Honda Insight - Oppopinions?

"BaconSandwich is tasty." (baconsandwich)
01/02/2015 at 10:59 • Filed to: Oppopinions, Insight, Volt

I'm curious - what do people here think of the Honda Insight (the newer one)? This thread got me thinking that it might not be a bad replacement for my wife's Cavalier.

!!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

Ideally I'd like a Volt or some other plug-in hybrid, but Volt prices are still a bit higher than what I'd like to pay. Right now, the cheapest Volt I can find for sale in Alberta is ~$25k. Even importing one from California, it would still be at least $22k+. I'm hoping that the introduction of the 2016 Volt will cause older Volt prices to go down. In the mean time, though, I keep looking at the Honda Insight. The cheapest non-salvage Insight I can find is at least a good $6k cheaper. Would it be worth holding out for a Volt, or should a person settle for an Insight?

Thoughts?

DISCUSSION (23)

Party-vi > BaconSandwich is tasty.
01/02/2015 at 11:03

The Insight is cramped in the back seat, has a cheap interior, and will not get out of its own way. That being said, it's light and the steering is way overboosted so flinging it around on curvy roads is fun. Decent storage in the back, and the seats fold down to swallow larger cargo. If your wife has a Cavalier I can see the Insight being a nice upgrade for her, and you can regularly hit almost 50mpg on the highway (Baltimore city MPG is around 35mpg). It's a perfectly average commuter car.

davedave1111 > BaconSandwich is tasty.
01/02/2015 at 11:05

If saving money is your primary motivation, neither the Insight nor the Volt are likely to be the optimal choice. You can get a small hatchback and a hell of a lot of fuel for the money you're looking at.

Steve in Manhattan > BaconSandwich is tasty.
01/02/2015 at 11:06

I rented one once for a jaunt to Jersey. The stop/start was a little disconcerting, but I'm pretty sure I'd have gotten used to it soon enough. I didn't like the size - I prefer something Civic-sized or a little bigger. You might want to check out a Civic hybrid. Otherwise, the usual Honda fit/finish was present, the steering was sharp enough. Civic I rented recently a bit more comfortable.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Party-vi
01/02/2015 at 11:06

All very good things to know. It'll almost entirely be children riding in the back. We've just had our first child, and we are potentially looking at upgrading from the Cavalier by the time our daughter has to switch to a front facing seat. Back storage is definitely important to us, as my wife has a rather large jogging stroller that she's itching to use. Right now the only way it fits in the Cavalier is if the wheels are taken off. (Not the end of the world, as they do pop off quite easily, but still an inconvenience).

BaconSandwich is tasty. > davedave1111
01/02/2015 at 11:09

Well, it's not entirely about saving money. I've worked in the oil and gas industry, and I have seen how it runs. We can't keep doing what we are currently doing. Ideally I'd like a plug-in hybrid, as at least I can make my own electricity a heck of a lot easier than I can make my own gasoline.

We would still like something that can go at least 300+ km, as we have family that live all over. A plug-in hybrid would probably take care of 80-90% of our driving needs. The other option is that we have one shorter range electric vehicle and keep a gas vehicle for longer trips.

jariten1781 > BaconSandwich is tasty.
01/02/2015 at 11:15

Had them for rentals a number of times. Falls into the category of 'it's a car'. Nothing particularly appealing and nothing glaringly horrible.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > jariten1781
01/02/2015 at 11:22

Sounds pretty similar to what we both already drive (A 2000 2-door Cavalier and a 2001 4-door civic).

BrianGriffin thinks “reliable” is just a state of mind > BaconSandwich is tasty.
01/02/2015 at 11:22

Are Insights plug-in gas hybrids? I thought they were just normal non-electric hybrid cars. Can you get plug-in Prius cars in Canada (that would be my suggestion) as the pre-owned plug-ins don't command much of a premium over non-plug-in models.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Steve in Manhattan
01/02/2015 at 11:23

I quickly read a review and it said something similar about the start/stop. Did the Insight seem quite a bit smaller than the Civic?

davedave1111 > BaconSandwich is tasty.
01/02/2015 at 11:26

Oh dayumn, shit just got political...

In an ideal world, prices would reflect externalities and so whichever was cheaper would actually be the best for the environment. In reality, especially in the US, that's not too close to the truth - but you can work out what the carbon tax should be per gallon of fuel and add that on to get a much more accurate answer than just using fuel cost alone. Most people are surprised to find out how small that extra amount is.

Sadly, working out the true cost of building hybrids is much harder.

Ultimately, though, none of this will matter in a few years: I reckon hybrids will end up like airships, as an interesting technological dead-end for early adopters. Once solar power gets cheaper than oil, that's what we'll use, and it's not far from that now.

Steve in Manhattan > BaconSandwich is tasty.
01/02/2015 at 11:30

The interior wasn't that much smaller, but the exterior was bigger - I'm guessing the crumple zones in the Civic are larger, and that it crashes better. If you can find one with side-curtain airbags, so much the better. My preferred size used to be Taurus when I had the '97 SHO, now that I drive three or four times a year the preferred size is Civic/Versa/Sentra/Corolla (shudder). Treated myself to a BMW 3 series a couple years back and it felt really big. Finally - I didn't investigate, but I'm guessing there's a good deal more legroom in the back of the Civic, if that's an issue.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > BrianGriffin thinks “reliable” is just a state of mind
01/02/2015 at 13:15

The Insight is just a regular hybrid. They do make a plug-in Prius, but it has a really pathetic electric only range (like high single digits, or close to it). Either would definitely be using less gas than the Cavalier.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > davedave1111
01/02/2015 at 13:18

Oh, I can see that happening as well - electric cars eventually taking over from gas powered cars - but for the time being, we just aren't quite there yet. It's hard, because we are so close. Something like a Tesla Model S really would be ideal, but the price is too high. Maybe once the Model 3 comes out, there will be a lot more sold, but your average family can't afford a $90,000 luxury sedan. The problem with a plug-in hybrid is now you're lugging around a gas engine that you aren't using 80% of the time. It's dead weight, until it is needed. But without the gas engine you're hooped when it comes to travelling more than 50 miles.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Steve in Manhattan
01/02/2015 at 13:19

I don't think rear legroom will be an issue. It'll mostly be children/car seats in the back.

Steve in Manhattan > BaconSandwich is tasty.
01/02/2015 at 13:27

You certainly can drive both - let us know what you think.

Funktheduck > BaconSandwich is tasty.
01/02/2015 at 13:46

The only thing I know about the insight is it looks a lot like a Prius. A friend wanted one for a while but wound up getting a mazda 3.

Just1BeforeIDie > BaconSandwich is tasty.
01/02/2015 at 14:12

My dad has one. Seats are uncomfortable, ride is poor, has had several mechanical issues, has $0 resale value, slow...

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Just1BeforeIDie
01/02/2015 at 14:15

Oh? What sort of mechanical issues has he encountered?

Just1BeforeIDie > BaconSandwich is tasty.
01/02/2015 at 14:22

I'll have to report back, don't have the text messages that he sent about it. But I do know he bought it new and crossed shopped the Mazda 3, he went with the Insight because it was
brand new that year and wanted to be ahead of the pack. He wishes he had stuck with the 3.

brianbrannon > BaconSandwich is tasty.
01/03/2015 at 12:33

This former Honda tech says stay away from Honda hybrid products. Lots of customer complaints and the cost per value is way inflated

BaconSandwich is tasty. > brianbrannon
01/03/2015 at 14:40

Oooh. Very good to know. Dually noted!

BaconSandwich is tasty. > brianbrannon
01/03/2015 at 14:40

On a slightly related note, what is your opinion of the Honda Element?

brianbrannon > BaconSandwich is tasty.
01/03/2015 at 18:26

Timing chain is an issue if the oil ever goes low and the interior is booming on the freeway but otherwise nice vehicles