Showing blog posts for Green

It’s all very clever, and works well. Driving like the lead-foot I am gave fuel consumption of 53mpg, but when I followed all the coaching green lights and stuck to eco-mode, I managed 61mpg, which is just 0.4mpg short of what Honda quote for the top spec ES-T model tested. Honda’s IMA system is slightly different from that on other hybrids like the Toyota Prius, in that it can never be disconnected from the crank. This reduces production costs and has the upshot of making the car never run totally silently, handy for inattentive pedestrians! It can run in electric only mode, too, but the pistons will still move.

The Insight ES-T emits 105g/km of CO₂ per km, which is good but not fantastic. Many of you will ask why you would choose a petrol-electric hybrid over an eco-diesel, and it’s a good question. Diesel engines do tend to emit less CO₂, which is good for your wallet when it comes to buying the tax disc, but petrol engines emit less NOx and particulates than diesels. Petrol is also cheaper at the pumps. It’s all something to consider when buying a new car, and the biggest consideration for a hybrid buyer is likely to be ‘which is better for the environment?’ not ‘which emits the least CO₂?’

In terms of practicality, the Insight is pretty good. The boot is a good size, and there is plenty of space in the cabin, with ample rear legroom, though the aerodynamic roofline means rear headroom isn’t brilliant. There’s plenty of tech, at least on the ES-T model, including sat-nav, voice recognition that actually works, electric windows, air conditioning, auto-wipers, auto-headlights and iPod connectivity. It’s just a shame that the plastics aren’t of the best quality. The doors also feel light, and they close with a clank rather than a reassuring thud. It makes sense in context, given the car needs to be lightweight, but it’s not particularly appealing, especially when contrasted against the space-age styling.

On the road, the Insight performs quite well. The chassis is tauter and stiffer than I expected, so road holding is good. Undulations in the road surface are dealt with well, but the car crashes over potholes. The CVT gearbox is slower to react than other transmission systems, which is fine in town driving and on the motorway, but slightly annoying on roads with elevation and lots of bends. Luckily there is an ‘S’ setting on the gearbox, which allows you full control over 7 pre-set gear ratios on the paddle shifters. This makes country lanes not only easier to drive on, but actually quite fun. There’s not much power, but this is a hybrid, not a supercar.

Overall I was impressed with the Insight, particularly in the way it coached a driver into the ways of greenness. There is, however, a hybrid I would prefer. But Honda needn’t worry, it’s their very own CR-Z...

Alas, it wasn’t to last. As fun though it may be to hoon a hybrid, it’s improper, a bit like putting custard on a roast. No, no, it was soon back to ‘D,’ for lazy motorway cruising. In fact, the Insight ran around for about a mile on battery alone on a slight downward slope. Perhaps there was a tailwind, but no matter, it cranked up my average MPG to around 61, which is pretty much bang on the quoted figure of 61.4mpg for the ES-T model tested.

Other highlights have been the voice recognition, because it can recognise my mumbling, incoherent attempts at speech, and the automatic wipers, which seem to select exactly the right setting for the level of rain that’s dripping, or indeed cascading, from the sky. There are some slight irritations though; the sat-nav is pretty difficult to shut up once you’ve told it to take you somewhere, which would be OK if you actually wanted to go to said place, and weren’t just playing around. Secondly, while the quality of the audio is rather good, the radio can’t find stations very often, and seems to endlessly seek before coming back to Radio 4. Which is rubbish.

Minor niggles though, in what has been, so far, a splendid car that has achieved exactly what it set out to do; be eco and green. And if it can make me care about my MPG, then it’s doing something right. Full review next week!

So far I’ve spent a day with Honda’s green machine, and it’s strange what it’s done to me. You see, it makes me drive in a completely different way, because it comes fitted with what I can only call an ‘eco-coach.’ I imagine it with a whistle, yelling at me to ‘back off that throttle!’ while rocky montage music plays in the background.

Surrounding the high tech digital speedo is a coloured halo which glows blue if you’re driving normally, and green if you’re being gentle with the juice pedal. You wouldn’t think that’d make any difference, but it does. I found myself yelling “GREEN! GREEN!” all the time, and driving at 40 instead of 60. I also started to hate going up hills because it ruined all of my hard work.

Another smarty pants feature is the little digital garden that grows (or dies) in the centre of the dash. After a successful ‘green’ journey, a leaf will be added to one of your plants. Drive badly though, and a leaf will be removed... I find myself wishing, fingers crossed, that I’ll get a leaf when I take out the key, and perhaps one day that I’ll have a flower too! It’s really, really stupid, and I feel like a total idiot, but I can’t help it, and it’s having the effect I’m sure it was designed to have; average fuel consumption over the day was 55mpg, which is very respectable.

Stay tuned for more ‘impressions’ blogs, and a full review in a week’s time!