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Review: 2010 Honda Insight EX, familiarity breeds discontent

First impressions can be problematic, even more so when reviewing a vehicle. When the media gets its first shot at a new offering, the automaker typically invites journalists to a location of its choosing to drive under conditions that show the car in its best light. Such was the case with the 2010 Honda Insight. After our First Drive, we came away with the impression that Honda's hot new hybrid was an engaging alternative to the Toyota Prius, but we quickly came to realize the Insight's limitations and flaws after a week behind the wheel on our home turf. Get our real-world impressions ... Read More

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    Honda Insight
    Report: Honda could halve its US lineup without crimping its sales much [w/video]
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    Taking a detailed look at the Honda lineup in the US, it isn't hard to see the strength of some models and the weaknesses of others. A recent report on Autoline Daily points out that its five core models – the Accord, Civic, CR-V, Odyssey and Pilot – make up a full 93 percent of Honda's sales in the US. Through April, Honda has sold 419,798 ...

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    Honda Insight, Fit Hybrids coming to China
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    And then there will be three – hybrids, that is. Honda, which started selling its CR-Z hybrid in China in July, is planning to debut two additional hybrid models there in the near future. Honda presented its plans at the China International Automobile Exhibition, saying it will soon start selling the Insight and the Fit Hybrid in Chinga. The ...

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    Honda sells millionth hybrid 13 years after introducing Insight
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    Remember when selling 100,000 hybrids was something to tout? Today, Honda comes calling with the news that, since putting its first-gen Insight on sale in 1999, the company has sold more than a million hybrids around the world. Clearly, the company's gas-electric sales pace is quickening – it took Honda until 2005 to sell its first 100,000. At the ...

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    Is the Nissan Leaf the second coming of the Honda Insight?
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    Is this a backhanded compliment? After Nissan reported – again – that monthly sales of the first mass-produced U.S. electric vehicle continued to disappoint, our friends at Plug-in Cars realized something: the Nissan Leaf is kind of like the original Honda Insight. Introduced to the U.S. in late 2010, the Leaf might be falling out of favor ...

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    Report: Honda "losing money" on Japan-built cars like Fit, CR-Z and Insight
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    Automotive News reports Honda is currently limiting shipments of models like the Fit, CR-Z and Insight due to Japan's strong yen. The automaker admits it is currently losing money on every Japanese-built model it sells in the U.S. with the exchange rate currently at 80 yen per dollar. Honda is currently working to move more production to North America and ...

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    Honda bringing four new hybrids to China, including Acura NSX
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    Earlier this year, Honda unveiled a concept version of its Acura NSX at the Detroit Auto Show. Now, the Japanese automaker appears to be taking a speedy approach to hybrid sales in China similar to that mid-engined sports car. Honda is planning to launch at least four hybrids in China under both its namesake and Acura brands in an effort to double sales ...

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    Electric vehicles attacked with same criticisms as hybrids 10 years ago
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    Electric-drive vehicles like the Chevrolet Volt are getting hammered by a lot of critics for a lot of different reasons. What's interesting is that many of the public policy criticisms were also hurled at hybrid-electric vehicles a decade ago, signaling that EVs and plug-ins may follow a similar adoption path as hybrids. Motley Fool reports that groups ...

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    Honda Insight's the lone hybrid on Kelley's cheapest-to-own list
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    The Honda Insight was the only hybrid to make it onto Kelley Blue Book's list of new cars that will cost less than $30,000 to own during the first five years of ownership. The Insight, which has a base MSRP of $19,120, was joined by 15 other models, all of which are high fuel-economy gas models whose MSRPs range from $11,770 for the Nissan Versa to ...

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    Honda Insight
    Honda sells 800,000-hybrids 12 years after Insight debut
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    Honda Motor Co. sold its 800,000th hybrid-electric vehicle last month, about 12 years after the Japanese automaker sold its first. The company announced the milestone as it prepares to sell the first North American hybrid under its Acura luxury badge. Honda debuted hybrid sales with the first-generation Insight in late 1999. That model achieved fuel ...

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    New 2012 Insight improves fuel economy by 1 mpg
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    As part of the change from the 2010 to 2011 model years, the Honda Insight lost a few creature comforts but but also went down in price. For the 2012 change-over, the car underwent a slightly more important change: one more mile per gallon, no matter which drive cycle you're talking about. The Insight goes from 40/43/41 (city/highway/combined) miles per ...

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    Honda Insight
    Honda to launch Fit Hybrid, CR-Z, Insight in China in early 2012
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    Japan's Honda Motor is looking to hybridize China with a trio of gas-electrics in 2012. Word is Honda will launch its über-cheap subcompact Fit (Jazz) Hybrid and two dedicated hybrids – the Honda Insight and the CR-Z hatchback – in China next year. Mibe Toshihiro, executive director of Honda, reportedly unveiled this intel during a ...

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    Honda Insight
    To cut costs, Honda will manufacture batteries, electric motors for hybrids in China
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    Following in the footsteps of Toyota, Japanese automaker Honda will reportedly manufacture components, including batteries and electric motors, for some of its hybrid vehicles in China, starting in 2012. The production shift is meant to reduce the cost of Honda's hybrid vehicles sold in China and, hopefully, boost sales there, too. During a recent ...

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    Honda Insight
    Honda teases Insight Exclusive and Freed Spike hybrids
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    Over on its Japanese site, Honda is currently teasing three upcoming hybrids, including an exclusive Insight hatchback dubbed – are you ready for this? – Insight Exclusive. A formal announcement from Honda regarding the trio of hybrid is expected to come soon. In the meantime, here's a bit info we've gleaned from Green Carview's report: The ...

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    Honda Insight
    Hybrid vehicle sales slip in September 2011; Prius tops chart again *UPDATE
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    It's that time of month again. September 2011 sales in the U.S. have been tallied (see plug-in results here) and so we took a look at the good-old green standby, hybrid vehicles. With quake-related vehicle production issues more or less out of the picture, output of most hybrid vehicles is back on track, even if demand isn't. For September, Toyota Prius ...

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    Honda Insight
    Frankfurt: 2012 Honda Insight gets nicer
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    The Honda Insight is a hatchback with its spirit in the right place, but everything else about it has practically no spirit at all. Honda has finally seen to its lackluster hybrid by tweaking nearly everything about it. Its face has been given blue eyes courtesy of tinted headlight covers, and the grille and front spoiler benefit from a welcome ...

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    Honda reveals Europe's slightly revised 2012 Insight
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    For the new, slightly revised, European version of the 2012 Insight, Honda is focusing on making the hybrid slightly more fuel-efficient, perhaps with an eye to be more competitive with the Toyota Prius. Honda says the 2012 Insight spits out only 96 grams per kilometer of CO2, a five-gram drop compared to the outgoing 2011 version. At roughly 56.8 miles ...

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    Honda Insight
    Official: Honda details 2012 Insight refinements, MPG improvements ahead of Frankfurt
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    Honda is set to unveil a lightly revised version of the European Honda Insight at this year's Frankfurt Motor Show. This 2012 Insight will feature greater efficiency gleaned from substantial aerodynamic work (check out that new grille and front bumper), reduced engine friction, improvements to the CVT and the air-conditioning system. What does all of that ...

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    Honda Insight
    Hybrid vehicle sales steady in August; Prius crowned champ again *UPDATE
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    It's that time of month again. August 2011 sales in the U.S. have been tallied, including, of course, hybrid vehicles. Once again, it's worth at least a mention that quake-related vehicle production issues have more or less subsided, so output of most hybrids manufactured over in Japan is roughly back on track. This time 'round, Toyota Prius sales came ...

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    Consumer Reports 'chronicles decline in Honda's design competitiveness' [w/poll]
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    Consumer Reports created quite a stir on the Internets when it announced that it would no longer recommend the Honda Civic. The reason? The consumer advocacy institution cites issues such as the brakes, fit and finish and sporty handling all diminishing for the 2012 model year. In other words, the Civic isn't as good as the model it replaces. Now ...

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    OakTec's 100-mpg Honda Insight banned from Formula 1000 Rally Championship
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    Hit hard for being too dominant, Oaktec's fuel-sipping Honda Insight has been banned from the Formula 1000 Rally Championship. Developed exclusively for Formula 1000 rallying, Oaktec's tuned Insight returned 100 miles per gallon when pushed slowly and nearly 82 mpg when the pace quickened. Since Formula 1000 emphasizes both mileage and speed, the ...

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