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2010 Honda Insight: First Drive
Detroit, 11:35 PM
Wed Dec 9
27 posts in the last 24 hours
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2010 Honda Insight: First Drive |
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01/11/09
Good work Honda, keep it up.
01/11/09
01/11/09
Building a hybrid is slightly more polluting than building a similar non hybrid car, but because of the lower emissions, this difference is easily overcome in the first year of usage.
Your analogy with an older and much smaller car does not work either, that is not realistic.
01/11/09
You also have to remember that diesel is artificially expensive in this country due to excessive taxation. If it were cheaper than regular gas (as it used to be), it would be more popular. Heck, if it were the same price, I would probably go out and buy an old diesel Mercedes Benz 300TD! At least I know they last.
01/11/09
A CVT transmission does not cost more than any other transmission, but it has less parts that will wear out, therefore theoretically will last longer.
You are also confused with old style diesels, that where strong and reliable because of the simplicity of the technology (or lack of). Modern diesels, that comply with regulations etc. are high tech machines that are just as prone to defects as a regular gas engine.
I love the MB 300TD's, in my opinion, the last real Mercedes MB made.
Run them on recycled oil and it is a perfect automobile...
01/12/09
02/08/09
01/11/09
01/11/09
Toyota makes hybrid diesel trucks (japan only)
The problem is the cost of such a vehicle.
01/11/09
01/11/09
01/11/09
I get it, you like muscle cars. But give a little credit to cars that people can afford and that offer significant improvements in economy. After all, there are going to be a lot more of them on the road than Maclarans or GT500's.
01/11/09
The Insight is most of the above, but it's not the most economical vehicle Honda could have offered at an entry-level price point. The Civic Diesel is that car.
Additionally, purchasing a new car is hardly the best way to reduce your personal impact on the environment. Hanging on to an older, less efficient car for longer is actually better than purchasing a more efficient new one. Riding a bicycle is even better, that's my main mode of short distance transportation.
My point here is that you're not going to save polar bears by buying any new vehicle, but if you want a hybrid, the Insight is going to be pretty cheap and pretty good.
01/11/09
Then again, I live in San Francisco, so I'm used to hearing about how wrong we are about everything.
And for the record, I currently can't decide if I want to buy a car that's semi-economical (68 Cougar) or just plain party time (blown s197 Mustang).
America, F#ck yeah!
01/11/09
The fact is that we're not going to all ride bicycles, and people are not going to stop buying cars. If they're going to buy them, buying hybrids and EVs ultimately will have an impact, especially as prices come down and technology improves.
As for that whole argument about the diesels, I think that's a bit of a red herring. There are a lot of issues with diesels, mostly regulatory from what I gather, so while Honda could have introduced a diesel theoretically, I think it's a little unfair to hold that against the Insight. Second, the vehicle you compare with the 70+ mpg is a compact with significantly less interior room. That might be fine for individual driving, but as a family vehicle I don't think it'd be practical.
Let's look at the Insight for what it is; an affordable, very practical car that offers good economy even if it isn't the most fun or well refined car.
01/11/09
01/11/09
I would like to ad that investing in a hybrid car is investing in new technology.. and in order to make that technology better and more affordable, buying into it is the quickest way.
I love big gas guzzling engines and exotic cars.. but I am also conscience about the rest.. call it Realautopolitik if you want.
01/11/09
01/11/09
01/11/09
Jeez, that's a bland statement. But I mean it sincerely.
01/11/09
I'm not sure if it's the dealers or the enviromentals who are more to blame.
Nonetheless, the sheer appropriateness of how the South Park episode represents the Prius and Insight phenomenon is hilarious. It's also the biggest threat to the success of the Fusion Hybrid. If I had the bucks, I'd buy the Fusion just to go park in the Toyota dealer's lot.
01/11/09
01/11/09
To filter out these particles you need highly sophisticated systems, that as a side effect lower the fuel efficiency of the car, besides making it slower and more expensive.
01/11/09
01/11/09
Many cities and or areas, like the whole northern part of Italy, have since many years, very restricting driving policies; especially during the colder season, when smog tends to hang lower, they have even/uneven car plates days, meaning you are allowed only to drive on an uneven number day if you have a plate that ends on an uneven number. Almost once a month they have a complete traffic block, meaning nobody is allowed to drive, except those with special permits (and EV hybrids).
01/11/09
01/11/09
...In Europe.
...If you want a really tiny diesel engine and 0-60 times that are greater than 8 seconds.
The US gets screwed, and can't have such cars. I really think that, economic climate aside, there's a market for a good, really efficient, small car in the US. It's just that no one knows this for sure, since we don't ever get to see those cars.