Finally!

We have some concrete pricing information. linky

It will be out March 24th (this month!).

Here are the trim levels:

LX : $19,800
EX : $21,300
EX w/ NAVI: $23,100

EPA: 40/43/41

If I really love this car, I may replace my 2 month old Fit with it!

 

big fat negative. I'd rather have a used Insight than a new one to tell you the truth

old - 70mpg

Still the best hybrid ever and it's 9 years old.

And you can fit a K20 in it if you wanted the ultimate sleeper

 

That would be nasty.

 

You just KNOW that there is going to be a hefty dealer markup. So all the hype about it being "affordable" goes out the window after the dealers get a hold of it.

The Prius starts at 22K. And it's at 48/45/46. If there's a markup on the Insight, it will just send people over to the Prius. Although those Prius packaged options are annoying and confusing.

 

I don't see how they can add a bunch of markup to the Insight in this economy.

My local Honda dealer has a bunch (I mean 4 or 5) Civic Hybrids sitting there. The Toyota dealer down the street has 10 Priuses sitting unsold.

There's lots of alternatives. And the Honda/Toyota dealers aren't able to get above MSRP for their unsold Hybrids!

And I believe there is a lot of advantage to the Insight:

• Better price than the Prius similary equipped
• More cargo room
• Honda's reliability is better than Toyota's
• Honda's hybrids (and non-hybrids) do better than their EPA ratings than Toyota's

 

actual mpg in ECON mode with the insight ends up in this 60-70mpg range. someone needs to drive an insight in ECON mode and compare it to a prius power-wise, etc.

the price on the insight is higher than i was expecting, but i can't afford it either way and i'm happy with my Fit so screw it.

 

I stopped by a local honda dealership today to check out the new Insight, and I can't say I'm too impressed. Up front they aren't too much different than the Fit, and in the back seats, there's even less legroom than the 09 Fit, and way less than my wife's Prius. I can't see any way in paying the 4K more for a fully loaded Insight compared to a fully loaded Fit. And if you're going the hybrid route, I would say it's much better to spend an extra couple of thousand and get a 2010 Prius, especially if it's for hauling around your kids. Plus there seems to be a lot more MPG potential in the Prius.

 

oh shit, it's out huh?!?! I'll need to stop by Honda and check it out

 

Well today I drove the 2009 Prius (package #4).

Car Dealers are desperate! An almost unheard of situation -- our locally largest Toyota dealer has very little customer traffic and a ton of new Priuses (~30!) sitting on their lot.

Today is a rainy, drizzly day. I walked in and asked to drive a Prius. I think the salesman was going to cry.

Right off the bat he told me Toyota has something like $2500 in discounts and incentives on the Prius (which makes me believe they have even more room to cut the price!).

The car itself:

• The center dash display is weird! I don't like the idea. Digital displays aren't bad, it's just the wrong location.
• Although the interior is upscale and heavy in quality of materials, it does have some quirky feel in terms of design & color choices.
• The Toyota accessories packaging is crazy! You have to go to package 5 to get NAVI! The lower package (#4 and down) is $24,900 and doesn't include NAVI or bluetooth, but has a backup camera, VSA and electronic controls for most car functions (HVAC, defrost, stereo)
• No telescoping wheel! That's odd. Just tilt so I could get my seat far enough away from the pedals, but my arms were outstretched too much.
• The steering and road feel is awful! It's easy to steer, but the feedback is soft and mushy. I can see that some people think this is "luxurious"
• The ICE's autostop and restart is NOT very smooth. Especially restart! It felt jerky and I definitely sensed the vibration at idle in what was otherwise a very smooth and quiet car.
• The re-gen braking has an odd feel. (Same as the Civic Hybrid) Not bad, I could get used to it.
• Visibility overall is good, but the split rear window is unusual
• Cargo space is good with the rear seats down. I didn't sit in the back, but it looks like good room in there

When I asked the salesman what the real-world mpg would be in the car, he said ~ 45 mpg.

Compared to the Fit, I like the Fit's handling, steering, road feel and power better. The Fit has more cargo space in back and I think it's a better-looking car.

The Civic Hybrid looks way cooler than the Prius, but has no cargo room to speak of and definitely less headroom. I like the Prius displays better than the Civic Hybrid (except for the fact they're centered). The HCH has better steering feel.

I will have to reserve my final judgment until I see and drive the new Insight in person. So far, the Fit seems like an even more impressive car in terms of likability compared to much more expensive hybrids.

In fuel economy, the Fit does very well compared to the Hybrids. I just averaged 39 mpg over the last 600 miles of daily driving. The Fit is much more fun to drive than a Prius.

So far this hybrid-shopping may just confirm my Fit purchase and prevent me from jumping to another car.

 

$4000 over the price of a Fit Sport equals 2000 gal of fuel at about 30mpg average equals 60,000 miles of driving. I'll take the Fit. I can replace the Fit battery for about $75.00. Seems like a no brainer to me.

Mike Holbrook
Meridian, ID

 

I was at Honda today getting my moms car serviced. Followed a new Insight in that was on a test drive. They arent too bad. I like the blue chrome housing headlights.
There was a lot of people looking at them.

 

I've heard that the electric motor will work below 60km/h for Prius.... that's how you can save gas....anything above that the gas motor will kick in.

who drive below 60km/h nowadays?

 

^^^ The problem w/ electric only mode is there's really no need for it, unless you can actually plug it in. Gotta get that power from somewhere. And the Insight and Civic Hybrid aren't designed to be plugged in btw.


Yea mholbrook38 if you run the #'s over a Fit it'll take a couple of years to recoup the "loss" but some ppl like me would rather have an Insight. I'm sure a Civic in all aspects is cheaper to own than an Accord, my boss still drives his Accord :) At first I thought the Insight wasn't worth it, I ran the #'s and junk when they released the pricing but I finally drove one and saw it in person and fell back in love w/ it. IMO the Insight looks better, check my sig.

Then you get the hybird system, CVT tranny w/ 7 speed paddle shifters, climate control, projectors, LED tail lights, digital spedo like the Civics, Stability Control (w/o a Navigation option) and a very in depth multifunction gauge.

Oy and again w/ the batteries lol. That's the first thing you hear w/ hybrids is ZOMG the battery will EXPLODE at 50k miles and will cost you 80 million dollars to replace it. It comes w/ a 8 year battery warranty and if that's not enough by then the battery will be dirt cheap. The battery when these things get old will be like replacing a CV joint or a fuel pump.

 

got to do a pdi on a few today at work..seems like a straight car and best looking hybrid IMHO. the other thing ppl overlook tho is he cost to maintain these things guys, its seriously twice as much for an oil change or any other service. the have 2 spark plugs per cylinder too so theyll charge as much as a v8 for those. its lil things here and there that add up..

 

Well the oil changes I suppose will last at least 6-7k miles and will only cost more if you opt for the "Green" oil which I wont. Also the crankcase only takes 4 quarts so if your like me you'll actual save a couple bucks doing it yourself.

Also I didn't know they had 2 plugs per cylinder. Still 8 premium plugs and wires at the local auto store couldn't be more than 75 bucks. And the plugs are so easy to reach and to change my mom could prob do a tune up on it in under 30 mins.

Then add in the fact that the braking is assisted by the regenerative braking so in theory the brakes should last you longer. I dont see any added $$$ to change the brakes. Hell the backs on the EX are still drums lol.

For me at least I wont be replacing the low rolling resistance tires when they wear out. I'll prob slap some snow tires on the stock 15" rims and make them my dedicated winter set and get some clean 16"-17" rims.



But in the end I suppose if you do all the stuff through the dealer it will cost more to maintain than a Fit but if you do it like me the Insight will cost slightly less in maintenance. :p

 

I only got to see it from the outside.

My dealer had a Polished Metal Metallic LX on the lot.

It's a pretty car. Very substantial-looking. The front reminds me of an Accord from a distance. The car is almost as short as a Fit.

I couldn't see the inside too well. But overall, car looks very classy and grown-up.

Not right away, but I'd like to get it before this year is out. I would go for an EX w/ NAVI in Polished Metal. ;-)