2010 prius vs 2010 insight video

A hybrid mechanic told me today that he prefers the insight over the prius. He said the insight mainly uses a gas motor with electric backup and the prius uses an electric motor with gas backup. He said this means that the $3,000 battery in the prius will need to be replaced more that the battery in the Honda. Moreover, he said the wheel base on the Honda is wider than the prius so the Honda is a safer vehicle.

Do you agree?

 

I disagree. Here are the facts.

The Prius has a bigger battery pack (more than 2x) so that it can run on the electricity more often. The Insight battery can store 575 Wh but the Prius has 1,310 Wh of energy.

The Prius has the second electric motor to generate electricity so it doesn't have to use the battery (Insight only has one electric motor).

The life of the battery pack is longer if you keep the charge at optimal level. Since Prius has the 2nd motor, it can recharge the battery any time.

Toyota lowered the price of the Prius battery pack to $2,299. I have not seen Honda lowering it's price. Remember, Toyota owns battery manufacturer (Sanyo) that the Insight uses.

Comparison between Prius / Insight:

Wheelbase (in): 106.3 / 100.4
Track Front (in): 60.0 / 58.7
Track Rear (in): 59.8 / 58.1
Tire Width (mm): 195 or 215 / 175

Prius has wider and longer wheel dimensions as well as wider tires.

 

Thanks,

I took screen snapshots of both when the presenter was sitting the driver seat; resized so the nose and ear were the same size; and then compared one above the other and then left and right. Within limits of ad hoc photography, this allows comparison of the horizontal as well as vertical spacing of the driver.

PRIUS - has a much roomer cabin without the small car squeeze. Everything from the steering to the window are further from the driver. The Prius steering wheel appears to be closer to the dash than the Insight steering wheel. Along with the large area of the upper dash to the window, it just looks larger inside, more like a comfie chair.

INSIGHT - gosh that is a small space for the driver. This could have been seat adjustment but the snapshots had that small car appearance ... the driver curl. Curiously, the shifter seems to be a longer reach compared to the Prius (could have been camera parallex). The instruments have an 'in your face' presence.

On a long trip, I would want the roomier Prius so I could shift my seat position. The smaller Insight has a place to sit but not many options for moving around or shifting. I could see a lot of streching after getting out of an Insight at a rest stop and a feeling of confinement when having to get back in. ... Of course some folks like that.

Although this could have been seat adjustment, the Prius driver is sitting closer to the door support, a permanent part of the frame. I recently saw a car that had gone sideways into a power pole. The cabin door was badly compromised but the door frame showed strength. In an accident, I would prefer to have a solid part of the body protecting my body than the door ... but that might be just me.

Bob Wilson

 

No its not just you
Don't forget those 6x SRS airbags + VSC as standard feature.

On hindsight, perhaps the media is just stretching our imagination a bit this time when comparing apples to oranges.

 

Very interesting. As much as people here may hate it, it's inevitable that people compare the 2010 Prius to the 2010 Insight. Autocar in the UK compared the 2010 Insight to the current Gen 2 Prius a few weeks ago and said that the current Prius is a much more sophisticated, roomy car that got significantly better fuel economy around the urban environment they were testing in (East London). They looked forward to re-testing against a 3rd Gen, which presumably will come around May / June time as the 3rd Gen Prius isnt launched here until the summer.Presumably the rest of the video will be released in just under 2 weeks time when the US media embargo ends.

 

Do Honda dealers have Hybrid Mechanics? Wouldn't have thought they had the volume.

Anyway the "hybrid mechanic" got it wrong on every count, every number.

Remember, out of the 2 cars, only the Prius is a Toyota.

 

That's nothing. Think of how crazy it was back in 2000, when everyone was comparing the tiny 2-seat manual Insight to the 5-seat automatic Prius.
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The superiority of HSD wasn't clear back then. It took 10 years to have similar shaped (not size) four doors cars to compare IMA to HSD. It should now be clear why the Prius with HSD outsold the Civic hybrid with IMA by 4:1.

 

This is a very simplistic comment that mostly highlights the limited knowledge of the mechanic making the comment. It is wrong in so many ways that I don't feel inclined to list them point by point. Instead let me offer that the Prius is a much more elegant design that replaces the mechanical complexity of the Honda system with electric motors and control software. While harder to design in the first place, the Toyota system is much more reliable and flexible.

Tom

 

It seemed that in the Insight, the driver looked a little cramped. Was that just the way the picture was taken?

 

Yes. I have picks from NAIAS this year with a guy 6'5 in the driver's seat. It was comfortable for him. He has an Insight I as his primary car now. I also have a pic of him in the cutaway back seat and his head is 3 to 4" above the roof.

 

Wow, the Insight is 450lbs lighter than the Prius? That's an amazing difference. The Insight is just physically smaller, I guess that's why people shouldn't compare the two.

 

They are two different classes of vehicle. If you'll check www.fueleconomy.gov you can find the definitions of the different vehicle classes. The smaller vehicle should weight less.

<GROAN>So is someone going to compare a Tahoe Hybrid to the Prius next? Ford Escape? Lexus 600h? <GAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!>

Bob Wilson

 

It has been confirmed that the Insight is built on a Fit platform. Yes, they are two different classes.

 

That's a trick of camera perspective. The camera is too low, and makes his head appear higher than the roof (which is cut away behind him).


I think everybody here agrees the two cars are in different classes. The Prius is generally a better car, but it costs more. I say you get what you pay for.

I'd be curious to see what the reactions to this thread would be on "InsightChat.com"

 

I doubt that he was a 'hybrid mechanic' with that information unless he worked for a Honda store. There are very few dedicated 'hybrid mechanics' outside of Honda and Toyota and Ford stores. Thus I'd take whatever he said with a HUGE dose of skepticism.

The real key to his misinformation is his statement to you that the Prius battery will have to be replaced at a cost of $3000. First there is no need to replace a Prius battery - EVER!! There is no schedule for replacing it. And now after 11 years on the road it appears very likely that the battery will outlast your ownership. That's not a joke or an exageration.

Realistically with normal driving you can expect the batteries to last well above 150,000 miles. 250,000 miles is certainly a reasonable estimate. That's 16+ yrs of driving 15,000 mi / yr.

 

Yes the Insight II is essentially a Honda Fit hatch with a $1500 IMA option. It's a level below the Civic Hybrid.

They key always has been the pricing.

Automakers are in business to make the most profit possible. Why would Honda price the Insight II beginning at $18500-ish if it were fantastically better than the HCH or the Prius G2? Are they in the business of giving away features and performance and room for free? Not at all. Vehicle makers speak to us the public via their pricing mechanisms.

They priced it at $18500-ish because it's essentially a $17000 vehicle with a $1500 hybrid option. What type of vehicle do you get for $17000 MSRP? A Honda Fit, a Yaris 5 Door hatch, a Versa.

 

This seems a bit biased to me... For one, according to Toyota's website:

Toyota Vehicles : All-New Third Generation Toyota Prius Raises the Bar for Hybrid Vehicles - Again / Toyota

the Prius battery is warranted for 10 years/150,000 miles.

The way the hybrid mechanic quote is worded above makes it sound like you'll be swapping out batteries every few years.