Honda Insight

But they are far from a happy family. There is a feud taking place that has global implications for the warring factions. The Prius has held the hybrid high ground for a decade and has now found itself not only challenged but soundly beaten by an aggressive newcomer, the Honda Insight.  And the marker that the Insight has put down is a challenge to the Chevrolet Volt when it comes on stream.

The Insight looks like the Prius...

The Honda Insight looks very like the Toyota Prius. Both are five door hatchbacks aimed at similar segments of the market and they both have the same smooth, dipping front and the high, cut-off tail. The Insight’s front-end detailing strongly resembles the FCX Clarity, Honda’s first volume-production hydrogen fuel cell model that is being tested in America.

As hybrids, the Insight and Prius are also very similar. They are both ‘parallel hybrids’ which means that their wheels can be turned by both their petrol engines and electric motors. All their original energy comes from petrol. Here the similarity with Chevrolet’s Volt ends. The Chevy is a ‘series hybrid’ – a vehicle in which the wheels are driven solely by the electric motor. The function of the Volt’s petrol engine is to act as a generator that supplies energy to the electric motor. Series hybrids must be plugged into a source of electricity to power the batteries.

Honda’s Integrated Motor Assist hybrid system

The Insight uses Honda’s Integrated Motor Assist hybrid powertrain. This combines an 88 bhp, 1.3-litre eight-valve VTEC petrol engine with a 13 bhp electric motor, which is located between the engine and the continuously variable transmission (CVT) gearbox. The battery, behind the rear seats, is (surprisingly) nickel-metal hydride rather than lithium-ion. The former was chosen on cost grounds and is one of the ways in which Honda has economised with the Insight.

The Insight performs well on the road. It has a top speed of 113 mph and a 0-60 mph time of 12.5 seconds. Some drivers have given the Insight the accolade of ‘fun to drive’. The combined figure for fuel consumption is 64.2 mpg (lead-in model), not as economical as the Prius’s 72.4 mpg.  And the Prius also has the edge on CO2 emissions: 89 g/km (Band A VED) for the Prius versus 101 g/km (Band B VED) for the Insight.

Size matters

There is one other aspect of the cars’ specifications that is most decidedly in the Prius’s favour: the Prius is bigger than the Insight. The Prius’s wheelbase is six inches longer than the Insight’s which, when translated into rear seat accommodation, means that the Prius is larger than the Insight by 2.5 inches in both length and height. On the basis of interior volume, the Prius is classified as a mid-sized car while the Insight is a compact.

 ‘The world’s most affordable hybrid’

Having noted the differences in interior space, the Prius and the Insight are both highly competent vehicles with many shared attributes. So what is the most significant difference? The answer is price! The basic Prius clocks in at £19,090 while the basic Insight’s sticker price is £15,890 (as at November 2009). The Insight is £3,200, or almost 17%, less than the Prius. On this basis the Insight has been given the title of ‘the world’s most affordable hybrid.’

It is price which is the most potent determinant of all the reasons to purchase in this instance. And it shows. In terms of sales the Insight has made very heavy inroads into the Prius’s volumes in Japan, America and Europe.

How to optimise your fuel efficiency

There is another feature which is proving highly desirable to car buyers who want ‘to do their bit’ for the environment. Honda has introduced, on every version of the Insight, an Eco Assist System. In a nutshell, it enables the driver to adopt the driving styles and techniques to maximise fuel efficiency by displaying a series of visual aids which instantaneously show the driver how economically he is driving.

Fuel consumption, and therefore emissions, are minimised further by electing to activate the ‘ECON’ or ‘super economy’ mode. The system limits the petrol engine’s power output, extends idle stop time, increases regenerative charging during deceleration, and adjusts the air conditioning to use less power.

Green Car of the Year 2009

The Honda Insight has been awarded ‘Green Car of the Year 2009’ by the UK Environmental Transport Association (ETA). The ETA examined over 1300 models of cars on sale in Britain and compared their power, emissions, fuel efficiency, and noise output to create a definitive guide to buying the greenest vehicle. The greenest car overall was the Honda Insight 1.3 IMA ES.

A decisive lead

The success of the Insight has given Honda a decisive lead. But the car market is a dynamic with new models forever waiting to come on stream. From Toyota, there is the Prius plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) which is trialling in Britain already, ahead of volume production starting in early 2011.

And from Honda, currently being tested by celebrities in California, New York and Chicago is the FCX Clarity – an electric car with a fuel cell battery which is propelled by hydrogen. (No date has been announced for the start of volume production).

And from Chevrolet, its ‘Extended-Range Electric Vehicle’, the Volt, which will launch in late 2010 and later spawn the Vauxhall/Opel Ampera in Europe.

The race is on.