2010 Honda Insight EX Long-Term Road Tests Archives

When you first put on the A/C in the Insight you get that same moldy stench as in the Mini. It clears up after a few minutes but what's up with that? Pew.

Donna DeRosa, Managing Editor

Categories: 2010 Honda Insight EX

In my weekend with the Insight, I was reminded of how badly Honda's nav/audio interface needs an upgrade. Honda's interface isn't that bad -- to its credit, it's got an intuitive layout and is easy to use.

But when compared to the interfaces offered by other manufacturers competing in this price range, it comes off as being a bit behind the curve. I'm not a fan of all those smallish buttons, and the interface doesn't look properly integrated into the center stack. What do you think?

Warren Clarke, Automotive Content Editor @14,286 miles

Categories: 2010 Honda Insight EX

Back in October I noted that our eco score - the cumulative measure of how economical our driving habits are - was merely average. Last night, as I pulled into my driveway, I was pleased to see that we've improved to almost a perfect score. We're now at four-and-a-half flowers out of five. Sure, I know, not terribly exciting, but in a eco-car, you gotta make the most out of anything even remotely interesting.

Mark Takahashi, Associate Editor @ 14,235 miles

Categories: 2010 Honda Insight EX

Honda calls this color Clear Sky Blue Metallic.

I call it Too Blue.

I prefer it to some of the current orange paints, but I wouldn't want to own a car this color. I prefer a nice, bright silver.

How about you?

Kelly Toepke, News Editor @ 14,217 miles

Categories: 2010 Honda Insight EX

Maybe IL's Executive Editor Michael Jordan was right about the 2010 Honda Insight being a worthwhile long-haul car because of its fuel economy. High mpg and infrequent fuel stops are a bonus, to be sure.

But over 70 mph, it feels like the Insight loses contact with the road. Everything feels too light. And I hate that.

I'll take more feedback and an additional gas stop, please.

Kelly Toepke, News Editor @ 14,141 miles

Categories: 2010 Honda Insight EX

Are you in the "hybrids rule" camp and want a hybrid that looks hybridy and gets 40ish mpg? Our Toyota Prius and Honda Insight would fall into this category.

Or do you prefer the "discreet hybrid" like the Fusion? It looks like a normal car and gets better-than-average fuel economy?

You can see our mpg averages in February's fuel economy update.

Donna DeRosa, Managing Editor

Categories: 2004 Toyota Prius,2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid,2010 Honda Insight EX

Probably you remember all those early road tests of hybrid cars in which some bright spark would test one by driving it across the country, hoping to make a point about its indifferent fuel economy. And of course the stories were stupid, really, since all but the congenitally witless knew that the stop-start mechanism of a hybrid is its primary asset in the fuel economy sweepstakes.

So unless you're crawling though awful urban traffic, you're not really making the best use of the Honda Insight. That moment of golden silence at a stoplight when the engine is resting (dead parrot-like) is your reward for being a hybrid owner. Driving the Insight on the freeway is simply a sign of dumbness, neither good for the machine nor good for you.

At least that's what I thought before I drove our Honda Insight to San Diego and back. Left on a Sunday afternoon, came back on a Monday during the evening commute, traveling 75 - 80 mph with traffic. A total of 273.7 miles there and back. Then filled it up with 6.161 gallons of regular. If you're keeping score at home, this is 44.4 mpg. 

Continue reading...

Categories: 2010 Honda Insight EX

Below are the fuel economy numbers for February 2010. We've listed the best, worst and overall average tanks.

As usual, a couple of cars are out on the road or unavailable at the time of this writing. I'll continue to add them as they come in and let you know in the comments.

After the jump you can see the list sorted by best average MPG.

Continue reading...

Categories: 2004 Toyota Prius,2009 Audi A4 Avant,2009 Audi S5,2009 BMW 750i,2009 BMW M3,2009 Dodge Challenger R/T,2009 Dodge Ram 1500,2009 Ford Flex Limited,2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS,2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid,2010 GMC Terrain,2010 Honda Accord Crosstour,2010 Honda Insight EX,2010 Mazdaspeed 3

I drove our long-term 2010 Honda Insight last night, maybe for the second or third time.
But it was my first time to notice the steering wheel-mounted shift paddles.

Odd, I thought, because this thing has a CVT. So of course, there's little shift shock when you use them.

The display above the odo (not lit in the pic) indicates the "gear," which goes up to 7.
Just like an F1 car!

So perhaps Honda included the paddles to remind you that this is the Sporty Hybrid, not that boring thing from the Nagoya-based company.

You know, the company with a news update every 15 seconds.

Albert Austria, Senior Engineer @ 13,810 miles 

Categories: 2010 Honda Insight EX

I'm talking about the instrument panel. I know a number of you have written about how silly you think it looks. But I like it and here is why.

It puts the info I want right in front of my face in colors that are cool and soothing. I particularly like this design when driving at night. My eyes don't tire of the blue and green glow. I find cars that have red or orange can bother my eyes on long trips.

I like that my traveling speed is positioned higher than the steering wheel so I don't have to look down. I like that the background color changes from blue to green depending on how economically I am driving. I don't have to take my eyes off the road at all. My peripheral vision picks up on the color change.

All of these things may seem odd at first. But it doesn't make the instrument panel bad, just different.

Donna DeRosa, Managing Editor

Categories: 2010 Honda Insight EX

I had our 2010 Honda Insight for an 800-mile roundtrip roadtrip I was taking up north this holiday weekend with my brother and editor Jay. Jay was the driver, I was the front-seat passenger and my bro was in the backseat by himself. I present our thoughts about the Insight as a road trip car.

Jay: "The road noise didn't get out of control at freeway speeds as expected, not as big of an issue as I thought but there was wind noise at the A-pillars at freeway speeds. The Insight has a sports car ride but not sports car handling, choppy ride, with short travel. Most prominent thing on a long freeway trip is its directional stability, steering response around center. It's a subtle thing, a lot of drivers probably wouldn't notice that they're making constant corrections but I did. It's a mental drain on a long trip, requiring more concentration than otherwise. We had some crosswinds on the way up and that wasn't helping."

My brother (who's 5'9"): "I didn't mind the legroom when sitting behind Caroline [5'5"]. And the road noise didn't bother me. It was decently comfortable back there and I liked resting my head in that space between the headrests."

As for myself, I was so uncomfortable! The front-passenger seat was shaped in such a way that it felt like it was pushing into the center of my back while the headrest was angled pushing my head forward. I didn't want to tilt my seat too far back since I wanted my brother, who was sitting behind me, to have enough room. I took the couple times we stopped for food, gas, bathroom break as an opportunity to stretch my legs and my back. Even though the car required only one fuel-up each way, the extra stops were mandatory. As for the wind noise initially it was pretty irritating but over the long road trip I was able to block it out.

I did appreciate the extra storage space on the side door for holding my snacks, extra water bottle and my iPhone. And I liked being able to easily scroll through the playlists and songs on my iPod from the car's audio/nav screen. Interestingly enough, the recirc button was effective during drivebys of most of the cattle farms along I-5; all except the huge one near Coalinga. Blech.

Fuel economy for our trip (mostly highway miles) was 36.2 mpg; EPA estimate for highway mpg is 41.

Caroline Pardilla, Deputy Managing Editor @ 12,943 miles

Categories: 2010 Honda Insight EX

I fit the basic profile of a hybrid car owner. I live in Santa Monica. I shop at Trader Joe's, the farmers market and occasionally Whole Foods. I bring my own cloth grocery bags. I buy organic milk. I voted for... well, you get the idea.

I have in the past recommended to friends and family members that they might be happy with a Prius. But not for the obvious reasons. For the hatchback thing.

The main reason I like our 2010 Honda Insight, for example, is that it's a hatchback. No, there's not enough space back here for a large dog and luggage for a family of four. But groceries for four? No problem, and the lightweight liftgate, low liftover and wide opening make them very easy to load.

Here's a thought: Ninety percent of the minute-to-minute satisfaction Insight and Prius owners get from their cars is related to their hatchback body style and its inherent practicality. Once we get past the initial thrill of EPA ratings, American acceptance of hybrids has little to do with fuel economy and plenty to do with a pent-up desire for hatchbacks.

Erin Riches, Senior Editor

Categories: 2010 Honda Insight EX

Three different times over the weekend people stopped to ask me if I was pleased I chose the 2010 Honda Insight over the soon-to-be-officially-recalled 2010 Toyota Prius.

"Aren't you glad you went Honda instead of Toyota?" asked a 50-something-year-old guy in the Von's grocery store parking lot.

"Yeah," I muttered as I quickly slid into the Insight's driver's seat.

It was late, I was alone, and I didn't have the heart to tell him that recalled or not, I still prefer the Prius to the Insight.

Will Toyota's latest troubles push you into an Insight over a Prius?

Kelly Toepke, News Editor @ 12,233 miles

Categories: 2010 Honda Insight EX

The EPA's estimates for a 2010 Honda Insight are 40 mpg city, 43 mpg highway and 41 mpg combined. After about 12,000 miles with our long-termer, we're averaging 38.7 mpg. Knowing that driving style has a huge impact on fuel economy, I decided to see how good of fuel economy I could get this week.

Continue reading...

Categories: 2010 Honda Insight EX

Below are the fuel economy numbers for January 2010. We've listed the best, worst and overall average tanks.

As usual, a couple of cars are out on the road or unavailable at the time of this writing. I'll continue to add them as they come in and let you know in the comments. You'll see a couple of newcomers on this list as well.

After the jump you can see the list sorted by best average MPG.

Continue reading...

Categories: 2002 Chevrolet Corvette Z06,2009 Audi S5,2009 BMW 750i,2009 BMW M3,2009 Dodge Challenger R/T,2009 Dodge Ram 1500,2009 Ford Flex Limited,2009 Honda Fit Sport,2009 Infiniti FX50 AWD,2009 Nissan 370Z Touring,2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS,2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid,2010 Honda Insight EX,2010 Mazdaspeed 3,2010 Volvo XC60 T6 AWD