Honda ads call Insight the "hybrid for everyone," highlight low price
by Sebastian Blanco on Mar 13th 2009 at 7:48PM 
Honda will start airing TV commercials for it's new Insight hybrid on Monday. As part of Honda's attempt to outsell the Prius, these commercials will use the tagline "the hybrid for everyone" and mention the Insight's low price (compared to the Prius) and green credentials. We don't know exactly how much the new Prius will cost when it goes on sale later this spring, but Automotive News (subs req'd) says the Insight's $20,470 price tag will be about $2,000 less. The idea of a mass-market hybrid, not a niche ride for greenies, is the right message to send right now, Honda brand national advertising senior manage Tom Peyton told AN. The first commercial is called "Beach," and two more will be broadcast in late April. What's that? Is a cheaper Prius on the way?
Gallery: 2010 Honda Insight
[Source: Automotive News (subs req'd)]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
jharlan 10:48PM (3/13/2009)
My guess is the Prius is a very fine car, but the Honda will be more fun.
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BoneHeadOtto 2:49PM (3/15/2009)
I would normally expect the Honda to be more fun but recent honda have proved otherwise. There is no steering feel in the electric steering of the civic on which this is based, there is no manual, no double A arm suspension, and absolutely no power. The Current prius is faster to 60 by 3 seconds and the newest will be "faster". If Toyota makes the suspension stiffer on the prius it would be sportier than the Insight.
BUT if you care anything about fun you are shopping the wrong cars. As for cheap cars and fun, the Fit and xD lead the pack by my estimation.
harlanx6 6:08PM (3/15/2009)
Thanks boneheadotto:
That's good to know. I am just judging from the Hondas and Toyotas I have owned, and I'll have to admit I haven't driven the new ones. Since I live over 2 hours of mountainous road from the nearest traffic signal I don't have time to do much test driving. Living in paradise does have it's advantages though.
Yikes 8:43AM (3/16/2009)
The Insights is based on the Fit, not the Civic.
Paul Berg 4:11AM (3/14/2009)
If it´s not a plug in i don´t wan´t it and i guess a lot of people are waiting for theese REAL forthcoming alternatives !
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Yikes 8:44AM (3/16/2009)
I'm sure Chevrolet will be glad to take your extra $20,000 for plug-in capability.
Sydney 4:39AM (3/14/2009)
Definitely ist is a is the Prius is a very fine car, but the Honda will be more fun also i think It's a big issue for any nation because automobile company has given a great contribution to grow economy of nation but presently the situation is not in favor of car dealers. They have critical problems just because of recession so as Jackson said that they have paid down $600 million in debt to date and will do another $500 million next year. I hope the situation will be improved in next year.
Sydney
Car Loans
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Mark 10:19AM (3/16/2009)
The current Prius sells for 26,000 euro here in Italy $33000 (rip off), 20000 dollars even if it was converted to 20000 euro would be great
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Herm 9:21AM (3/14/2009)
The Prius has more of a chance of being upgraded to an aftermarket plug-in than the Insight (the engine in the Insight is always turning, the Prius can run in pure stealth mode) and also is a larger car for families.. if Toyota lowers its price it will compete handily. The Insight is a sporty car, appealing more to single people with no munchkins.
Decisions, decisions!
Quoting ABG:
The Insight is smaller than the Prius by 2.5 inches in both length and height, and also has a 6-inch shorter wheelbase. While the Prius is classed as a mid-sized car based on its interior volume, the Insight is a compact.
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usbseawolf2000 12:47PM (3/14/2009)
Actually $19,800 for the Insight is high a barely compact hybrid.
The Insight is at the bottom of the compact class, with 100.9 cubic feet (the federal standard for compact is 100-109.9 cubic feet).
2010 Prius's combined cabin and cargo space is 115.6 cubic feet which is in the middle of the mid-size federal standard (110-120 cubic feet of combined interior volume). 2010 Camry has 115.9 cubic feet while the Camry Hybrid has 112 cubic feet volume.
For $1k more you can get the Accord or the Element.
The mid-size 2010 non-hybrid Camry starts at $19,395. Corolla (still larger than Insight) starts at $15,350. Yaris (with similar passenger volume but smaller cargo) starts at $12,205.
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Yikes 8:46AM (3/16/2009)
Why did you post a random list of cars and prices?
usbseawolf2000 12:49PM (3/14/2009)
Correction:
Actually $19,800 is high for the Insight that is barely a compact hybrid.
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Gordio 6:19AM (3/15/2009)
Not sure why you compare 'compact hybrid' b/c that category doesn't even exist. Fact of the matter is the insight is the cheapest hybrid and is 2000$ less than the 2nd cheapest hybrid you can buy.
usbseawolf2000 12:59PM (3/15/2009)
The price difference between a compact car and a mid-size car is about $4k to $5k. Look up the difference between Civic (compact) and Accord (mid-size). The same is true between Corolla (compact) and Camry (mid-size).
If I tell you that Civic is the most affordable sedan car and that it cost $5k less than the Accord, you will be like... SO?? Mid-size cars are bigger and better equipped so they cost more DUH!
The same applies to the 2010 Insight (compact) and 2010 Prius (mid-size) except that the price difference is only about $1k to $2k. (Prius price not announced yet). Remember, 2010 Prius will come standard with Smart Key with Push Start Button, Touch Tracer and Alloy Wheels but not the Insight.
usbseawolf2000 1:23PM (3/15/2009)
"Compact hybrid" do exist. For example, Civic hybrid is a compact hybrid. The first generation Insight (2000) was a Sub-Compact hybrid. The Classic Prius (2001 model that looked like an Echo) was a compact hybrid. Starting from the Iconic Prius (2004-09), Prius became Mid-Size (at 110.6 cu ft).
For SUVs, Ford Escape Hybrid is a compact SUV while Highlander Hybrid and Lexus RX450h are Mid-Size SUV.
I hope it clears it up. I believe Prius provides a better value and it will greatly depends the price when released. As long as 2010 Prius is no more than $4k to $5k than the Insight, it will have a great value because that's the going rate for the non-hybrid sedans. I forgot to mention in the prior post is that mid-size cars are faster than the compact cars. Of course, the 2010 Prius is more powerful and faster than the 2010 Insight.
One unique bonus payback feature that comes with the 2010 Prius that it will get 9 MPG more than the compact Insight. Normally the Accord/Camry get worse MPG than the Civic/Corolla. This payback ranges from $1.3k to $3.3k if the gas price is $2 to $5.
Another way to look at it is, if price of the 2010 Prius is $2k more and the gas price is at $3.5 it will cost the same as the Prius. You will get a bigger and faster car with more cool standard features for FREE.
The Insight may not qualify for the HOV lanes because 45 MPG is the minimal here in NY.
GoodCheer 3:49PM (3/15/2009)
Just as a matter of perspective, the volume of my body is about 3.7 ft^3. I'm 6'2" and 230 pounds. The statement
"For $1k more you can get the Accord or the Element."
Seems to me like an ode to the American ideal that bigger is always better. There's more than enough interior volume in the Insight to fit me and 4 passengers (maybe only 3 if they're all as big as I am). Even if the Element were $1000 less, I would choose the Insight over it without a second thought.
usbseawolf2000 5:29PM (3/15/2009)
I was not implying bigger is better. Some people may not need a mid-size hybrid but some others do. The overall market for the Compact is 2 million cars a year while the Mid-Size is 2.4 millions.
That doesn't mean the mid-size FULL hybrid (faster, bigger and more MPG) should cost the same as the compact ASSIST hybrid.
Honda may market the Insight as the most affordable hybrid. My point was that if a compact ASSIST hybrid costs more than a mid-size non-hybrid, it isn't affordable at all from a bigger perspective.
EV User 9:57AM (3/25/2009)
Although I drive a 100% electric car (converted from gasoline engine) I keep track of the hybrid market here int he Midwest. Honda seems not to understand the power of pricing its products correctly. The psychological $20K threshold should not be underestimated; the price tag should have been not higher than @19.5K, but time will tell.
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Gordio 1:57PM (3/15/2009)
http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Drives/Comparos/articleId=139686
This is for the current prius:
"It turns out the additional $5,473 required for the privilege of owning a Prius instead of an Insight can buy a lot of fuel. At today's fuel prices, the actual monetary savings earned by the Prius' edge in fuel economy is miniscule, working out to a paltry $70 per year. Paying off the Prius' extra tariff in sticker price with the savings in fuel purchases would require more than 75 years.
"Even if fuel prices were to leap to $5 per gallon, a Prius owner would have to drive his car for nearly 413,000 miles just to break even."
I think your price savings from the mpg difference is wrong. When talking about mileage around 45-50 mpg, 9mpg is not a lot. Look at this example:
http://www.autobloggreen.com/tag/MPG+Illusion/
The difference between a 46 mpg prius and a 42 mpg civic hybrid after 1000 miles is only 2 gallons, so @ 5$ a gallon, it would e 10$.
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usbseawolf2000 5:55PM (3/15/2009)
Gordio,
Edmunds comparison is biased. The fully loaded 09 Prius has extra luxury options that the fully loaded Insight does not. Edmunds somehow wants Prius to pay for those extras from the Prius's gas saving! How crazy is that? Here is the list of options that is not available in the fully loaded Insight:
- Smart Key System with push start button
- Backup Camera
- Auto-dimming rearview mirror with HomeLink (garage door opener)
- High Intensity Discharge (HID) headlamps and integrated fog lamps
- Leather seats
Either you want/need those extra features or not... You should not discount them as FREE. A bigger and better well equipped car should not save gas money to pay for those extras. For any car, when does V6 pay for itself? How about leather? HID? etc...
In summary, Edmunds incorrectly assumed that a "Fully Loaded" options in both cars are the same. Their comparison is as good as comparing a fully loaded Chevy Aveo vs. a fully loaded BMW 7 series, ignoring size / class / loaded features.