2011 Honda Insight Review
The 2011 Honda Insight has a silhouette looking a lot like that of the Toyota Prius. The underpinnings of the 2011 Honda Insight are all fam...
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The 2011 Honda Insight has a silhouette looking a lot like that of the Toyota Prius. The underpinnings of the 2011 Honda Insight are all familiar: It essentially takes the front end of the Honda Fit hatchback and mates it with the Honda Civic Hybrid's version of Integrated Motor Assist (IMA), a mild-hybrid system that features a 1.3-liter VTEC four-cylinder engine, supplemented with an electric motor system and together making 98 horsepower and 123 pound-feet of torque. The 2011 Honda Insight might be a little lower and more rakish than other small cars, but aside from tight rear headroom it offers good comfort. Slotting below the Insight LX, the base Insight is new this year, at $18,950, and includes remote entry, automatic climate control, a tilt/telescopic steering wheel, power windows and locks, and a two-speaker CD sound system.
Honda brought hybrid technology to America back in 1999 with the groundbreaking, and incredibly insightful, Honda Insight. That first Insight pioneered the aerodynamic tear-dropped silhouette that would not appear on the Toyota Prius until 2004. That first Honda Insightt introduced the concept of a gasoline engine assisted by an electric motor powered by a rechargeable battery pack. It had electric steering, regenerative brakes, automatic stop/start technology, and a whole bunch of software to help the driver understand what was happening, and how it was affecting fuel economy. Sales were limited by its two-seat configuration, lack of cargo capacity, and rather high price tag. Today, the Insight suffers severe myopia. The Insight is no longer insightful, an old-school mild hybrid that competes in a world of full hybrids that can travel as fast as 62 mph without using a drop of gas. Ultimately, the customer is king, and right now the Insight is missing its target.
The Honda Insight's EPA-estimated mileage is 40/43 mpg city/highway, which in hybrid terms isn't particularly impressive. The larger Civic Hybrid is rated 40/45 mpg, and the 2009 Prius rates 48/45 mpg. The company promises the Insight will be the most affordable hybrid on the market. Despite the FCX resemblance, the Insight shares its underlying structure, from the front bumper to the A-pillars, with the Honda Fit. The Insight is more than 10 inches longer than the Fit and about 5 inches shorter than the Civic Hybrid.
Like the Civic and Fit, the Honda Insight qualifies as a compact, not a subcompact, based on the EPA's interior volume criteria. Designed specifically as a hybrid, it packages the cabin space, gas tank and high-voltage battery with its associated electronic components more efficiently than a modified Fit could. At 85 cubic feet, the Insight has a bit less passenger volume than the Honda Fit and Civic Hybrid, which both have 91 cubic feet. On the upside, the Insight has more cargo space behind its backseat than the Civic Hybrid has in its trunk: 15.9 cubic feet versus 10.4 cubic feet. Plus, the rear seats fold in the Insight, as they do in the Prius, for maximum cargo volume of 31.5 cubic feet. All other hybrid cars to date — including the original Insight and the first-generation Prius — have sacrificed cargo space or folding seats, or both. The Fit maxes out at 57.3 cubic feet of cargo volume, so it has an edge over the Insight in cargo as well as passenger volume.
The Honda Insight has 1 inch less headroom than the Civic and 2 inches less than the Fit, but I had enough room. It's better known from the Prius hatchback, but it appeared first on the Honda CRX and then the first-gen Insight. At first it seemed like the Insight's upright window segment gave a lower view than the Prius does, but, as the photos show, I parked a 2009 Prius and the Insight the same distance from an orange cone and the visible height was almost identical. The fact that the Insight's backseat head restraints collapse almost flush with the backrests helps open up the view more than in the Prius.The Insight has about 3 inches less backseat headroom than the Fit, which makes it a bit tight.
The Honda Insight is comparable, with bright gauges and nice, low-gloss surfaces. I'm surprised that a hybrid would lack standard cruise control, as it helps maximize efficiency, but Honda is trying to keep the LX's cost low. Nowadays, cruise control costs an automaker practically no hardware and little extra money, but in the Insight the feature requires the EX's more complex steering wheel.
That means the Insight doesn't give the silent electric-only experience that most hybrids do. The Honda Insight is pretty seamless as far as hybrids go. The brakes feel natural, as does the steering — pretty good for rear drum brakes and electric power steering. The Insight does, and the slight lag comes from that more than any hybrid aspect. (There is no manual Insight.)The Insight's cabin noise is admirably low considering affordable, efficient cars often shed noise-abatement measures in order to shave weight and improve mileage.
The Insight's acceleration is merely good. The Honda Insight is 100 or so pounds lighter than the higher-rated Civic Hybrid, but its electric motor has 13 horsepower versus the Civic Hybrid's 20 hp. Econ is the default mode when you turn the car on. Compared to some hybrids, especially the new Ford Fusion Hybrid, the Insight's readouts are minimalist. Unlike most hybrids, the Insight's navigation system (available on the EX) doesn't have supplemental hybrid graphics, nor does it have a backup camera.
The front seats also have active head restraints, and the EX adds an electronic stability system with traction control.For example, I've effortlessly achieved mileage well into the 50-mpg range in the current Prius.
It makes sense; hybrids cost more than comparable non-hybrids. This could bode well for the Insight. If and when gas prices go back up, some of these people will be driven back to the market, where its combination of a low sticker price and good, if not exceptional, mileage could make the Honda Insight look like the right investment.
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| 2011 Honda Insight |
Honda brought hybrid technology to America back in 1999 with the groundbreaking, and incredibly insightful, Honda Insight. That first Insight pioneered the aerodynamic tear-dropped silhouette that would not appear on the Toyota Prius until 2004. That first Honda Insightt introduced the concept of a gasoline engine assisted by an electric motor powered by a rechargeable battery pack. It had electric steering, regenerative brakes, automatic stop/start technology, and a whole bunch of software to help the driver understand what was happening, and how it was affecting fuel economy. Sales were limited by its two-seat configuration, lack of cargo capacity, and rather high price tag. Today, the Insight suffers severe myopia. The Insight is no longer insightful, an old-school mild hybrid that competes in a world of full hybrids that can travel as fast as 62 mph without using a drop of gas. Ultimately, the customer is king, and right now the Insight is missing its target.
The Honda Insight's EPA-estimated mileage is 40/43 mpg city/highway, which in hybrid terms isn't particularly impressive. The larger Civic Hybrid is rated 40/45 mpg, and the 2009 Prius rates 48/45 mpg. The company promises the Insight will be the most affordable hybrid on the market. Despite the FCX resemblance, the Insight shares its underlying structure, from the front bumper to the A-pillars, with the Honda Fit. The Insight is more than 10 inches longer than the Fit and about 5 inches shorter than the Civic Hybrid.
Like the Civic and Fit, the Honda Insight qualifies as a compact, not a subcompact, based on the EPA's interior volume criteria. Designed specifically as a hybrid, it packages the cabin space, gas tank and high-voltage battery with its associated electronic components more efficiently than a modified Fit could. At 85 cubic feet, the Insight has a bit less passenger volume than the Honda Fit and Civic Hybrid, which both have 91 cubic feet. On the upside, the Insight has more cargo space behind its backseat than the Civic Hybrid has in its trunk: 15.9 cubic feet versus 10.4 cubic feet. Plus, the rear seats fold in the Insight, as they do in the Prius, for maximum cargo volume of 31.5 cubic feet. All other hybrid cars to date — including the original Insight and the first-generation Prius — have sacrificed cargo space or folding seats, or both. The Fit maxes out at 57.3 cubic feet of cargo volume, so it has an edge over the Insight in cargo as well as passenger volume.
The Honda Insight has 1 inch less headroom than the Civic and 2 inches less than the Fit, but I had enough room. It's better known from the Prius hatchback, but it appeared first on the Honda CRX and then the first-gen Insight. At first it seemed like the Insight's upright window segment gave a lower view than the Prius does, but, as the photos show, I parked a 2009 Prius and the Insight the same distance from an orange cone and the visible height was almost identical. The fact that the Insight's backseat head restraints collapse almost flush with the backrests helps open up the view more than in the Prius.The Insight has about 3 inches less backseat headroom than the Fit, which makes it a bit tight.
The Honda Insight is comparable, with bright gauges and nice, low-gloss surfaces. I'm surprised that a hybrid would lack standard cruise control, as it helps maximize efficiency, but Honda is trying to keep the LX's cost low. Nowadays, cruise control costs an automaker practically no hardware and little extra money, but in the Insight the feature requires the EX's more complex steering wheel.
That means the Insight doesn't give the silent electric-only experience that most hybrids do. The Honda Insight is pretty seamless as far as hybrids go. The brakes feel natural, as does the steering — pretty good for rear drum brakes and electric power steering. The Insight does, and the slight lag comes from that more than any hybrid aspect. (There is no manual Insight.)The Insight's cabin noise is admirably low considering affordable, efficient cars often shed noise-abatement measures in order to shave weight and improve mileage.
The Insight's acceleration is merely good. The Honda Insight is 100 or so pounds lighter than the higher-rated Civic Hybrid, but its electric motor has 13 horsepower versus the Civic Hybrid's 20 hp. Econ is the default mode when you turn the car on. Compared to some hybrids, especially the new Ford Fusion Hybrid, the Insight's readouts are minimalist. Unlike most hybrids, the Insight's navigation system (available on the EX) doesn't have supplemental hybrid graphics, nor does it have a backup camera.
The front seats also have active head restraints, and the EX adds an electronic stability system with traction control.For example, I've effortlessly achieved mileage well into the 50-mpg range in the current Prius.
It makes sense; hybrids cost more than comparable non-hybrids. This could bode well for the Insight. If and when gas prices go back up, some of these people will be driven back to the market, where its combination of a low sticker price and good, if not exceptional, mileage could make the Honda Insight look like the right investment.
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