Rendered Speculation: Honda's dedicated hybrid
Spy shots of Honda's upcoming Prius-fighting hybrid model have come and gone and we still haven't had our fill of guessing what the new model will look like. We've heard that the new non-Insight will bear a resemblance to Honda's hydrogen-consuming FCX Clarity and we can certainly tell that it will have a certain Prius-esque look to its profile - all in the name of aerodynamics, of course. Armed with all of this information, the scribes at Japan's Best Car have come up with a rendering of the new car. Based on what we know, as discussed a few sentences back, this is surely pretty close though there will undoubtedly be extra details that nobody is aware of yet. Under hood will be a revised version of Honda's familiar Integrated Motor Assist system hooked to a 1.3-liter four cylinder engine. A nickel metal hydride battery pack will prove the necessary juice to the electric motor. Expect to see the real thing soon enough as Honda is set to debut its latest fuel-sipper in this October in Paris.
Gallery: Spy Shots: Honda Hybrid-only model
[Source: Best Car via Carscoop]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Paul Sallmen 5:41PM (8/29/2008)
Clearly, this is a direct competitor to the Prius. This competition is good for consumers. Hopefully this will hasten both companies to roll out plug-in versions of these vehicles sooner than later.
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ryan 8:40PM (8/29/2008)
The Prius startsat $21.5k while having an EPA rating of 48/45mpg. With some skill and care, you can expect to hit numbers in the 60s. This is achieved with a 1.5 liter engine.
The Insight, as most of us know, did quite a bit better than the Prius, when equipped with a manual. It just had too many sacrifices to really catch the average consumers eye.
Flash forward to this new hybrid-only vehicle from Honda. A 1.3 liter engine. Decidedly Prius-looking styling. They are going to have to price it significantly below $20k, and it had better get an EPA rating somewhere around 60mpg...
...Especially with the Prius being rumored to be getting an upgraded 1.8 liter engine all while IMPROVING on the previous generation's FE!
Things are going to get interesting. I am rooting for the consumer and earth, and hope that things will continue to improve in the auto industry. I can't wait for solid mass production details.
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