Honda explains the lack of moonroof and LED lights on the Insight

When the Honda Insight went from concept to production in late 2008, it stayed mostly true to what was first shown at the 2008 Paris Motor Show. However, as usual, there were a few detail changes, chiefly to the lighting. The concept version had really cool looking LED headlight clusters. However, when the production version appeared in Detroit this year, those were replaced by more conventional halogen units.

While the LEDs are efficient and would have saved some energy, Honda reminds people that the Insight was designed as the Hybrid for Everyone! A big part of making the Insight accessible was keeping the cost down and those LED light clusters remain very expensive. Thus they were left on the cutting room floor. Another feature that wasn't on the concept but does appear to be missed by some buyers is a moonroof. This option was sacrificed in the name of efficiency since it adds weight to the car in addition to cost. As such the engineers decided it wasn't worth eating into the efficiency.

Source;
http://www.autobloggreen.com/2009/04/08/honda-explains-the-lack-of-moonroof-and-led-lights-on-the-insi/

2010 Honda Insight BLOG

Here is something interesting from Honda, they have created a blog which will keep us up to date of the goings on of the next Honda Insight.

Welcome to Latest Insight, a Honda blog that follows the journey of our latest hybrid, the Insight.

Link;
http://automobiles.honda.com/insight-hybrid/blog.aspx

Honda Worried that Dealers may Raise the Prices of the the Upcoming Honda Insight

I found this article to be an interesting read, I did not know that some dealers had been artificially marking up the price (suppy and demand) of the Civic Hybrid and the Fit. As far a I know, I haven't seen this practise in Canada.

The thrust of the new Honda Insight hybrid -- which debuted in Paris this week as a near-production concept -- is to "bring hybrid vehicles into a price bracket where a broader range of people can afford them," says the press materials. Cheaper, in other words. The current estimate is that the Insight -- powered by a 1.3-liter gas engine and Integrated Motor Assist, good for about 45 mpg, on average -- will cost about $20,000, though final pricing will be announced closer to the on-sale date next spring.

It must have taken a heroic effort for Honda to hit that price point. According to the company, major savings had to be realized in the design and manufacturing of the IMA and other hybrid components (like the battery). Tankers of midnight oil must have been docked right outside Honda's R&D center.

However, all that hard work -- and the neat marketing and sales strategy designed to undercut Prius -- will amount to little if Honda dealers tag on thousands of dollars more in dealer markups and price premiums, as they have been notoriously doing with the Fit and Civic Hybrid. "We don't like it whenever premiums are added," says company spokesman Kurt Antonius. "But it's driven by supply and demand. We don't condone it but we can't control it."

Perhaps not, but Honda of America could probably, oh, let's say, de-incentivize the practice, and considering that the low entry price of the new Insight hybrid is the whole point, I suspect they probably will.

More about the car: Yes, it looks vaguely like a Prius. "We would say it looks more like the Clarity," says Antonius, referring to Honda's sleek and awesome hydrogen-powered car. I would say that the Prius, the GM Volt and the Honda Insight all resemble one another as a consequence of aerodynamics and engineering constraints that nominalize design. In other words, if you want a car of a certain size to carry five passengers and some luggage, and you want it to be as aerodynamically efficient as possible, there's only so much you can do about styling.

Unlike the Prius, the Insight does not move under electric power alone. Honda has long believed the tradeoffs of weight and cost don't justify electric-only propulsion. The company expects overall mileage to be like that of the Civic Hybrid.

Honda expects to make 200,000 Insights per year for the world market, 100,000 of them destined for the U.S.

Source;
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/uptospeed/2008/10/honda-insight-h.html

Globe & Mail; Insight into Honda's hybrid plans

Jeremy Cato, October 2, 2008 at 10:27 AM EDT

PARIS -- Honda rarely, rarely tips its hand about future products. This is a secretive company, secretive to the point of being a bit paranoid.

So it was a surprise to see the Japanese auto maker jump the gun with pictures and selective tidbits about the Honda Insight hybrid-electric car it will put on sale next April – and show tomorrow at the Paris Auto Show.

Now the five-passenger hatchback Honda will show in Paris is officially a “concept.” Ignore that. Honda types say the production Insight will be almost identical to the concept. It is unusual for Honda to tout a car that won't go on sale for months, to leak details, share pictures and the like. Honda is doing this to steal Toyota's thunder.

Toyota, of course, is the world leader at selling hybrids. Honda has never liked that, not given that Honda actually beat Toyota to market in North America with its two-door hybrid. It did not sell well and neither have the Accord Hybrid – discontinued – and the Civic Hybrid.

So far, Honda's hybrid efforts have been a bit embarrassing – especially so for a company that prides itself on being a so-called engine company dominated by the smartest of engineers.

What we're seeing now is Honda in fighting mode. The Wall Street Journal argues that the Insight is “likely to pose the most formidable threat to Toyota” we've yet seen on the hybrid front – “delivering greenness for fewer greenbacks.”

Honda officials have led me to believe that the Insight will be highly affordable, selling in the $22,000-range or so in Canada. At that price, Honda is expecting to sell 100,000 or more Insights a year – perhaps more. Ten thousand of those might be sold in Canada.

Except Honda won't be alone in challenging Toyota and that means those sales numbers might be a stretch. General Motors already sells a slew of different hybrids, Ford has the Escape Hybrid and more like it coming in a few months, Nissan is pushing ahead, Chrysler has a wide-ranging electric car program in the works and on and on.

Oh, and did I mention the Santa Fe Hybrid Hyundai is showing in Paris?

More from Paris tomorrow, right here.

Source;
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081002.WBdriving20081002102719/WBStory/WBdriving

2008 Paris Motor Show Remarks by Takeo Fukui, President and CEO of Honda Motor Co., LTD

10/02/2008 - PARIS -
Good morning ladies and gentlemen... and thank you for joining Honda. It is great to be in Paris again... a trendsetting city where... today... we plan to introduce the concept for a trendsetting new vehicle.

The need to reduce CO2 emissions is a global challenge that transcends all national borders. Honda is addressing this challenge with technologies for the current, near and long-term.

Today we are introducing an all-new Jazz in Europe... with an enhanced design... even greater utility... while further reducing fuel consumption. And it achieves the number one fuel efficiency for B-segment petrol vehicles. To help us meet increasing global demand for high fuel efficiency cars, we will begin production of Jazz at our plant in the U.K. next year.

For the long term, we believe fuel cell electric vehicle technology is the ultimate environmental solution. And we have begun introducing the industry- leading Honda FCX Clarity to individual customers to advance this technology.

But to reduce CO2 emissions in the near term, Honda believes the best approach is to advance hybrid technology to mainstream customers. And the foundation of our efforts is the Honda Company Principle that has guided our business for more than 50 years. Maintaining a global viewpoint... with products of the highest quality... at a reasonable price... for worldwide customer satisfaction.

Today, we introduce a hybrid vehicle concept model... the all-new Honda Insight... that takes this principle into action. The original Insight was a 2-seat subcompact car. Introduced in 1999, it was a pioneer for petrol-electric hybrid technology in Europe and North America... as the very first commercially available hybrid car in these markets. We applied new technologies to achieve the number one fuel efficiency in the industry. These included the ultimate in aerodynamic design... an all-aluminum body and new processes for aluminum body production... and the compact IMA hybrid system.

The all-new Honda Insight will also be a pioneer... challenging to take hybrid technology into a new era of affordability. This new Insight will give more people the chance to get behind the wheel of a high quality hybrid vehicle only Honda can develop. Following the advanced aerodynamic design of FCX Clarity, Insight is a 5-seat 5-door hatchback... with room for a family.

We are developing this vehicle to achieve excellent fuel efficiency on par with Civic Hybrid... but at a significantly reduced price. The new Insight is equipped with a hybrid system that combines a lightweight and compact 1.3-liter engine with a motor that will achieve excellent fuel efficiency and low CO2 emissions.

We created a newly developed platform with the control unit and battery under the cargo space. As a result, Insight achieves excellent utility together with light and comfortable driving feel to offer a "Fun to Drive" spirit.

This new Insight represents the further advance of our concept of offering a hybrid for everyone. We have further reduced the weight and size of the hybrid system. And we have improved and strengthened our production system to further reduce the cost of our hybrid system.

While we continue to view the FCX Clarity fuel-cell vehicle as the ultimate solution, we will position Insight as an environmentally-responsible vehicle available to everyone now. The mass-production Insight will go on sale in Europe, Japan, and North America in spring 2009... with expected annual global sales of 200,000 units.

The new Insight marks the start of a new phase in our hybrid vehicle strategy... that will also include the Civic Hybrid, a new vehicle based on the CR-Z concept vehicle and a new Jazz hybrid. We expect combined annual sales to reach approximately 500,000 units.

As a next step... we plan to unveil the mass-production model of Insight next January at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. But, now, it is my pleasure to give you this first look at the Insight Concept model. Thank you for your attention.

Source;
http://www.hondanews.com/categories/1097/releases/4821

Honda Insight hybrid goes on sale globally in spring 2009

Neil Winton / Special to The Detroit News

PARIS -- Honda's new Insight petrol electric hybrid will go on sale around the world in the spring of 2009, after the mass production-ready version of the car is unveiled at the Detroit car show in January, the Japanese company said.

The original Insight was introduced in 1999. It only had two seats, whereas the new one has room for five.

"For the long term, we believe fuel cell electric vehicle technology is the ultimate environmental solution. But to reduce CO2 (carbon dioxide emissions in the near term, Honda believes the best approach is to advance hybrid technology to mainstream customers," Takeo Fukui, President and CEO of Honda told a press conference at the Paris Car Show.

"We are developing this vehicle to achieve excellent fuel efficiency on a par with the Civic Hybrid, but at a significantly reduced price. The new Insight is equipped with a hybrid system that combines a lightweight and compact 1.3 litre (gasoline) engine with a motor that will achieve excellent fuel efficiency and low CO2 emissions," Fukui said, without revealing any data.

The current Civic Hybrid uses a so-called "mild" hybrid system, which enhances the performance of the gasoline engine. "Strong" hybrids, like that in the Toyota Prius enhance efficiency, but also allow a limited amount of separate, battery-only powered driving.

Fukui didn't say which system would be used in the new Insight.

He said the Insight should sell up to 200,000 versions a year. Hybrid versions of the CR-Z SUV and little Jazz (known as the Fit in the U.S.) will bring hybrid sales up to 500,000 a year, but he didn't say when.

Fukui added that the newly redesigned Jazz/Fit, going on sale across Europe from next month, will be built in Britain, in addition to current capacity in China and Japan.

Source;
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081002/AUTO04/810020430/1001

More Pic's of the Honda Insight Concept at the 2009 Paris Auto Show

For more pic's follow the link below;
http://www.autoblog.com/2008/10/02/paris-2008-honda-insight-live-reveal/

Honda Introduces All-New Insight Dedicated Hybrid Concept Vehicle at Paris Motor Show

PARIS, France, October 2, 2008—Honda Motor Co., Ltd. presented the concept model of its all-new Insight dedicated hybrid vehicle scheduled to be introduced in 2009, at the 2008 Paris Motor Show (October 2–19; Press Days: October 2–3).

Based on a theme of achieving dynamic performance through excellent aerodynamics, the exterior design of the Insight concept model combines excellent environmental performance and a fun to drive spirit. The compact Insight Concept measures 4,375 mm (172.2 in.) in length, 1,695 mm (66.7 in.) in width, and 1,425 mm (56.1 in.) in height, with specially designed, ultra-light aluminum wheels and 205/40 R18 tires. With a cockpit that enables the driver to experience the joy of driving, the interior of the Insight Concept provides an advanced and futuristic feeling that is possible only through a hybrid vehicle.

The all-new Insight, which will be developed based on this Insight Concept, will be a five-door, five-passenger hatchback equipped with Honda’s lightweight and compact hybrid system, with a 1.3-liter gasoline engine serving as the main power source, assisted by an electric motor. While achieving fuel economy on par with the Civic Hybrid, the new Insight will also achieve excellent utility and light and comfortable driving through the adoption of a new platform developed specifically for this vehicle. Honda will begin sales of the all-new Insight in Japan, Europe and North America in spring 2009, and projects annual global sales of 200,000 units.

In his speech at the Paris Motor Show, Honda Motor president & CEO Takeo Fukui said, “This new Insight will give more people the chance to get behind the wheel of a high quality hybrid vehicle only Honda can develop.”

The name Insight was chosen to denote that this new vehicle provides "insight" into a new era in which hybrid vehicles come within reach of most car buyers.

Source;
http://world.honda.com/news/2008/4081002All-New-Insight/