Sigh... resorting to personal attacks and politics. I'm not even registered to vote as I'm pretty jaded by what both parties have to say, lobbyists, special interests, making promises that they can't keep, etc. No, I'm not on any meds. I think one should be more scared of misinformed voters.

As I said, it's a pet peeve of mine when people post unsubstantiated assertions, misleading innuendo and misinformation then pass it off as fact.

I saw that article too (even before you posted it) and shrugged esp. at the strangeness of the entries in general. The Insight is falling well short of Honda projections in US sales and accounted for only 17,530 of the 969,638 vehicles they sold YTD in the US. Big deal. It only seems to have cannibalized HCH sales.

17,530 is not even a month's worth of Accord sales. To put it another way, the 1,739 Insights sold in the US last month is ~2.2 days of Accord sales or 3.8 days of Prius sales.

By strange, for example, their mention of the Nissan Maxima (I used to own an 02) is a head scratcher. Per http://www.prnewswire.com/news-relea...-68891887.html, why didn't they put the Rogue or the 350Z/370Z on the list?

 

Please leave politics and personal attacks aside. It's just a car. Chances are both of ithese companies will thrive over the next decade. Maybe in ten years, these cars will be considered gas hogs.

 

Fair enough. In the big scheme of things it really doesn't matter which vehicle is better. The more important issue is hopefully this trend of buying hybrids is the way of the future.

 

Hi there,
I bought an insight II a few weeks ago. I am in awe that everyone here seems to get such fantastic milege with their insights-- the best mpg I have had so far is 40.1mpg, gulp. I found out my tires were under inflated, now have them at 33lbs so maybe I'll get higher mpg. I drive 80 miles daily, drive conservatively, and used to get 34mpg on my 05 toyota corolla LE. any advice for a newbie?

 

LL:

I've had my Insight since the end of April and I've averaged around 53MPG overall. I've been driving a hybrid for 7 years now. My first was an '03 Civic Hybrid. There is a ton of information here and at other sites about specific techniques used to maximize MPG's, I thought I would come at it from a different (maybe easier) direction.

When I first got the Civic hybrids were still pretty new and there wasn't a lot of info online yet so I had to pretty much teach myself. The Civic Hybrid didn't have a multi-information display or green/blue light show, all I had was my trusty instantaneous mileage slider gauge:



Of course it's at zero now but when I'm moving I simply drive in such a way as to keep that slider as far to the right as possible while driving the car as normally as possible. It was the first display I looked for the first time I got in the new Insight:



I think if you simply drive in such a way that you keep that slider as far to the right as possible, while driving as normally as possible, you will soon learn the techniques needed to get 50+ MPG's*. Most of it really does involve just slowing down.

Good luck and be careful. Don't pay so much attention to the MID that you don't see that car that just stopped in front of you!

* In moderate weather. I'm not sure where you're at, but of course mileage will drop substantially on any vehicle in the Northern US Winters. Also, I run my tires at close to max sidewall pressure (44PSI for the OEM Dunlop SP31 A/S). It makes for a harsher ride but I'm used to it and it really helps the mileage.

 

Are you in "econ" mode? I drive in this mode all of the time. I usually accelerate slow and smooth to 26 mph, then I engage the cruise control. Once the cruise is set, I accelerate and decelerate further by using the cruise buttons.
I normally set a max speed of 58-60 MPH.

 

I would think that would be the most logical reason for getting low gas mileage. I average 48-49 and admit I could drive slower... Hard to let the old habits die.

 

My post is not an anti Honda post. My original Honda was a 1996 Passport, then a 1998 Civic that we just sold. The 98 Civic averaged 28 mpg in town and up to 35 on the highway. I am a very conservative driver in town but do press the pedal from point A to B on the highway. (I like to get to the destination quickly.)

I am most interested in mpg from full tank to empty tank and not the short bursts that the graphic display shows. It is my feeling that this visual display is nothing more than eye candy as it doesn't represent the overall full to empty mpg. I do get bursts between the 50 to 80, but the overall Insight mpg is sadly not there.



We considered only two vehicles this spring and decided to put in the first Sioux Falls, SD order the first week in February. The other model was a 2009 Civic. The ultimate decision was to get the best gas mileage, which was the Insight.

Below are the records I have kept regarding the mpg I have achieved with different blends of fuel and eco assist. The in town driving patterns are virtually the same since receiving the Insight in late April. I apologize for the formatting...

Date-Travel-Gallons-Miles-MPG-ECON-Octane-Cruise-Auto Temp

5/9/2009-In Town Driving Sioux Falls-9.21-341-37-YES-89-70
6/2/2009-In Town Driving Sioux Falls-9-339-37.6-YES-87-70
6/24/2009-In Town Driving Sioux Falls-9.169-343.8-37.495-NO-87-70
7/5/2009-In Town Driving Sioux Falls-4.878-188.3-38.6-YES-89-70
7/6/2009-Omaha-9.402-374.2-39.8-YES-89-78/82-70
7/26/2009-In Town Driving Sioux Falls-9.274-375.7-40.511-YES-89-70
8/3/2009-Omaha-9.604-376.7-39.22-YES-89-78/82-70
8/18/2009-In Town Driving Sioux Falls-9.087-369.9-40.706-YES-89-70
9/6/2009-In Town Driving Sioux Falls-9.304-355-38.155-YES-89-70
9/29/2009-In Town Driving Sioux Falls-9.296-350-37.65-YES-89-70
10/16/2009-In Town Driving Sioux Falls-8.904-314.5-35.32-YES-89-70
11/6/2009-In Town Driving Sioux Falls-9.214-312.4-33.9-YES-89-70
11/30/2009-In Town Driving Sioux Falls-9.342-340.8-36.48-YES-87-70

We are considering trading the Insight (4700 miles) for a 2010 Civic EX with leather...as we were extremely happy with our 1998 Civic EX.

 

Randy:

The picture in your post is mine and it actually does represent a single tank. The computed mileage was 53.6 MPG over 514.4 miles.

There are tons of posts here and at insightcentral.net that should help you increase your mileage.

One thing I have found is that the Insight does at lot better on 55 MPH roads. If I do have to hop on the interstate I keep it at the speed limit (65MPH) and try to find a truck to draft behind.

Good luck, the Insight is a good little car and if you try some of the techniques listed here and other places you should be able to get that mileage higher.

 

Sorry, mrkcohen, yes this is your image. I should have edited out everything but the mpg over the top of the 0 | 50 | 100 area as that was the section I was referring to.

I have seen many, many posts in which people have stated they are getting 50+, but I still speculate that most of these are bursts and not a from full tank to empty tank. I did briefly look at insightcentral.net for increased mileage, but most of this appears to be related to longer highway trips and not in town driving. I would expect that ECON Assist should take care of the mpg without intervention.

All of my driving is in town, which apparently will never result in good mpg. Like I originally stated, I was getting 28 mpg with a 1998 Civic EX. The 2010 Insight, for me, is averaging 37 mpg with the same type of driving. 9 mpg better with a vehicle 11 years newer...not good. (I have had the same job for the last 12 years resulting in the same driving habits.)

Here is a better breakdown of the original item I posted. All ECON Assist and in town driving with exception of item with * at end. I never broke 40 mpg on the highway but did twice in town driving.

9.21 gallons, 341 miles, mpg=37
9 gallons, 339 miles, mpg=37.6
9.169 gallons, 343.8 miles, mpg=37.495 *No ECON Assist
4.878 gallons, 188.3 miles, mpg=38.6
9.402 gallons, 374.2 miles, mpg=39.8 *Highway
9.274 gallons, 375.7 miles, mpg=40.511
9.604 gallons, 376.7 miles, mpg=39.22 *Highway
9.087 gallons, 369.9 miles, mpg=40.706
9.304 gallons, 355 miles, mpg=38.155
9.296 gallons, 350 miles, mpg=37.65
8.904 gallons, 314.5 miles, mpg=35.32
9.214 gallons, 312.4 miles, mpg=33.9
9.342 gallons, 340.8 miles, mpg=36.48