2010 Honda Insight EX: Offering great mileage and reliability

Written by Steven Macoy
Thursday, 20 May 2010 04:00

Honda can’t seem to nail down its place in the hybrid sweepstakes. Its original Insight was a tiny, oddly shaped two-seater that remains a perennial favorite of hypermilers who claim to get 90 mpg or more. Next was the Civic hybrid, nearly indistinguishable from the conventional Civic.

Now comes the Insight, again. This time it’s a four-door hatchback that bears an uncanny resemblance to Toyota’s wildly successful hybrid, the Prius.

One oft-quoted British reviewer called the new Insight “biblically terrible.” To be sure, the Insight comes with a low fun quotient, but not everyone has to have a BMW. If you just want an unusually economical economy car, the Insight warrants consideration.

First and foremost, it’s a Honda. That means bulletproof reliability and a vast dealer network. And thanks to its hybrid system, it’s rated at 40 mpg in the city and 43 on the highway — not as good as the Prius, but better than everything else. We averaged about 43 mpg with our Insight, four or five mpg less than we got with a 2010 Prius.

The Insight also costs less than the Prius and isn’t saddled with Toyota’s recent quality-control and design woes. We drove a top-of-the-line Insight EX with navigation, which lists for $23,100. The Prius we tested late last year was likewise loaded, but its sticker price was north of $32,000.

Comparisons may be unfair because the Prius is in its third generation, while the Insight essentially is a new model. The more glaring deficiencies in the Honda are its smaller back seat and noisier cabin.

The Insight rides fairly comfortably, handles competently and accelerates to highway speeds reasonably quickly, but this lightweight hatchback — just 2,734 pounds — was skittish in high winds during highway driving in southern Connecticut. Lift the nearly weightless rear deck to expose the spare tire and you’ll find a tray made of a foam material that’s mostly air. Kneel on the rear deck to install a child’s seat and you’ll feel it start to buckle under your knees. Honda evidently took pains to make this car as light as possible.

The dashboard has a space-age look befitting the car’s hybrid technology. A slot at the top of the dash provides a digital miles-per-hour readout; the background is green when the car is coasting along and blue under load. The driver’s seat was roomy, and leg room was sufficient for our 6-foot driver.

The navigation system worked well, but the radio lacked range. Other Hondas we’ve driven have had perfectly good radios, so this problem may be unique to the Insight we were driving.

The Insight has done well in frontal-offset and side-impact crash tests, garnering the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s top ranking of “Good” across the board.

Not all drivers will love the Insight, but for those who value stratospheric fuel economy and wish to project an image of environmental concern, it’s the least expensive ticket to green motoring.

Steven Macoy ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) is a longtime car enthusiast and full-time editor who lives in Bethel, Conn.