estimates, priced as a compact car of its model year, re-priced to your country. Not a quote, not a valuation of one specific car — condition, mileage and options move it. How these are computed.
What it costs to run
EPA combined 52 MPG · estimated annual fuel cost $1,300
Re-priced automatically from your country's retail fuel, electricity and parts indices — change country in the bar at the top. Estimates; see methodology.
What this car's problems cost to fix
Ranked by the components owners of this exact model year actually complain about. Each figure is flat-rate labour hours x the local shop rate plus a parts band — an estimate of what this kind of failure costs, not a quote, and not a prediction that this car will need it. Formula.
- Forward Collision Avoidance17 complaints · typical job: Radar or camera module replacement and calibration (3.0 h labour + parts)$780–$2,160
- Fuel System15 complaints · typical job: Fuel pump or injector replacement (3.5 h labour + parts)$680–$1,620
- Gasoline15 complaints · typical job: Fuel delivery and emissions repair (3.0 h labour + parts)$580–$1,360
- Unknown Or Other14 complaints · typical job: Diagnosis and mixed repair (2.0 h labour + parts)$360–$940
- Electrical System13 complaints · typical job: Alternator, battery-drain or body-module diagnosis and replacement (3.0 h labour + parts)$540–$1,310
- Service Brakes12 complaints · typical job: Pads, rotors and caliper service, both axles (3.0 h labour + parts)$580–$1,140
Other Honda Insight years
FAQ
What is the most common problem with the 2019 Honda Insight?
The most-reported issue in NHTSA complaint data is Forward Collision Avoidance (17 complaints in our indexed sample).
Is the 2019 Honda Insight a good used car to buy?
Our data verdict is AVOID with a reliability score of 31/100, computed from 98 NHTSA complaints and 8 recall campaigns. See the verdict card for the top reasons.
How much does it cost to fix the 2019 Honda Insight's most common problem?
17 of the NHTSA complaints filed against the 2019 Honda Insight sit in the Forward Collision Avoidance group — more than any other component on this model year. The representative job there is radar or camera module replacement and calibration: about 3.0 hours of labour plus parts, roughly $780–$2,160 at a US independent shop and re-priced to your country at the top of the page. It is an estimate of what this class of failure costs, not a quote for this car.
What does a 2019 Honda Insight cost to run per year?
About $3,216 a year in fuel or energy plus the maintenance band — roughly $16,080 over five years, before purchase price, insurance and depreciation. Figures come from available EPA fuel-economy data and industry maintenance averages, and are re-priced to your country.
Does the 2019 Honda Insight have recalls?
Yes — NHTSA lists 8 recall campaign(s) for the 2019 Honda Insight, 7 of them touching fire, crash or stall risk, the most recent recorded 09/03/2023. Check this car's VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before you buy.
Compare with
Other compacts of about the same age.
What will a 2019 Honda Insight really cost YOU per year?
Fuel, maintenance band and depreciation — computed from public data in 10 seconds.
Open the true-cost calculatorData sources
Complaints & recalls: NHTSA ·
Fuel economy: EPA fueleconomy.gov ·
Scoring: our published methodology.
Maintenance bands are industry-average estimates (AAA Your Driving Costs, CarMD index) — labeled estimates, not measurements.
Last updated: 2026-10-04.
Moderate evidence — 98 complaints, 8 recalls on record
- 98 NHTSA complaints on record (14.0/yr of exposure) — worse than a typical year of this model (4.6/yr)
- 8 recall campaigns, 7 touching safety-critical systems