Road Tests: Long-Term Test

Video highlights of this vehicle

The Insight spent the month of May being driven by our managing editor in a fashion that perfectly suited the hybrid Honda. Unlike drivers during previous months who took the vehicle on trips into the high desert above Los Angeles or long freeway jaunts to Phoenix (both circumstances for which the Insight is less than ideal), Karl Brauer simply drove the Insight to and from work in West Los Angeles.

A 14-mile round trip in various stages of city traffic, the commute from Brauer's home to the Edmunds.com offices in Santa Monica gave our managing editor an opportunity to test the Insight's shifting and braking abilities on a constant level. He was happy to report that, despite its hybrid nature, the Insight feels just like any other Honda. This means refined shifter action, progressive clutch take-up, and an easily modulated brake pedal. The Insight's ultra-thin tires do mean less traction during hard braking, causing the ABS to kick in sooner than one might expect, but all in all it is a very user-friendly vehicle.

Power, or the lack thereof, was another issue raised by previous Insight drivers and Brauer fully admits that this Honda is no speed demon. However, as a city car used in congested areas, the Honda never felt slow. "I found it possible, if sometimes challenging, to merge with freeway traffic, get in front of city traffic, and sufficiently place the car when changing lanes in West L.A. It will maintain 80 mph on the freeway, and while I'm not willing to call the Insight fast, I'm not willing to dub it a slow, pathetic dog, either."

Even more interesting than the Honda's ultimate power is the effect the car has on one's driving style. Mr. Brauer isn't exactly known for his sedate demeanor while battling it out on L.A.'s crowded mean streets, but behind the Insight's wheel he found himself upshifting sooner, maintaining more consistent speeds, and braking lightly and early, all in an attempt to use less gas while keeping the integrated motor-assist batteries charged. He still pushed the car on occasion, but he was quite choosy about when a full-throttle blast was allowable. In that sense, the Honda has the potential to score double bonus points by not only using less fuel and emitting less pollutants, but also by altering its driver's wasteful tendencies. Also affected was Brauer's use of air conditioning. He basically never turned it on because the concept of using air conditioning (even the CFC-free kind) while trying to save fuel and cut emissions seemed contradictory to him. Again, the mere philosophy of what the Insight represents had an energy-efficient effect on Brauer. Well, the car's philosophy and the undeniable truth that air conditioning use in springtime Los Angeles is rather silly. The Insight has two perfectly functioning electric roll-down windows.

Despite Mr. Brauer's overall enjoyment while driving the Insight, problems did crop up. The stereo, for one, was deplorable in its lack of bass. It also proved difficult to get the balance and fade properly dialed in because of the poor design of these controls. The fader and bass control are done with one small knob while the balance and treble use a separate tiny knob. Neither felt intuitive to Mr. Brauer and after repeated adjustments he still didn't have an acceptable level of thump nor a properly balanced level of sound output from all four speakers. The Insight comes with only two front speakers from the factory, but our car has two more dealer-installed units behind the seats. The addition of these rear speakers, along with a CD player, certainly allowed for further gouging on a hot model by the dealer. But despite their inflated price, were the rear speakers even properly installed? Hmmm.

Rear visibility has also suffered as a result of the Insight's design. While the body's tapered shape is superb for sliding through air, its design necessitates a narrow, highly curved rear window that has a bar separating the upper and lower portions. The lower portion has a dark tint, presumably to keep headlights from blasting the driver during nighttime driving. The combination of all these factors makes using the rearview mirror a challenge and backing out of tight parking spaces a chore.

Even using the most conservative driving styles, it seemed difficult to maintain the Insight's battery level through regenerative braking and/or coasting. Ultimately, the IMA was forced to feed off of the internal combustion engine's operation, thus sapping power and fuel mileage to a certain degree. This led Mr. Brauer to think up some alternative methods for charging the car. "How about solar panels built into the roof? When you park this car outside for the day, that potential sun energy is doing nothing more than cooking the interior." Another idea, "While you don't HAVE to plug in the Insight to charge its batteries, why not make that an option. My garage, like most, has an A/C outlet right next to where I park. Why not plug the car in when you park it at night and unplug it, fully charged, when you leave the next morning?"

That Brauer, always trying to outthink the real designers. Like someone who drives a 30-year-old muscle car has any business advising Honda on how to create a cleaner hybrid.

Total Odometer Reading: 3,174
Best Fuel Economy: 47.1 mpg
Worst Fuel Economy: 35.3 mpg
Running Average Over Life of Vehicle: 47.3 mpg
Body Damage: $0
Maintenance Costs: $0
Problems: None