That’s no Honda Insight hybrid car. Where are the Ford T-Bird wheel skirts?
 
You’re thinking of the original petrol-electric Honda Insight from the late 1990s. This is Insight hybrid Mk2.

It’s still a petrol-electric hybrid but instead of two seats, this one’s got room for five. It’s meant to be a mainstream green car, a hybrid that will appeal to people who’ve never had a green car before.

Looks like a Toyota Prius, doesn’t it?

Yes, it does seem to reinforce the notion that hybrid cars all have to look the same with a gently tapering rear and Kamm tail.

But as Honda points out, it also shares its shape with the FCX Clarity fuel cell car and can trace its style cues to the original Honda CRX coupe of 1984.

So it’s a hybrid, but what sort of hybrid is it? Can I plug it into the mains? You’re not alone in being confused.

You can’t plug the Insight into the mains, although a plug-in version may follow. And nor does the electric motor fully decouple from the engine as it does in the Prius.

The Insight can be moved using battery power alone but the engine still turns. It doesn’t fire though, a separate circular cam lobe coming into play as on the VTEC cars which opens the valves fractionally, allowing the engine to spin freely.

But does it deliver the goods?

If you mean fuel consumption, the Insight achieves 64mpg (but only 61mpg in heavier ES trim) on the combined cycle and emits 101g/km of CO2.

While admirably clean, critics argue that’s barely better than a modern turbodiesel can manage.

True, but Honda claims that the Insight excels not on the EU test route, but on the road – a bold claim given our real-world experience with the Prius has highlighted the poor real world economy of hybrids.

The new Honda Insight 2009 also emits very few other nasty particles such as NOx that diesels spew out in vast quantities. Then factor in the extra cost of a litre of diesel and the Insight’s advantage becomes clearer…