Efficiency war? Hyundai's dedicated hybrid rumoured to out-Prius the new Prius

[MetroMPG]

A report out of S. Korea says Hyundai made Toyota nervous enough that they delayed the 2016 Prius launch:

According to industry sources, Toyota postponed the production of its new eco-friendly vehicle after hearing that Hyundai Motor Company’s hybrid-only vehicle [...] provides a very high level of fuel efficiency.
[...]

Rumors have it that the fuel economy of the AE surpasses that of the new Prius, and Toyota is trying to find out how fuel-efficient the AE is.

From: Economic Fuel: Fuel Economy War Heating Up between Hyundai, Toyota | BusinessKorea

You can see a camouflaged, and generally Prius-shaped Hyundai "AE" prototype undergoing testing here:

Hyundai spotted testing Prius rival

[Daox]

Interesting news. The claimed ~55mpg EPA rating of the 4th gen Prius has got to be hard to beat (especially if you don't lie about your EPA ratings Hyundai!). I love competition though.

[MetroMPG]

With oil prices so low, it seems like an odd time for 2 automakers to be getting into an MPG battle, but these things were underway well before that happened.

But I agree, it sure is nice to see someone challenging the Prius.

I wonder if Hyundai will go with lithium and give the pack a lifetime warranty like they did with the Sonata hybrid.

[jamesqf]

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

With oil prices so low, it seems like an odd time...

Or maybe, since they aren't American automakers, they can think beyond the next model year :-)

[redpoint5]

Maybe Hyundai has a secret mode that passes smog tests, but then reverts to a more fuel efficient mode during normal driving. :P

It's good to see some competition as that will lead to better products down the road. I think the younger generations are slowly starting to transition to a mindset of thinking more about efficiency, and place more value in a vehicles utility rather than status symbol.

Even if fuel dropped to $1/gallon, I would choose my Prius over a Suburban not because of my deep concern for the environment, but because it suits my needs better.

[RedDevil]

It is more like they out-Insight the old Insight:

Of course it's another Honda whose form this prototype seems to be emulating, and that's the Insight. It'll be interesting to see if Hyundai can succeed where the Insight failed, and take the fight to the Prius. Expect to see it emerge sometime in the second half of next year.

IMHO the main reason why the 2nd gen Insight sales slumped was its poor EPA rating, which is way too easy to beat with a wide margin. Seems like Honda has been overly honest, and paid the bitter price.

[oz42]

Good point. When I compare my 1st gen. Insights 3,4 LHK fuel consumption that is in the brochure with my real life fuel consumption then I must say that Honda was very honest. In fact, my personal mpg is even better than that.

I do not want to talk about VWs Dieselgate because *every* car that is sold here has a much worse real life mpg compared to the brochures one.

[niky]

VW was quite honest about TDI fuel economy.

Unfortunately, they sacrificed real world emissions to ensure they kept those headline figures.

Everyone else has had to downgrade their economy OR add an expensive urea-injection system (or both) to meet US NOx regulations.

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by RedDevil

Insight sales slumped was its poor EPA rating, which is way too easy to beat with a wide margin.

... Just as it's easy to beat a Prius rating by a wide margin when you drive it attentively.

Maybe Hyundai has a secret mode that passes smog tests, but then reverts to a more fuel efficient mode during normal driving. :P

Thanks for the chuckle.

[RedDevil]

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

... Just as it's easy to beat a Prius rating by a wide margin when you drive it attentively.

Of course, but the bar is set lower on the Insight.
If you look at the average economy from fuel logs the 2nd gen Insight and Prius (look per year) are almost on par (44), while the EPA says 41 versus 46.
The 3rd gen Prius fuel log average is marginally better but still below its 50 mpg mark.

Edit: not convinced? Watch this: http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/Find....30919&id=25987
See the big discrepancy between EPA and user data!
Top Insight user data entry is 'only' 50 mpg btw... Mine isn't in there, for sure.

People skipped the Insight expecting to get over 10% or over 20% better fuel economy from the Prius, based on the EPA numbers. So Honda had to terminate the Insight.
If Hyundai wants to fare better they need to edge up the EPA number, whatever it takes, rather than focus on real world economy.

On the plus, you can now get used 2nd gen Insights cheaply. I did