Should we all thank Honda for the 2010 Prius prices???

Yeah, I was going back and forth between the Insight and the Prius for awhile now. Looks like I'll probably end up getting the Prius III w/ Nav. For $2,000 you might as well go for the bigger car with more features, better MPG, and more size..

 

The world economy should get a nice thank-you card in addition to a get-well card. I imagine that all car prices will be stable this year with so many acres of unsold cars gathering dust.

 

Motor Trend says Insight is Better

In the May issue of MOTOR TREND there is a comparison between the 2010 Prius and Insight models.

Their conclusion is that although the Prius is better appointed, they would vote for the Insight since MSRP is at least $3000 more.

Well, with the new pricing, that is not the case. The difference is closer to $1200.

So are we going to get a new appraisal from Motor Trend?

 

FWiW, there are scattered reports in insightcentral-dot-net of brand new Insights already being discounted $500-800 off MSRP.

I don't know if this is going to be prevalent, or whether it might be a couple dealers in trouble. The flip side is ... we don't know if Toyota dealers are going to do the same in the first 30 days of inventory, either.

If you look at the larger market, cars with stale sheet metal (no change from 2008 MY to 2009) are getting 20-30% knocked off sticker, through a range of dealer incentives and cashback. Many cars that are new as of last year are already 15-20% off sticker, like the Acura TL (we've been watching).

So, until we know the economy has bottomed, it is not unreasonable to anticipate substantially lower prices later this year. At least one owner who got a new TL when they were just out complained that, with 20% down and a 48-month payment plan, he still owes more than if he'd bought the car today.

 

The Insight is much better than the traditional gas idling, shift shocking, torque converter lagging, frictional brake wasting, and pollution generator on wheels.

However, a big HOWEVER.... We all should thank Honda for introducing the first eonobox hybrid. 2010 Insight is the first of it's kind. The kind that people thought Prius was.... a cheaply built, slow, small and unrefined... something comparable to the traditional econoboxes.

The base Insight came with steel wheels. Standard equipments are not up to the standard (Prius set it). It is not as refined, roomy, nor quiet. It does not come loaded with modern high-tech features. It can not be upgraded to plug-in because it was not designed to. Hey but more people can afford it because it is 6% cheaper ($1,200).

I question if the Insight will make hybrids more affordable to everyone (as Honda claimed) or will it it give the hybrids a bad name and ruin the iconic Prius image. I think the worse possible outcome is both of them becoming true....

 

Once June rolls around, I'm sure Honda will slash the price of the Insight, or offer low financing rates to steal some of the G3's thunder.

At this point, it seems foolish to opt for the Insight EX instead of the G3 Package II for almost the same price. Who knows what the market will be like a month from now, and if Toyota dealers will mark up the G3 or only offer expensive packages that most customers don't want or need. I have a feeling that some Toyota dealers will drive people to the Insight because of greed. I hope I'm wrong because the Prius Team has done such a fantastic job with the launch, and you can tell they truly care.

I think it's important to remember that many potential hybrid customers don't care if the HSD is superior to the IMA. They do care about MPG's, and so far the Insight is performing better than expected in that regard.

 

Dear Honda,

Thank you for building & selling the Insight II. Without competition there is only stagnation. I am sure that your vehicle encouraged Toyota to put a better Prius on the market earlier. It will be interesting to see if the original Insight's fuel economy can be matched by the new Prius.

JimN.

 

sure... but i think Prius is competing more with Camry's and Corolla's than Insights. Gen3 is going to make as big difference in the mainstream as did Gen2 (vs Gen1).

 

Not only matched but the 2010 Prius eCVT (50 MPG) has already passed the original CVT Insight's 47 MPG. The MPGs are the comparable 2008 numbers.

 

I agree. I'm curious how much of an improvement the econ mode will have if the A/C isn't in use. But then again I got 79.9 mpg (2.94 L/100km for the Canadians) on my drive in to work today. I may miss the fuel economy, but I'm sure I'll love the PIV - can't wait.

 

The EPA numbers are only a start. 2007's Tour to the Shore rally was won by Meredith's Insight at ~75mpg. 2008's was won by an Insight at ~125mpg. In 2007 I did beat an Insight because the driver didn't know how to drive it & he got lost.

 

For extreme MPG contests, vehicle weight and tire width become more than others. When comes to real-world driving speed and conditions, it is a different story. It will be interesting to see how 2010 Prius performs in that rally.