The 2010 Honda Insight was designed as an affordable hybrid, and its $23,900 starting price comes in about $4,000 less than the Civic Hybrid and the Toyota Prius. The Insight is a five-passenger, five-door dedicated hybrid powered by Honda’s Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) system, which teams a 1.3-litre i-VTEC gas engine with an electric motor assist. The four-cylinder engine is fuel-efficient in its own right, featuring intelligent variable valve timing, while the DC brushless electric motor is positioned inline between the engine and the CVT transmission, adding power during acceleration. It also acts as a generator, recapturing energy from the vehicle’s forward momentum during regenerative braking and works as the starter motor, automatically reawakening the gasoline engine from its idle-stop mode when you lift your foot off the brake pedal.
The 10-kilowatt electric motor is meant to be more of an assist than a stand-alone power source and it adds 13 hp and 58 lb-ft of punch for a combined power rating of 98 hp and 123 lb-ft of torque. Those numbers are not that far off the larger Honda Civic Hybrid’s power rating, and the Insight’s latest generation powertrain harnesses 30 percent more power from a system that weighs nearly 30 percent less. The Insight also approaches Civic Hybrid fuel efficiency, with a Transport Canada rating of 4.8 L/100 km (city) and 4.5 L/100 km (highway).
All this fuel-fussy technology is not wrapped up in fuddy-duddy style. Slip inside and the cabin is comfortable for driver and passenger. The sloping roof is a challenge for taller rear passengers, but the configurable rear seating and cargo area benefits from 60/40 split fold-down seats. The base LX comes with a good list of standard features that include keyless remote entry, automatic climate control, tilt-and-
telescopic steering column, cruise control, manual driver’s seat height adjustment, power windows, and a four-speaker 160-watt AM/FM/CD/MP3 audio system. Moving up to the $27,500 EX trim level adds Honda’s satellite-linked navigation system with bilingual voice recognition, Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA), Bluetooth, alloy wheels, steering wheel-mounted paddle shifters, an upgraded audio system with six speakers, USB audio interface, a centre console with armrest and storage compartment, heated side mirrors with integrated turn signals and a few other upgrades.
If it’s all about saving money, you would be wiser to buy a Honda Fit at $14,480 and just absorb the slight increase in fuel costs. But hybrids are about more than that, reflecting a commitment to reduce both fuel use and exhaust emissions. The 2010 Honda Insight makes that statement more affordably than any other hybrid on the road.
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