I always like the little things Honda does, and there are plenty of well executed details in our 2010 Honda Insight. Take the floor in the backseat. It's not perfectly flat, with the way Honda has packaged the exhaust, but there's still not much of a lump.
As a result, the rear-seat area feels more spacious than it otherwise would and you could easily accommodate three elementary-schoolers. Or, if you just have 2 adults back here, they'll have more space for their feet and likely find the modest 33.5 inches of legroom more bearable.
Of course, Honda managed to execute a perfectly flat floor in the Fit and Civic, so if you want to get picky, maybe Honda's five-door hybrid still doesn't quite measure up.
Erin Riches, Senior Editor
thehamsterman says:
07:19 PM, 05/ 5/10
my dad had a 1991 chevy lumina euro that had almost no hump in the back. i noticed it because i often had to sit in the back seat between my brother and sister, and in our mercury sable wagon it was hard to find a spot for my feet, but in his car it wasn't. the sable had a better seat though, lumina was horrible.
1487 says:
05:33 AM, 05/ 6/10
perhaps Honda can start to execute "small details" like an interior that is superior to whats found in a Caliber. A flat floor is nice, but it doesn't overcome the other weaknesses of this car. As long as you all have had this car I can't believe so little has been said about the interior on this vehicle. It it was a Dodge you would be trashing it weekly. And that flat floor is hardly enough to make the tight rear seat on this car feel spacious. There is a reason why they aren't selling many of these.
charlesb says:
07:29 AM, 05/ 6/10
I think the Insight was a pretty weak offering from Honda. They should have done better.
1487 says:
07:32 AM, 05/ 6/10
I sat in the Fiesta at NY auto show and in spite of mostly hard plastics its worlds better than the interior in this or the Fit. The gaps a tighter, the look is more upscale and the switchgear is more solid.
firstwagon says:
10:04 AM, 05/ 6/10
From a quick look I agree the Fiesta has a better grade of materials then the fit (or Insight).
However the cargo area with the seats folded is so much smaller.
Makes for a tough choice as to which is more important.
mheikka says:
01:27 PM, 05/ 6/10
The Insight's interior is a grab-bag of hits and misses, for both design and execution. While the most significant design issues are rear seat leg and headroom, rear view blind spots and center console design, Honda should have executed better by using better materials for:
1. Door panels, center console
2. Seat surface fabric (in a darker color)
3. Fabric/padding on arm rest surfaces
4. Sound insulation
All of these concessions were likely made to lower costs and reduce weight, but an extra 100 lbs here would have made a big difference, given the Insight's price.
The Insight interior is not as bad as the Fit (a spartan "Tupperware City") but it is close. The Fit's interior wins hands down for spaciousness, visibility and practicality, but its barely-adjustable driver's seat and poor fabrics are really sad. Honda needs to step up with these two.
1487 says:
05:53 AM, 05/ 7/10
the fiesta is small car, its not going to win any cargo carrying contests. If space was my only concern I would get a base model Escape since big discounts are available. Space is the only thing going for the Insight and its not really all that huge.