Honda Insight buyer's guide

In an earlier post on the comparison between Prius and Civic Hybrid, we added that the Insight is expected to arrive on Malaysian shores by Jan 2011. We were a bit pessimistic about its price, while acknowledging that the base price Insight is priced lower than a similarly trimmed Civic Hybrid. In Europe, a fully loaded Insight with all the bells and whistles can set you back about 5% more than a base model Civic Hybrid. However, Honda Malaysia surprised us by confirming the availability of the Insight by December 2010. Unofficial sources have hinted that it will be priced cheaper than a Civic Hybrid, just slightly below RM 100k, in the high 90s region. Another hybrids FTW (it means "for the win" for those online community n00bies). Finally an affordable hybrid for the masses. We are still of the opinion that the Toyota Prius is not only the best hybrid car, but is also the one car that most people will ever need. It offers the best combination of image, power, economy, practicality and comfort for any type of daily use vehicle, not just hybrids. The Insight may not be as accomplished as the Prius but remember that it is not meant to be compared against the Prius, which sells at almost RM50,000 more than the Honda Insight. Because of its substantially lower price, we are more than happy to forgive the few short falls of the Honda Insight against the Toyota Prius.

Here are some of the Insight's unique Selling Points

1. Unique body

(UK model shown)
Which sets you apart from the sea of Civics that ply our roads. Unlike the Civic Hyrid, which looks almost like any run of the mill Civic sedan, the Insight shouts the owner's unique taste and lifestyle. Contrast to the Civic Hybrid, only a keen eyed enthusiast would be able to spot bee sting antenna, smooth aerodynamic improving wheels, missing dual exhaust tip and unique colours (if opted) that differentiates the hybrid Civic from the normal petrol powered Civic.

2. 60:40 split folding rear seats (not available in Civic Hybrid, but available in Prius)

Japanese market specs interior shown

Cutaway model showing location of the battery beneath the boot.

In the case of the Civic Hybrid, the IPU (Intelligent Power Unit, Honda speak for battery pack) is located right behind the backseat, making split folding rear seats impossible. It limited the Civic Hybrid's trunk capacity to just 376 liters. The Insight however, holds 408 liters with the seats up and a whooping 584 liters with the seats down. And that's not including a small under floor space useful for wet items. However take note that these figures are for European models that don't come with any spare wheel (but has one of those foam tire repair kit). Models with space saver wheel should have the cargo volume reduced by about 50 liters.


The newer generation battery pack in the Insight (19% smaller than the Civic Hybrid's) made it possible for the battery to be located beneath the floor, just like that Prius, thus allowing full functionality of the rear cabin and boot.

3. Honda Ecological Drive Assist System (ECON mode)



May seem gimmicky, but we reckon that many Gen-Y buyers will be drawn to it. Not purely because it is green but because it creates the sort of "high scores challenge" that the Playstation / Nintendo generation will feel very at home with.

Drive like a good greenie hippie, hypermiling where possible, the dash display will turn green and more "trees" will grow. Drawing from our experience with the Prius, we find that is rather addictive to challenge yourself on how far can you go on "regen" mode or pure electric mode and what's the best mileage we can squeeze out. We had to remind ourselves to keep our eyes on the road and not on the energy use monitor!



Now there is even an iPhone app that replicates the Insight's driver feedback in your regular non-Insight car! Simply download the App to your iPhone, and you can start comparing your drive eco scores. I can't run it on my iPhone4 though, apparently it is meant for US market users but we reckoned that jailbroken iPhones will be able to run it.

The phrase "How many trees can you grow?" could well be the a thread on its own in online forums. There is a growing hypermilers enthusiast club that mod their cars not for more power but for better fuel economy. And they post their best mileage results online.

Speaking of that, there is already a very large online community supporting techie users who wish to hack into their hybrids. Think of them as automotive equivalent of PC overclockers in the 90s. These ladies and gentlemen is the tuner boys of the future. There is this guy in US who transplanted parts from an old Prius into an old first generation Insight!

4. Fuel consumption of between 4.4-litre to 4.6-liter per 100km.
The lighter base model Insights uses 4.4-litres while the heavier fully loaded models with leather seats and satellite navigation uses 4.6-liter per 100km. Which is actually similar to the Civic Hybrid (on paper on least, but more on that later).

5. Features
We are not sure how many of these features will make it to our local specs Insight. But generally, the Insight comes with pretty decent level of kit, even for a car of its price.
+ Cruise control
+ Steering mounted paddle shifters gear selector
+ Height adjustable driver seats
+ Automatic wipers
+ LED tail lamps
+ Anti-lock brakes, including the full monty with brake assist and electronic brake force distribution
+ 4 airbags (driver, passenger, side)
+ Electronic stability control (VSA in Honda speak)
+ ISOFIX child seat support

While we have yet to drive the car in person, the Insight have been in the market for more than a year now (since Feb 2009). So there is already a wealth of feedback to be gathered.

(+) Pluses
(+) 1. Low price.
It is currently the cheapest production hybrid in the world.

(+) 2. Said to be the best handling hybrid in the market.
In a fuel economy duel, it may not perform as well as a Civic Hybrid and may be down on power compared to the Prius, but it makes up for being the best handling hybrid in the market. Both steering and brake pedal in Insight provides better feedback, weight and generally gives a driver more confidence than the dead feeling controls in the Prius, which feels a alarmingly disconnected from the car. Although we must stress that handling in Prius is still very neutral and responsive enough for daily use and the brakes better (5ft shorter according to Edmunds Inside Line). It's just they go about their business with very little feedback to the driver.

(+) 3. Unique body
It's either you like it or you hate it. But we loved it! It looks like nothing else on the road today!
The silhoutte has to look the way it looks because aerodynamic principles dictate that Kamm back tails create the least drag. Hence the high truncated tail in both the Prius and Insight. We also have no issues with the silhoutte on a Prius.

The styling is a bit controversial. But we loved it because it points the way forward. As usual, people are uncomfortable when something that's ahead of its time comes along. Overtime people will get used to it. Did BMW suffered from the highly criticised Chris Bangle designs? No. New design languages that people rave about will unfortunately be the ones that age the fastest.

Size wise, the Insight measures about the same as a City. In fact, it has the exact wheelbase (2550mm) and width (1695mm) but is slightly lower than the City (1470mm vs 1425mm).

(-) Minuses
Small interior space
(compared to the Civic Hybrid)
That low wind cheating swopping glasshouse area comes at the expense of rear cabin space. But how often do you carry adults at the back? And how for how long? This is one area where the Prius excels, not just against the Insight but against many other regular sedans. Front cabin area is more than adequate for an average adult though.

UK specs model shown


The rear view takes a while to get used to. It's a similar view from the inside of a Prius. Drawbacks of a Kamm back tail design.

(-) No electrically driven driven air-con compressor.
In a typical hybrid car like the Prius or even the Civic Hybrid, an electrically driven air-con compressor is used in place of an engine crankshaft-belt driven unit in a normal car. The Insight however misses out on this and Honda makes up for it via some highly efficient air-con piping layout. To explain further we will need to do a separate sub-topic on thermodynamics. In short it does work well enough to maintain cabin temperature but one drawback is that the petrol engine will need to remain active longer and engine auto-stop period is shortened (30 sec at most, even with ECON mode on) when driving in hotter ambient temperatures. Obviously this will have a direct impact on the fuel economy as one of the most effective ways a hybrid saves fuel is by shutting down the engine under idling period.

We think that this is the most obvious trade-off Insight owners have to live with, compared with spending RM50k more for a Toyota Prius.

(-) Fuel economy is worse than a Civic Hybrid.
Surprised?
Many Insight owners commented that in the real world, the Civic Hybrid delivers better fuel economy. We shown in an earlier post how are official fuel consumption figures obtained, intelligent readers would have a spotted out that aerodynamic drag-coefficient factors are not taken into account in a controlled indoor lab test. Despite the wedge shape and a wind cheating Kammback tail, Honda Insight's Cd factor is actually rather high at 0.28. In the Civic Hybrid, the flush wheels, flat underbody covers and a small boot lid spoiler reduced the c/d from 0.31 in a regular Civic to 0.27. The Toyota Prius on the other hand, wins hands down with a lowest Cd factor of 0.25.

In any case, you won't be able to buy the Civic Hybrid very much longer. HMC will be stopping production for the Civic Hybrid in Japan very soon as the company prepares the Japanese market launch for the next generation 2011 Civic. Honda's Suzuka's plant in Japan remains the world's only source for the Civic Hybrid (as well as Insight and CR-Z). Production of the existing petrol powered Civic will continue in overseas market for about another year.

(-) Ride quality
The Insight is specified with rather stiff suspension. While this allows it to handle corners better, it doesn't glide over potholes and bumps as well as a Civic Hybrid and certainly far from the composure of a Prius. Despite Honda's engineering prowess, we still don't get it why owners must choose a trade-off between handling and comfort. There are many cars out there who manage to hit a sweet spot for both, Ford and VW models are notable examples.

(-) Noise insulation
The Insight is meant to be an affordable hybrid, built on a very tight cost base. And it does show once you take the car to highway speeds. Road and wind noise intrusion to the cabin are higher than a Civic Hybrid. Insulation panels are notably lacking compared to higher end models.

(-) 5,000km service interval
Honda Malaysia still stubbornly insist on a 5,000km service interval for all its cars, including the Civic Hybrid. Who hell makes cars with 5,000km service interval in this time and age anymore? Certainly not a manufacturer like Honda Motor Co. No doubt part of the motivation is maintaining turn over of their service channel revenue. Even Toyota, as is Proton and Perodua have introduced 10,000km service interval long ago. Contrary to popular perception by non-Honda owners, maintenance cost of a Honda vehicle (at an authorised dealer) is quite costly compared to an equivalent Toyota model (at an authorised outlet). And being a hybrid car, you still have to rely on authorised dealers rather than a reputable independent garage as I doubt anyone else other than Honda have the right diagnostic tools for a hybrid vehicle, for now at least. The maintenance cost for an Insight should not vary a lot from a Civic Hybrid. You may compare the cost here.

Over a mileage of 100,000 km / 5 years, it costs slightly over RM 8,000, inclusive of parts, labour and applicable taxes to service the Honda Insight. The Prius in comparison, costs only slightly less than RM 4,000. Part of the reason for the Prius' lower servicing cost is because of its longer 10,000 km / 6 months service interval. In a year, the Prius only costs on average RM 800 to service, versus RM 1,200 for the Honda Insight.

The Prius owner benefits not only on a longer service interval (and thus lower annual maintenance fee) but also enjoys benefits of 60 minute express service, vehicle pick-up and delivery service as well as 0% interest installment plan to help your cash flow.

Verdict : Buy or bye?
Our verdict for the Civic Hybrid still applies to the Insight. Purely as a fuel saving tool, you might be disappointed. Our low fuel prices meant that you aren't going to see significant savings from a hybrid, even on something as accomplished as a Toyota Prius that delivers 21 km per liter in the real world. At current prices of RM 1.85 per liter of RON 95, comparing against a typical 1.8-litre sedan driven by an average bloke on an average commute usually gives about 12 km liter, the annual savings on fuel cost is rather minimal. An Insight or a Civic Hybrid at best will only deliver 17 to 18 km per liter in the real world. On an annual driving mileage of 20,000km, you are only looking at savings of around between RM900 to RM 1,000 plus a year.

But look at it this way, the chance to buy a car tax free doesn't come by very often. And we have some of the highest import duties and car prices in the world. For less than RM 100k you get a car that is fully imported from Japan with a pretty decent kit and performance level. There isn't any other car below RM100k that combines worldwide acclaim and CBU Japan quality. Best of all, you don't contribute to the government coffers, as if they haven't suck enough from you regular folks during your previous car purchases - for some, that bit is the strongest incentive of all! Nobody knows if the current tax break will be renewed next year, but it will be a bonus if it doesn't because then it would mean the prices will actually increase, helping residual values of hybrids. So we say buy! It may not be as perfect as the Prius, but at RM 50k cheaper, it puts all the short comings into an acceptable perspective.

Look out for the Insight's launch at next month's KL International Motor Show, themed "We Care," running from 3 - 12 December 2010 at the PWTC.

Other items to consider

A common problem with estates, fastback / hatchback body type cars with a large glass area, like the Volvo C30 and V50, Toyota Prius and of course the Honda Insight, is that that cargo area is often exposed. Volvo and Prius models come standard with a tonneau cover. We are not sure about the Malaysian specs Honda Insight. For security reasons, we strongly recommend that you get a tonneau cover. If Honda doesn't sell it either as a standard item or even an optional accessory, you can still easily order it online. The tonneau cover shown here can be ordered from ebay.

On buying a car from Honda Malaysia
Being an established brand, you can't go wrong by buying a Honda. It may not be the best car but aside from buying a Toyota it is the next safest purchase. So not much concern on the product itself.

The challenge in buying and maintaining a Honda is about locating a reliable dealer. Unlike some distributors like UMW Toyota and Edaran Tan Chong who maintain a number of branches under its direct control, Honda in Malaysia is purely a dealer supported operation. Accountants would like this model because it shields the company away from associated risks of running a retail operation. However, those distributors that maintain their own branch outlets are able to deliver a better level service specifically because it has this group of branch outlets that allows the company to rigidly enforce a minimum standard of customer service. Or to put it crudely, it allows the company to "bully" dealers into complying to their standard. We found that the level of service can vary greatly from one Honda dealer to another. Operational standards like service center opening hours may differ, as are service / repair quotes and SOPs in vehicle handling. Some dealers don't even return you the replaced consumables or parts. So visit a couple of dealers before deciding.

Resale value? Battery replacement and other maintenance cost?
General questions on selling and maintaining a hybrid vehicle have been dealt with in an earlier post here.

This is a review by this author's favourite motoring TV presenter - Johnny Smith of 5th Gear.

Keep in mind that the above review is done in the UK context. A similar VW Golf 1.4 TSI will set you back RM 159k when fully loaded with the options here. And the Golf TDi compared against is not available here. Plus those figures are done with Euro IV diesel while we are still using smoky Euro 2 diesel. In London, you have to pay 8 British pounds every time you enter the city center between 7am to 6pm from Mondays to Fridays. Hybrids and electric vehicles however are exempted from this charge. Cars in UK are also taxed based on their CO2 emission. Hybrids and EVs of course are taxed significantly lower since they rely less on their internal combustion engine.