The articles I've seen about this say that Honda is concerned that with the retirement of the Insight they no longer have a visually distinctive Hybrid. They want a model that people can get the "Eco-Bling" exposure. The Prius is becoming a status symbol among the "Nouveau-Eco" crowd.
Did you know that the "Nouveau-Eco" types are actually hold "Green Speed Dating" meetings?? They recently held one in LA and you'd be amazed at the number of non-hybrid SUV's that showed up. One person, an aviation engineer showed up on his bicycle, all the rest drove less than green ICE gas guzzlers.
