2010 Honda Insight Review | Buyer Guide
Honda Strikes Back
Honda is striking back at Toyota. They’ve introduced the 2010 Insight hybrid to take on the Prius. Like the Prius, the Insight is a five-door hatchback design that uses a gas engine, an electric motor and a nickel-metal hydride battery pack to deliver exceptional fuel economy.
In exterior styling, the Insight hits a homerun. Although it resembles a Prius in profile, the Insight is sleeker, and almost looks like it’s in motion when it is standing still. However, the interior doesn’t match up to the Prius. It seems to shout “kid’s car,” with its video-game layout for the radio and climate controls. The game theme carries over to the instrument panel where the background for the speed indicator changes from blue to green when you drive frugally. “Green Leaves” can be earned if you do this enough.
On the plus side, the Insight provides comfortable accommodations for front passengers. The seats are well contoured, and driver gets a height adjuster. A tilt and telescoping steering wheel makes finding a good driving position easy. However, the backseat is short on legroom, and tall people will feel scrunched. The storage space in the rear is a good size at 15.4 cu-ft.
Honda powers the Insight with a 1.3-liter gas engine that generates 88 horsepower, and a 10-kilowatt electric motor that brings it up to 98 hp. These are hooked up to a continuously variable (CVT) automatic transmission. The electric engine’s primary functions are to add power when needed, like during acceleration, and to recapture energy when braking. This power train can propel the Insight to 60 in just under 11 seconds.
Insights come with Honda’s Eco Assist, which alters functions like, the throttle control, air conditioning and CVT operation. By pressing the “Econ” button, drivers can enhance the fuel efficiency, but at the expense of performance. However, if you’re looking for more performance, you can shift into the “Sport” mode, and select gears via paddle shifters on the EX model. The EPA fuel economy numbers for the Insight are 40 City/43 Highway.
Out on the road, the Insight is more fun to drive than the ’09 Prius. The steering is taut, and provides decent feedback to the driver. The suspension is firm enough that the handling is responsive, and the brakes feel very secure. Like the Honda Fit, the Insight feels lively, even though it doesn’t have much power. The ride quality is slightly firm, a bit more so than the Prius.
The Insight comes in two versions, LX and EX. The LX comes equipped with features like, the driver’s seat height adjuster, automatic climate control and anti-lock brakes. The EX adds goodies like alloy wheels, cruise control, an upgraded stereo and an anti-skid system. A navigation unit is the only option.
The Insight doesn’t get as good gas mileage as the Prius, but it costs a lot less. The price for the LX is $20,470 and the EX goes for $21,970.
Snapshot Review
Sleek Styling
Gimmicky Dash
Tight Backseat
Excellent Gas Mileage
Fun to Drive
