1st gen. Insight vs. Metro comparison on rough roads?
 

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I got a private message from a lurker considering a gen 1 Insight. I'm putting his question out there for consideration by anyone else with experience in both cars:

I've never been on SW Ohio pavement, but eastern Ontario has tons of frost heaves, cracks & potholes at this time of year. (I'm not currently driving my Firefly/Metro, but I am scraping my '07 Civic's DIY air dam on a regular basis.)

If by "crappy pavement competency" you mean "ride comfort", I'm going to say that yes, a stock Metro offers a somewhat plusher ride, has more ground clearance, and more suspension travel.

But it's also taller, narrower, has more body roll and a slower ratio manual steering rack. Plus narrower, squishier tires.

The Insight's steering/suspension is FAR more responsive & enjoyable to drive than a Metro's if you consider yourself a typical "driving enthusiast."

Is it enough of a trade-off to matter if you're dealing with bad pavement? Only you can answer that. I take it you haven't driven an Insight yet, but that'd be my advice.

Thanks for the reply!

I have driven only one Insight so far. I did notice that I liked its steering feel.

It has been a while since I drove the metro but I don't ever remember thinking it was that bad in terms of ride comfort.

No problem.

The Metro's not bad at all. Of course it depends on your frame of reference.

I wouldn't hesitate to do a road trip in either car.