News: Honda feeling pressure from Prius 3, planning to improve MPG of 2nd gen Insight
 

Apparently the success of Toyota's Prius 3 has put Honda engineers' feet to the fire:

http://www.autocar.co.uk/contentImag...188234x155.jpg

Source: Autocar - Honda speeds up Insight update

What an unflattering photo.

I'm sure Honda didn't simply forget to make the 2010 Insight good. So what changes will they make for 2013? They'll tune the suspension to the desires of automotive journalists, but how will they boost MPG without spending a lot of money? Maybe a manual tranny? Maybe they'll spend a lot of money and raise the price a few grand.

I doubt we'll see a new engine or a different hybrid arrangement.

There's always fuel economy left on the design table!

Honda made decisions about weight, gearing, PCM programming, aerodynamics... you name it. All of them compromises against other factors (like cost, acceleration, styling, "consumer acceptance", cannibalizing sales of their other models).

I suspect now they're revisiting the balance of the more easily changed compromises.

Ignoring the gamut of the aero mods that could be done, the least they could do is extend the gear range of the CVT to match that of the Civic hybrid to give it the tall gearing needed for good FE on the highway. As currently configured, both the Insight and Fit have excessively high rpms for highway cruising, which in addition to the poor mileage, also causes the engine to wear out faster than it should.

Maybe should've named it "KneeJerk" instead of "Insight"...

Good. I was disappointed when I heard the current insight's mpg figures.

Car manufacturers competing to get better mileage -- whodda' thunk it?

Oooo! Touche! :p

I want an FCX. Wahh.

I agree with extending the CVT, and reprogramming the control so that it allows a user selectable "economy" or "performance" profile, within constraints. The problem is that most people will buy it for "economy" but "forget" to take it off "performance" until the "cost of ownership" catches up with their "wallet".

If I were to get an Insight, it would be a 1st gen only.

I happened to walk by a Honda dealer the other day. I didn't have time to stop to look carefully at it, but I noticed the Insight does not have rear wheel air dams. Even my Elantra have those! One has to wonder what else they left out.

I noticed this in images, as well.... Me thinks: Easy MPG gains for when the "real competition" (i.e. Prius) shows up.

Genius biz practice, but probably not very ecologically intelligent. If you could have just gotten the better MPG's earlier, you wouldn't have had the competition to begin with.

Christ -

I totally agree with this. Saturn S-Series automatic trannies had an on/off button for economy/performance modes. IMO, this option should be as ubiquitous as MPG gauges.

More bad news for the Insight :

Honda's Insight hybrid stalls in sales race with Toyota's Prius - Los Angeles Times
On the plus side, it might make 2nd gen Insights more affordable for others.

CarloSW2

But I want a 1st gen!

Christ -

Ahhhh, but if more people focus on a bargain-basement 2nd gen, maybe they'll forget about the 1st gen, and you'll be able to get one for a better $.

CarloSW2

Fine... You win. (Which, apparently, means I might also win.) Ironic, eh?