Honda's new hybrid, the Insight

Expert Rating:

What is it?

Think of it as Honda's Prius and you're about there. Mind, you only need look at its familiar profile and you can't help but think about Toyota's eco-chariot; from the side, the two look virtually identical.

Honda's original 1999 Insight, with its rear wheel arches covered over like an old Citroen DS, was an oddball coupé that buyers never really took to. However, this new model, despite actually being less economical and spitting out more carbon dioxide, aims to reach the mainstream by being as practical as any other family hatchback while being clean as a whistle.

The Insight uses Honda's IMA (Integrated Motor Assist) system, which combines an electric motor with a Jazz-derived 1.3-litre i-VTEC engine to improve performance, economy and CO₂ emissions. Battery power is garnered from the engine and regenerative braking, and an engine stop/start system cleans things up even more. Unlike Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive system, Honda's IMA will never power the car on electricity alone.

The result is a petrol car with economy and emissions matching those of a small diesel car, but no more - which is significant. Emissions of CO₂ is pegged at 104g/km (or 101g/km for base-spec versions) and economy is 61.4mpg (64.2mpg for basic cars).

Is it any good?

It feels wrong to criticise the Insight too harshly given its environmental remit, as well as the thought Honda has put into making it a very economical and practical car in day-to-day driving (more of which later). However, as clever as the Insight is, it doesn't make a compelling case for itself from behind the wheel: it's a real dullard.

The cabin layout is built in Honda's typically sturdy fashion, but it's about as bland as the car is dynamically uninvolving. The Insight tries hard to behave like a conventional car, but in a straight fight with any half decent hatch it would end up with its green nose bloodied. It's stodgy around corners and the steering is just plain weird thanks to the combination of a sharp rack and absolutely no feel, while the ride smacks into potholes. It's comfortable most of the time, and spacious, but fun it certainly is not - particularly when you put your foot down. The CVT automatic gearbox ensures that the engine makes a horrendous racket at higher revs (where it will stay of you bury the throttle), and there's a constant high-pitched whine from the electric motor to contend with too. There's little by the way of excitement from the 87bhp electro-petrol partnership, which has only 89lb.ft of torque at a peaky 4,500rpm.

Drive it like an environmental protestor, though, and there's some bizarre fun to be had courtesy of 'Eco Assist', the green driving assistant Honda compares to a Tamagotchi - 1998's digital key ring pet revolution.

Eco Assist is a system that allows you to measure how naughty you're being behind the wheel. Accelerate hard and the digital speedometer glows blue; back off and you'll bask in, of course, green. It also shows you a row of flowers on a display in the rev counter; drive too hard and the flowers will gradually die, but be careful and they'll remain alive - and you'll get a trophy on the dash for your efforts. Patronising? Distracting? You decide.

Should I call the bank manager?

Not yet, because Honda hasn't made its mind up how much it wants to charge for the Insight. What is certain is that it will undercut the Prius by some margin - that much Honda is very clear about - but given the current global economic crisis (exchange rate fluctuations and such), Honda can't nail down a price. We'll find out at Geneva in March.

Whatever it costs (probably around £15,000 for a base car), there are many cars that will provide a far more satisfying driving experience for a similar outlay, and/or be very nearly as clean and efficient. BMW has a 116d coming in March, for example, which has identical fuel economy and is in the same £35 per year VED bracket. Eco versions of hatchbacks from Ford and VW will also provide a more rewarding drive and very nearly the same economy.

Summary

The Insight will, much like the Prius, provide a badge of honour for people who wish to join the green transport brigade - and that's not to disparage it. Unfortunately, while the Insight is certainly an impressively clean thing, it just doesn't move the game forward at all, and it's likely to be trumped very quickly by the forthcoming new Prius. Its weaknesses highlight exactly why hybrids will probably be nothing more than a stopgap between internal combustion and all-electric cars. Until that day, we'd still take a diesel, thanks very much.

Mark Nichol