Honda Insight: The Fuel Economy Test Drive

The brand-new Honda Insight is a big improvement, design-wise, over its predecessor. Granted, the aerodynamic shape has become familiar to us by now, thanks to the original Insight (with its covered wheels) and the uber-popular Toytoa Prius. But it’s got some moves of its own worth noting.

First is the informative dash. How do you want your information? Honda allows the driver to select what kind of input he receives, from current average miles per gallon to fuel economy for the last few trips. A glowing backlight behind the heads-up speedometer ranges from bright green to bright blue, depending on how hard you’re pushing the engine.

The Honda Insight isn’t a “true” gasoline electric hybrid, though it does have both a gasoline engine and a battery-powered motor. The difference is that the electric motor can only assist the gas engine; it can’t run on electric power alone, as the Prius or the Ford Escape can. Still, I managed a respecatble 44 mpg over about 100 miles of all-city driving.

Granted, the car itself helped me toward better fuel economy. I had the “Econ” button pushed nearly the entire time, which maximizes mpgs by regulating engine power and accessories. When I turned off the “Econ” mode, the gains in power and zip didn’t outweigh the gas-saving measures.

My only real complaint about the car is the split rear window. In the week I had the Insight, I never got used to the clear top window, pink-tinted lower window, and wide plastic bar between the two. A zippy car it’s not, but with a starting price just below $20,000 (not including destination charges or any federal or state incentives), it could be a game-changer in consumer’s minds.

Photos by Kristen Hall-Geisler.

This car was provided for review by the manufacturer at no cost to the reviewer.