http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do.../pageId=157582

Includes photos and video summary

 

Thanks, spinner.

A pretty fair and quite favorable acticle.

I hate that they still cling to this, though:
It really depends on the car chosen and the mlies driven, and if they are city or highway, and of course, the price of fuel. Some hybrids will likely NEVER "pencil out", but a few certainly can. To Edmunds credit, they tend to think that this hybrid hits the mark, and may "pencil out."


It looks comfy, I like the fold-down rear seats, and the instrumentation tweaking seems interesting.
I'm at least interested enough to think about a test-drive...

 

. . .pencil out. Hmm. Truth be told I didn't read the article, but it strikes me that buying a Hummer for whatever outrageous price they cost, tell me, how do they, "pencil out?"

As I reasoned it out, or justified my purchase of my '06 Prius, I was getting one of the best engineered cars on the road, a car that may well outlast me, had a great sound system, a nav system, an advanced electronics system Plus, PLUS it got over 45 mpg. Besides, it also got me into the car pool lanes in California. Doesn't, "pencil out"? Some guy living in the city, drives 30 - 50 miles/day buys a full size pickup. Doesn't haul squat. Gets 10 mpg, pays almost as much as I did. Does that, "pencil out"?

Folks, you're buying transportation - a car - looses I don't know what percentage of value when you drive it off the lot -

You're (or we're) lucky it's not the stock of the company that built the Hummer. Talk about, "not penciling out."

 

Sorry, folks, but Edmunds is screwing around with you when you link to their articles from this forum. So, if you can't see the article then don't follow the above link to Edmunds. Instead, open another browser window and navigate to edmunds.com. In the mid-right of the screen there will be an "Edmunds InsideLine" section. Click on the "More News" link. On the following page, use the search field near the top and enter "2010 Honda Insight". The resulting list of articles should have what you want to see at the top.

 

I just put gas in my Prius. Out here, in sunny (literally - temp in the low 80's) I paid 1.95/g.

I think when I bought it, gas was probably down around maybe 1.25 +-. Buying in Jan. is a good time to buy our kinda cars because gas usually has bottomed out.

Anyway, since I've owned it, I've seen gas run up to over 4.00/g - and back down to 1.65. If I were a betting man I'd say by Sep. it will be over 2, and maybe 3.00/g.

If you're looking for a car that's going to maximize your gas mileage under a range of conditions, the decision is easy because there's not a whole lot of them out there that get over 45 mpg.

So, read Edmunds, but for the straight scoop I'd use Consumer Reports. Your not going to loose your money on any car which will get you over 45 mpg.

 

I thought that checking to see if a car "pencils out" was unique to a hybrid vehicle that had an ICE only counterpart. For example, a hybrid HCHII would be compared to the virtually identical Honda Civic. The question could then be asked; Why pay XXXX more for a car that just improves gas mileage by XX mpg? I could see this being a valid factor in a decision on purchasing the hybrid or not. It doesn't make any sense to me to ask if a Hummer or a full size pickup "pencils out" or not.

 

Aye! Good point. However there does seem to be some of this sort of thing for all the hybrids, and not just by Edmunds. I think some people do that sort of calculation (when they aren't buying a car for its color, horsepower, or sound system).

In other words, is this going to be worth the money? Not a pencil and paper question, but more intelligent than any of the above.

Seeing the price of gas in El Centro CA. this weekend (1.99-2.20/g), the answer is increasingly, yes.

OK. Off topic.

 

My 2c:

The new Insight looks sharp, I like the shape a lot. As potentially the least expensive hybrid the new Insight will be a good value. Being a larger car the new Insight will not be limited to the small niche market the old Insight was stuck with.

That said, the MPG numbers are just a hair south of where they need to be. The 2010 Insight is bested by the old Insight*, the new Prius, the current Prius, and even by the current Honda Civic Hybrid!

Hopefully the new Insight will have enough value going for it that it will appeal to enough people that it will sell well. For me personally the new Insight is a bit of a disappointment.

*It is understandable that the new Insight can't match the old Insight since the cars are not in the same size class at all.