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Honda’s Online Insight

October 12, 2008 in Biz News, Consumer News, Future Cars, Hybrids by kristen | 1 comment

2009 Honda Insight Concept

Now that the new 2010 Honda Insight Hybrid has made its Paris debut, like any model worth her skinny jeans would do, the company has launched two new online outlets for the car.

“Latest Insight” is a blog that follows the car from debut to dealership. The design seems to be final with only the manufacturing step left to go, so I’m not sure what “journey” the bloggers at Honda will be following. You can count on posts and pics from every event and auto show the car graces, though.

Honda also launched a mini site, “Words of Hybrid,”* that showcases all of its hybrid vehicles, including the original Insight and the forthcoming CR-Z. There’s a link at the bottom of the list for a Jazz Hybrid that can’t be clicked. (The Jazz is the name of the Fit in Europe and the Middle East.) U.K. site What Car says the hybrid Jazz could reach the European market by 2010.

*You can also reach the Honda mini site by visiting Honda’s world hybrid site and clicking “Launch.”

Spooky photo of the Insight courtesy of Honda.

Which Used Cars Have the Best MPG?

September 23, 2008 in Consumer News, Hybrids, MPG, small cars by kristen | No comments

1999 Chevy PrizmThe stalwart Consumer Reports has come up with a list of a dozen or so used cars that get great mileage. The list is divided into two categories, under $10,000 and between $10,000 and $20,000. There’s no mention of tailpipe emissions, so the focus is on the price of gas, not the ecological impact of the vehicles.

The hybrid 2000 Honda Insight tops the fuel economy numbers at 51 mpg for under $10,000, but there were only about 17,000 of these cars in the country even while it was still being produced. Good luck finding one now — especially for that price. You might be better off socking your down payment away in a savings account and waiting for the reincarnated Insight hybrid to arrive in dealerships next spring.

It’s interesting to note that the cars are as old as a 1998 Mazda Protege LX and as new as a 2007 Honda Fit Sport with a manual transmission, but even more interesting is the fact that one lone American car, the 1998-2002 Chevy Prizm, made the list. It can be snagged for less than $10,000, and it gets a respectable 32 mpg.

CR, being the people’s advocate that it is, points out that the older cars on the list lack some safety features common in new cars, like ABS and side-curtain airbags. Check out MSN Autos for the full list.

Honda’s Insight Returns to Fight Prius

September 4, 2008 in Biz News, Consumer News, Future Cars, Hybrids by kristen | 1 comment

Honda Insight ConceptHonda has been promising to unveil its new hybrid all week, and today, they’ve done it: the company is resurrecting its original hybrid, the Insight, which died a small death only two years ago. The new version will be a five-door, five-passenger hatchback like the Prius, with a similar starting price in the low $20,000s.

The new car looks more like a Civic or hydrogen-powered FCX Clarity and less like the old Insight, with its covered rear wheels and flat Kamm tail. Though the original only sold 17,000 units between 1999 and 2006, it was the first car to break the 70 mpg barrier. Honda expects the new Insight to sell much better, to the tune of 200,000 cars worldwide, half of which will end up in American driveways. The concept will debut at the Paris auto show, October 4-19, 2008, and be available in U.S. showrooms by April 2009.

Honda already has a hybrid version of the Civic, but the Insight will be smaller and lighter. The company also has plans to add a hybrid Fit to the lineup sometime in the future, along with a sporty hybrid based on the CR-Z.