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Originally Posted by Hersbird
That's what I was wondering for an G1 Insight. But sounds like a bone stock diesel Cruze will do close. I suppose nobody is modding them up much yet being under warranty and all. EPA says the 2018 manual is 52 mpg highway vs the Insight at 59 mpg (under the current test, not the old test in the 2000's) Diesels often beat the EPA test though while the hybrids are optimized for it (or the test is optimized for hybrids). Then the problem now is diesel here is $3.09 a gallon and regular is $2.58/gal so a bunch of that would be lost in cost per mile.
Nothing beats the pure electric in cost per mile as pointed out especially here as we have about $0.06 per Kwh electricity. Just the range doesn't make them a good Montana highway car.
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The Cruze diesel is a good, modern choice. The Insight also beats the EPA - in fact today I put over 100 miles of stop-n-go hard driving delivery trips of 9 miles or less on the Insight and still managed over 65 MPG.
Like you said, the Cruze diesel also has to factor in the more expensive cost of gasoline. The Insight's advantage is that it is simple to work on compared to today's modern cars, while the Cruze offers more creature comforts and practical use for more than two people, at the cost of a few MPG.
I've always wondered how a Gen 1 Insight would do if fitted out with a 1.0L Earth Dreams (Honda's newest technology) + lean burn and a lithium battery from the factory. I'd bet on 100 MPG EPA ratings for that.