2010 Honda Insight - Review

By Eric Loveday

Eric Loveday

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Eric Loveday is a car enthusiast with a love for everything automotive. He purchased a 1970 Chevelle at age 16, quickly outgrew its dated engineering... More

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2008 Paris auto show

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During a recent test drive of the all new 2010 Honda Insight hybrid, several reviewers were able to obtain close to 70 mpg.  Pretty impressive numbers for a car with an EPA rating of 40 city and 43 highway mpg.

Reviewers set out to a site in Arizona and were presented with the Insight for a test drive.  This test drive had one goal in mind.  To achieve maximum fuel economy.  The test drive was referred to as the MPG Challenge and all reviewers were to drive in a manner that would maximize fuel efficiency.  In order to increase fuel efficiency, the Insight was driven in eco-mode which is designed to use gas sparingly and instead rely on electrical power as much as possible.

The test drive consisted of a 16 mile loop in the suburban area of Pheonix, Arizona.  Drivers had to complete the loop and their mileage was recorded.  During the course of driving, many drivers practiced a form of driving referred to as hypermilling.  Hypermilling is the process of driving in a style that returns great fuel economy by doing things such as coasting for long distances to a stop, accelerating from a stop at a snails pace, sometimes drafting behind other vehicles, and often driving under the speed limit.  Hypermillers sometimes appear to be driving a vehicle that has stalled as passerbys in other vehicles fly be the hypermillers at rate that make the hypermiller appear to be motionless.