Honda Insight News

  • Editor John Voelcker of GreenCarReports.com in front of 2008 Toyota Prius

    Do you know the difference between a mild hybrid like a 2010 Honda Insight, and a full hybrid like the 2010 Toyota Prius? Or what happens to all hybrid vehicles when the weather gets cold? If you do, you're probably well versed in green cars, and you may already be a hybrid vehicle owner. If not, though, we respectfully suggest the video below. In under five minutes, our editor goes through five basic points on hybrid vehicles. We borrowed a 2008 Toyota Prius from a friend as a demonstrator; you can see it in some of the footage. The video comes from our colleagues at About.com, who recently...

  • detail of spy shot of Honda Fit Hybrid being tested in Germany
    Spy Shots Show Honda Fit Hybrid Testing, But Is It For U.S.?

    Honda is continuing to develop the 2012 Honda Fit Hybrid, a version of its popular and versatile subcompact that uses a mild-hybrid system with a smaller engine for even higher gas mileage. Spy shots published by our sister site Motor Authority show the Honda Fit test car, complete with black tape...

  • 2010 Nissan Altima Hybrid
    Green-Car Tip: Hybrid Vehicles Get Discounts, Incentives Too

    While the auto industry in general offers an average incentive of more than $1,000 off the sticker price of any new vehicle, many buyers somehow assume this doesn't apply to hybrids. Oh, but it does. You can get money off pretty much any hybrid out there at the moment, since gasoline prices are far...

  • 2010 Toyota Prius 5dr HB II (Natl) Tail Light
    And The Top 3 Finalists For World Green Car Are?

    The winner of the 2010 World Green Car award will be announced at the opening of the New York Auto Show in April and we will have to wait until then to see which vehicle prevails, but the list has now been narrowed down to only three remaining  vehicles. The top three finalists for the World Green...

  • 2011 Honda CR-Z
    2011 Honda CR-Z Videos, While We Wait For the Actual Car

    We're eagerly waiting to get our hands on a 2011 Honda CR-Z for a test drive. The two-seat coupe, Honda's latest dedicated hybrid, is the spiritual successor to the 1983-1991 Honda Civic CRX, and we're devoutly hoping it's as fun to drive as its predecessor. The performance numbers aren't...

  • 2010 Honda Insight 5dr CVT EX Front Exterior View
    Honda Insight Sales Take Plunge, Company Reconsiders Hybrid Fit

    Honda had initially set a sales goal of the newly redesigned Honda Insight at 200,000 units in 2010, its first full year of production.  The number is certainly a high target to aim for.  Last year, the company sold 130,445 total units worldwide since the Insight's introduction which began in...

  • 2010 Honda Insight - front three-quarter

    Before either car launched, the 2010 Toyota Prius and 2010 Honda Insight were viewed as natural rivals. Would the third generation of Toyota's definitive hybrid be threatened by Honda's "least expensive hybrid", which too offered five doors and good gas mileage? What a difference a year makes. Prius romps, Insight craters The 2010 Prius was a smash hit. Its global sales success strained Toyota and caused shortages of nickel-metal-hydride battery packs. Of 270,000 sales to date, about 140,000 came from the United States. Its nemesis proved to be not Honda, but high-tech braking software. The...

  • 2011 Honda CR-Z
    Honda to Build Hybrid That Beats Prius MPG

    The Honda CR-Z Hybrid shown in the picture may beat the Prius in terms of performance when it comes to market later this year, but it falls well short of the Prius in terms of fuel efficiency.  The Prius can return a whopping 50 mpg in everyday driving while Honda only expects the CR-Z to return...

  • CA 'Access OK' Clean Air Vehicle carpool lane sticker
    Hybrid Owners Howl As California HOV-Lane Access Ends in December

    All good things must come to an end, and it's the same with the wildwood weed ... err, with California's HOV-Lane access perk for owners of three hybrids: the Toyota Prius, Honda Civic Hybrid, and Honda Insight. They are set to expire on December 31 of this year. Originally passed in 2005, the law...

  • 2010 Toyota Prius
    2010 Toyota Prius Is Best-Selling Car In Japan

    In another sign that Toyota hit a home run with the third-generation Prius hybrid hatchback, the 2010 Toyota Prius was the best-selling car in Japan during 2009. It beat out the Honda Fit, followed by the Toyota Yaris (known in Japan as the Vitz), as well as its closest hybrid competitor, the new...

  • 2010 Audi A3 TDI named Green Car of the Year, 2009 LA Auto Show
    Green Car Sales: Winners and Losers of 2009

    It's beginning to look as if the worst is over for U.S. auto sales. The year that just closed was, in the immortal words of Queen Elizabeth II, an annus horribilis, with only 10.4 million vehicles sold, down 21 percent on 2008 and the lowest total since 1982. But some light seems to be appearing on...

  • 2010 Toyota Prius rolls onto the Detroit stage at its global debut in January 2009
    EPA's Most Climate-Friendly Cars: All About Fuel Efficiency

    The dirty little secrets of Top 10 lists are in the methodology, as Forbes found out with its weirdly inaccurate "10 Dirtiest Cars" list. (It's the end of the year, so it's time for a lot of Top 10s.) But we see no such problems in the EPA Green Vehicle Guide, which rates vehicles not only on...

  • 2007 Honda Civic Hybrid 4-door Sedan Angular Front Exterior View

    If you're one of the 120,000 people who own a Honda Civic Hybrid made between 2003 and 2008, you may already know about the proposed settlement to a lawsuit against Honda contending its advertising overestimated the gas mileage of your car. If you're not aware of the suit, read up quick. EPA ratings: 49 mpg city, 51 mpg highway In brief, two Honda Civic Hybrid owners in California sued the car company, saying that their cars hadn't returned anything like the gas mileage shown on the window sticker. The EPA ratings at the time those cars were sold were 49 mpg city, 51 mpg highway, whereas...

  • The 2010 Toyota Prius
    2010 Toyota Prius Wins Another Award, U.S. Market Green Car of the Year

    The Toyota Prius is the poster child of the green car movement.  Its overall sales volume speaks for itself as the Prius has outsold every other hybrid model and the trends show that this dominance is likely to continue for some time.  The Prius has won countless awards for its innovative...

  • 2010 Toyota Prius
    Toyota: No Plans To Sell $21K 2010 Prius I to Consumers

    The 2010 Toyota Prius is in fairly short supply all over the world, and its U.S. sales are trouncing those of the 2010 Honda Insight, its competitor in the arena of dedicated hybrid hatchbacks. So perhaps it's not that surprising that Toyota doesn't feel the need to sell the lowest-spec 2010 Prius...

  • 2010 Toyota Prius
    2010 Toyota Prius I Equipment Level: Not Available Any Time Soon

    Remember that $21,000, very basic 2010 Prius? Toyota has now confirmed it has neither current plans nor a schedule for selling the lowest-level model of the 2010 Toyota Prius, known as the Prius I, to consumers. In fact, it doesn't even have a timeframe for "continued, regular fleet sales of Prius...

  • 2010 Honda Insight
    2009 Honda Insight tops Consumer Reports Most-Reliable List

    Consumer Reports, long respected by consumers for its unbiased analysis of everything from vacuum cleaners to children’s toys to cars, has published its list of the most reliable (and unreliable) vehicles. Overall, the results are stunning — five of the top eight most reliable family cars were...

  • Axon Automotive Plug-In Hybrid
    Axon Automotive Reveals Plug-In Hybrid In The UK

    Is that the original Honda Insight? At least one commenter on Green Car Congress agrees that the diminutive plug-in hybrid pictured to the left bears some likeness to the spunky fuel sipper that debuted back in 1999. (Of course the Insight didn't come with a plug.) Resemblance aside, this is the...

  • 2010 Honda Insight - side

    Honda has the highest average fleet mileage of any volume carmaker selling in the U.S. market today. And it's had that distinction for many years. But in the face of the car-market meltdown, oil prices that have risen from $30 to $80 a barrel within months, and growing global environmental concerns, rules, and regulations, Honda has concluded it's not doing enough. So the company is in the midst of rewriting its product plans, pushing harder and faster to make its new cars lighter, less thirsty, and more green--while keeping them nimble, clever, and fun to drive. It has already canceled a V8...

  • 2010 Mercury Milan Hybrid
    Green Car of the Year Finalists: Three Hybrids, Two Diesels

    The five finalists for the 2010 Green Car of the Year Award include three hybrid models--two Japanese hatchbacks and one U.S. sedan--and a pair of German clean-diesel cars. The nominations were announced today by Green Car Journal, which has presented the award at the Los Angeles Auto Show for five...

  • 2010 Toyota Prius
    Hybrid Sales Plummet After Cash-For-Clunkers Credits Quit

    We knew all along that the Cash-For-Clunkers program induced July and August car buyers to go for vehicles they might not otherwise have chosen, specifically smaller cars with higher gas mileage. Especially hybrid-electric vehicles from Toyota, Honda, Ford, and others. But now comes the hybrid...

  • The 2010 Toyota Prius
    Price of The Prius To Rise $400

    Low Cost Model Being Phased Out

  • 2010 Honda Insight
    Do Hybrids and Small Cars Guzzle Gas at Highway Speeds?

    Consumer Reports Releases Their Findings on Highway MPG Tests

  • Prius Coupe Rendering
    Report: Toyota is Working on Sporty Prius Coupe

    According to the Best Car magazine of Japan, Toyota is currently working on a dedicated sporty hybrid model that aims to compete with the upcoming CR-Z hybrid from Honda. The report states that Toyota is considering employing a famous Italian design company such as Pininfarina or Guigiaro...

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