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MM Retro-Write-Up...First-Generation Honda Insight
IN A NUTSHELL: The first American-Market Gas/Electric Hybrid…and, in some ways, the most humble.
In today’s rapidly-electrifying automotive landscape, which brings us more gas/electric hybrids and pure-battery-electric vehicles to the market each year, it is difficult to imagine that, a scant 20 years so ago or so, the idea of an actual production vehicle with anything other than a gasoline or diesel-powered internal-combustion engine was about as foreign to the average American mind as an honest politician. True, GM, mostly on a lease-basis, had introduced the battery/electric Impact to a limited market in the Southwest, were the (usually) good weather limited the drain on the vehicle’s battery. There are a few other pure-electric vehicles, usually very small and quirky, like the one-person Corbin Sparrow….wth even smaller sales/lease-numbers. A few manufacturers offered natural-gas/propane-powered vehicles, E85 or ethanol-powered vehicles where those fuels were readily available, and fuel-cell/hydrogen vehicle technology was in its infancy. However, none of these alternate-fuel vehicles, despite some Government contracts for them at the time, ever made any real inroads on the American market.
Very slowly, however, that began to change in the year 2000, the dawning of a new century……and of a new automotive century. Honda, who had been a very innovative manufacturer in the past with new engine technology like the CVCC (Controlled-Vortex-Combustion), VTEC (Variable-Valve-Timing), and multiple-vales-per-cylinder, often derived from well-known Formula-1 efforts, added a new first, that year, with the first mass-production gas/electric hybrid vehicle available in the U.S., although it had previously been introduced to its Japanese home-market. In January 2000, the first of the Honda Insights started reaching American dealerships. Toyota was also working on plans to introduce its first hybrid Prius model here to the U.S., but the first Priuses would not arrive until almost eight months later, in August of 2000.
At first, the new Insights came in very slowly, trickling in at a snail’s pace. I had the privilege of being one of the first people in the D.C. area who was not an automotive journalist to sample an Insight, at least in part because an ex-Toyota salesperson I had known for years had jumped-ship and was now working for the Honda dealership right across street at Tysons’ Corner, VA. (We had bought my late Mom’s 1994 Corolla wagon from him). He gave me a buzz and let me know that a silver Insight was on the way….so I was there at the dealership when it came in. They did a quick unload, processing, slapped a (legal) Virginia Inspection sticker on the windshield so it could be test-driven, and the rest was up to me.
Before I had even done the exterior-review or gotten in, I had known, right from the start, from the previous images and advance-articles on this car, that some significant compromises had been made on it in the name of Stretch-Your-Gas-Dollar-to-the-Limit fuel-economy and ultra-low-emissions….even more so than with Toyota’s upcoming Prius. Just how many compromises, though, were evident from its design. It appeared to be related to the former 2-seat Honda CRX’s tiny platform, but in a much more quirky manner. Large, odd-looking flaring-skirts covered both rear fenders….which presumably smoothed out the aerodynamics a little. Those skirts extended into the huge rear bumper and bulged out the back of the car like a Southern Sheriff’s Beer-Gut. The large, heavy battery-pack (they were not as compact or efficient back then as they were now) took up so much room behind the 2 seats that, together with the extremely-raked rear roofline (again, for aerodynamics and mileage) there wasn’t much room for anything in the cargo area that wasn’t small, low, and flat, like maybe your briefcase lying on its side. Like a small sports-car, it sat about an inch off the ground with its lower-body fairings (again, for aerodynamics)…so getting in and out of it, although not as difficult as with the Mazda Miata or Lotus Elise, was somewhat of an exercise in stooping/lifting and and/or turning your body into a Bachmann Pretzel. Under the small/non-insulated hood, the tiny 1.0L non-turbo three (which makes even the small 1.3L turbo-three in my Buick Encore GX look large) and the 13 HP/10KW IMA (Integrated-Motor-Assist) electric motor took up virtually all of what space there was available. The thin bodywork, doors, and glass lacked even rudimentary insulation……curb weight had been paired to the bone, more or less Lotus-style, in the search for maximum fuel-economy…which, of course, it delivered in spades, with real-world gas-mileage into the 60s, or even better in some circumstances. A look at the specs showed that only 350 lbs. of weight could be carried….that’s the weight of cargo AND passengers combined, so, for all intents and purposes, for a guy my size, it was a one-person car and a modest amount of my luggage( what would fit, that is)…weight-wise, a salesperson couldn’t even travel with me, as he a was also a good-sized guy like me. A quick look at the components underneath the car (what you could actually see, at least) showed minimal brakes/suspension/steering parts….again, weight-savers, and the fact that hybrid vehicles often don’t need strong brakes because of their regenerative-braking-systems, where the coasting-drag on the motors slows the vehicle down and recharges the battery. In short, From what I remember, three or four colors were offered….black, silver, red, and a Neon-shade of yellowish/grass-green, (possibly white, but I don’t specifically remember it). In general, I liked the green the best. IMO, this was more of a toy (although, for the time, a rather sophisticated one mechanically) than what I would all a true automobile for American-sized people.
And, compared to most traditional gas-vehicles of the time, it also drove like a toy. First-Generation Insights had a choice of a 5-speed manual or a CVT. I don’t totally recall which one my test-car had, but I think it was the 5-speed. Road/tire-noise, with the lack of insulation, came through into the cabin like a drum. Even small-to-moderate bumps with the lightweight suspension upset the car noticeably….some Hondas of that period were well-known for a lack of suspension-travel to absorb bumps. Steering/handling response was quite good considering the narrow economy-oriented tires…the light weight also helped there. The brake pedal had the typical early-hybrid twitchiness, since the regenerative-braking did most of the work. Instrumentation was (mostly) a jumble of video-patterns/stick-graphs/and hybrid-functions instead of the usual analog needle-gauges. Some sources list the original Insight as a Parallel-Hybrid, but I disagree. From what I remember (and from its powertrain manners), it was a Series-Hybrid, where the IMA electric motor was simply connected to the back of the gas engine, and serves as its starter and torque-boost when needed…such as on the engine start/stop system at idle. True Parallel-Hybrids (such as the Toyotas) allowed operation of either the gas or electric power plant independent of the other one. The wheezy little gas engine would shut off at idle, then restart with a jerk when you took your foot off the brake….I learned to keep some distance from the car ahead of me, at idle, just in case it jerked a little more than I was expecting. In short, yes, this was an amazingly (for the time) gas-frugal vehicle. To say anything else would not be a realistic comment, but, unfortunately, it required a LOT of compromises, lack of comfort, and, lack of performance. It was clearly not the car for the vast majority of the American motoring public, particularly guys my size, and he sales figures bore that out.
Also helping to dampen the sales-numbers of the First-Generation Insight was the introduction of the aforementioned Toyota Prius in August of that year. The Fist-Generation Prius, though not a big comfy or roomy sedan by any means, was, far more so than the Insight, a vehicle that was actually usable for a number of Americans…and its own sales-numbers proved it. It was not quite as gas-frugal as the Insight…nor would one expect it to be, from its larger/heavier/more comprehensive four-door design….but a lot of people liked it in spite of its quirky dash and controls. It was an instant hit, and went on to become the Media-Poster-Child of Environmentalists, Hollywood celebrities, Schoolteachers/Professors, and, in general, those who wanted a car that was not a conventional car….or who disliked conventional automobiles.
So, the Insight never became much of a sales-success, and, today, still isn’t a success even with its much larger Third-Generation four-door version….although the present four-door person, like the Prius, is a vehicle that actually offers some versatility and is usable for small families. And, although (except for its first eight months in 2000) it always did play second-fiddle to the Prius in sales-numbers, automotive history cannot take away the fact that, like it or not, as far as American-market hybrids go, it was the first.
And, as Always, Happy Car-Memories.
MM
__________________
DRIVING IS BELIEVING
IN A NUTSHELL: The first American-Market Gas/Electric Hybrid…and, in some ways, the most humble.
In today’s rapidly-electrifying automotive landscape, which brings us more gas/electric hybrids and pure-battery-electric vehicles to the market each year, it is difficult to imagine that, a scant 20 years so ago or so, the idea of an actual production vehicle with anything other than a gasoline or diesel-powered internal-combustion engine was about as foreign to the average American mind as an honest politician. True, GM, mostly on a lease-basis, had introduced the battery/electric Impact to a limited market in the Southwest, were the (usually) good weather limited the drain on the vehicle’s battery. There are a few other pure-electric vehicles, usually very small and quirky, like the one-person Corbin Sparrow….wth even smaller sales/lease-numbers. A few manufacturers offered natural-gas/propane-powered vehicles, E85 or ethanol-powered vehicles where those fuels were readily available, and fuel-cell/hydrogen vehicle technology was in its infancy. However, none of these alternate-fuel vehicles, despite some Government contracts for them at the time, ever made any real inroads on the American market.
Very slowly, however, that began to change in the year 2000, the dawning of a new century……and of a new automotive century. Honda, who had been a very innovative manufacturer in the past with new engine technology like the CVCC (Controlled-Vortex-Combustion), VTEC (Variable-Valve-Timing), and multiple-vales-per-cylinder, often derived from well-known Formula-1 efforts, added a new first, that year, with the first mass-production gas/electric hybrid vehicle available in the U.S., although it had previously been introduced to its Japanese home-market. In January 2000, the first of the Honda Insights started reaching American dealerships. Toyota was also working on plans to introduce its first hybrid Prius model here to the U.S., but the first Priuses would not arrive until almost eight months later, in August of 2000.
At first, the new Insights came in very slowly, trickling in at a snail’s pace. I had the privilege of being one of the first people in the D.C. area who was not an automotive journalist to sample an Insight, at least in part because an ex-Toyota salesperson I had known for years had jumped-ship and was now working for the Honda dealership right across street at Tysons’ Corner, VA. (We had bought my late Mom’s 1994 Corolla wagon from him). He gave me a buzz and let me know that a silver Insight was on the way….so I was there at the dealership when it came in. They did a quick unload, processing, slapped a (legal) Virginia Inspection sticker on the windshield so it could be test-driven, and the rest was up to me.
Before I had even done the exterior-review or gotten in, I had known, right from the start, from the previous images and advance-articles on this car, that some significant compromises had been made on it in the name of Stretch-Your-Gas-Dollar-to-the-Limit fuel-economy and ultra-low-emissions….even more so than with Toyota’s upcoming Prius. Just how many compromises, though, were evident from its design. It appeared to be related to the former 2-seat Honda CRX’s tiny platform, but in a much more quirky manner. Large, odd-looking flaring-skirts covered both rear fenders….which presumably smoothed out the aerodynamics a little. Those skirts extended into the huge rear bumper and bulged out the back of the car like a Southern Sheriff’s Beer-Gut. The large, heavy battery-pack (they were not as compact or efficient back then as they were now) took up so much room behind the 2 seats that, together with the extremely-raked rear roofline (again, for aerodynamics and mileage) there wasn’t much room for anything in the cargo area that wasn’t small, low, and flat, like maybe your briefcase lying on its side. Like a small sports-car, it sat about an inch off the ground with its lower-body fairings (again, for aerodynamics)…so getting in and out of it, although not as difficult as with the Mazda Miata or Lotus Elise, was somewhat of an exercise in stooping/lifting and and/or turning your body into a Bachmann Pretzel. Under the small/non-insulated hood, the tiny 1.0L non-turbo three (which makes even the small 1.3L turbo-three in my Buick Encore GX look large) and the 13 HP/10KW IMA (Integrated-Motor-Assist) electric motor took up virtually all of what space there was available. The thin bodywork, doors, and glass lacked even rudimentary insulation……curb weight had been paired to the bone, more or less Lotus-style, in the search for maximum fuel-economy…which, of course, it delivered in spades, with real-world gas-mileage into the 60s, or even better in some circumstances. A look at the specs showed that only 350 lbs. of weight could be carried….that’s the weight of cargo AND passengers combined, so, for all intents and purposes, for a guy my size, it was a one-person car and a modest amount of my luggage( what would fit, that is)…weight-wise, a salesperson couldn’t even travel with me, as he a was also a good-sized guy like me. A quick look at the components underneath the car (what you could actually see, at least) showed minimal brakes/suspension/steering parts….again, weight-savers, and the fact that hybrid vehicles often don’t need strong brakes because of their regenerative-braking-systems, where the coasting-drag on the motors slows the vehicle down and recharges the battery. In short, From what I remember, three or four colors were offered….black, silver, red, and a Neon-shade of yellowish/grass-green, (possibly white, but I don’t specifically remember it). In general, I liked the green the best. IMO, this was more of a toy (although, for the time, a rather sophisticated one mechanically) than what I would all a true automobile for American-sized people.
And, compared to most traditional gas-vehicles of the time, it also drove like a toy. First-Generation Insights had a choice of a 5-speed manual or a CVT. I don’t totally recall which one my test-car had, but I think it was the 5-speed. Road/tire-noise, with the lack of insulation, came through into the cabin like a drum. Even small-to-moderate bumps with the lightweight suspension upset the car noticeably….some Hondas of that period were well-known for a lack of suspension-travel to absorb bumps. Steering/handling response was quite good considering the narrow economy-oriented tires…the light weight also helped there. The brake pedal had the typical early-hybrid twitchiness, since the regenerative-braking did most of the work. Instrumentation was (mostly) a jumble of video-patterns/stick-graphs/and hybrid-functions instead of the usual analog needle-gauges. Some sources list the original Insight as a Parallel-Hybrid, but I disagree. From what I remember (and from its powertrain manners), it was a Series-Hybrid, where the IMA electric motor was simply connected to the back of the gas engine, and serves as its starter and torque-boost when needed…such as on the engine start/stop system at idle. True Parallel-Hybrids (such as the Toyotas) allowed operation of either the gas or electric power plant independent of the other one. The wheezy little gas engine would shut off at idle, then restart with a jerk when you took your foot off the brake….I learned to keep some distance from the car ahead of me, at idle, just in case it jerked a little more than I was expecting. In short, yes, this was an amazingly (for the time) gas-frugal vehicle. To say anything else would not be a realistic comment, but, unfortunately, it required a LOT of compromises, lack of comfort, and, lack of performance. It was clearly not the car for the vast majority of the American motoring public, particularly guys my size, and he sales figures bore that out.
Also helping to dampen the sales-numbers of the First-Generation Insight was the introduction of the aforementioned Toyota Prius in August of that year. The Fist-Generation Prius, though not a big comfy or roomy sedan by any means, was, far more so than the Insight, a vehicle that was actually usable for a number of Americans…and its own sales-numbers proved it. It was not quite as gas-frugal as the Insight…nor would one expect it to be, from its larger/heavier/more comprehensive four-door design….but a lot of people liked it in spite of its quirky dash and controls. It was an instant hit, and went on to become the Media-Poster-Child of Environmentalists, Hollywood celebrities, Schoolteachers/Professors, and, in general, those who wanted a car that was not a conventional car….or who disliked conventional automobiles.
So, the Insight never became much of a sales-success, and, today, still isn’t a success even with its much larger Third-Generation four-door version….although the present four-door person, like the Prius, is a vehicle that actually offers some versatility and is usable for small families. And, although (except for its first eight months in 2000) it always did play second-fiddle to the Prius in sales-numbers, automotive history cannot take away the fact that, like it or not, as far as American-market hybrids go, it was the first.
And, as Always, Happy Car-Memories.
MM
__________________
DRIVING IS BELIEVING