Prius II vs. Insight Gen II EX

good luck in your decision making, whichever you choose,all the best!

 

Does the insight have a push start button ? I love that feature. Reading some of the reviews it seems like the insight is an all around cheaper version of the prius. The handling, road noise, and overall vehicle is ok at best. Which would make sense due to the price differences.

 

Since the OP posted in the Gen III 2010 Prius forum, I'm assuming he's looking at a new 2010 (Gen 3) Prius II (Toyota Vehicles : Toyota Announces Prices for 2010 Prius / Toyota) and NOT a used 2nd gen Prius.

All along, I kept thinking you had a 2010 Prius II, but I guess not.

OP, can confirm my assumption? (to reduce confusion)

 

I too compaired the two cars fairly heavily. Looking at the numbers alone, the price difference seems to put the favor on the insight. But after driving the two, the difference in price was far overcome by the prius. One big disappointment that I had in the honda was the fact that I couldn't drive the car on battery alone. As soon as I lifted my foot off the brake at a stop sign, the gasoline engine kicked on without skipping a beat. Before I drove the insight, I thought that the tach with the digital speedometer was pretty cool looking. But behind the wheel, I found that the steering wheel would get in the way of my view of the speedometer. Being a long time honda fan, the new insight was a huge disappointment.

 

New poster here. We leased a new Prius ll about 6 weeks ago for my wife. We both love it. So much so that we had decided to get a second one for me. I saw the ads for the Insight and felt it was worth a look. I thought my experience with research and visits to Honda dealer were worth a post.

The DEAL - Honda’s 0-0-0-0 at $240/mth lease deal on the Insight LX caught my eye. Did a lot of online research and determined the LX was pretty short on equipment. Lacked a lot of things standard on the Prius ll such as stability control, cruise control, rear disc brakes, vanity mirrors, SmartKey, and a number of other creature comforts.

I read a number of online reviews which were favorable to the Insight. Several actually rated it above the Prius. I noticed many of these were weighted heavily by the price difference. Started researching pricing and found that, when comparably equipped, there was very little difference in list price. Went back to the reviews and found they were done before 2010 pricing was set for either the Prius or the Insight.

So, maybe the price difference wasn’t all that great. And the Insight gas mileage was obviously not as good the Prius. However, that great lease deal was just too good to pass up. (After all, you can buy a lot of gas with the money you don’t have to pay up front!)

So, off I went to the Honda dealer on Sunday afternoon. Wasn’t hard to spot the row of Insights. And I just have to say, the Insight is a lot better looking car (IMHO). It has a noticeably shorter wheelbase and a lot lower roofline. This gives it a sleeker and more proportioned appearance.

After looking over the whole row I noticed they were all EX’s. Not an LX in the lot. Hmmmm??

Went home and looked online at dealer inventory in our area. All EX’s. Hmmmm?

Back to the dealership on Monday for a test drive in the EX. The hybrid systems in the Prius and Insight are very different. Does the Insight drive more like a conventional car? Well, yes and no. More on that later.

When you first sit in the Insight you immediately notice it isn’t quite as roomy as the Prius. You sit lower and the visibility isn’t quite as good as Prius but not bad. Insight dashboard is quite different but pretty easy to figure out. Main thing I noticed; the speedometer is elevated and my view was obstructed by the steering wheel. I tried several times and there was no way I could adjust the seat or steering wheel where I had a clear view. I’m pretty average at 5’10â€. Surely there’s something I missed.

My 6’ 1†son was with me and immediately commented that he didn’t have as much legroom in the front passenger seat as with our Prius. I later had him sit in the back seat. His head hit the roof. He has 1 ½†clearance in our Prius. There’s also much less leg room in the back. There was no way for him to sit comfortably in the Insight rear seat.

Test drive - To start her up you stick in the key and twist. (I miss the Smartkey already!) The gas engine starts up immediately. Even though it’s a shift-by-wire, it still looks and feels like a conventional shift lever.

The accelerator does have a more conventional feel. When you first press the accelerator the car moves. It doesn’t have near the lag in acceleration of the Prius. OK, out on the street. First thing you notice is a much stiffer suspension. You feel the little bumps much more than in the Prius.

Brake application is, again, more like a conventional car than the Prius. Although not as mushy feeling as the Prius pedal the Insight has it’s own little quirk. I’d read on forums about a “surge†feel as you near a full stop. Sure enough, when the regenerative system kicks out (and you’re left with brakes only) it feel like you’ve given the accelerator a little tap. It is very noticeable and sometimes can be a bit unpleasant. I am very surprised Honda settled for this.

When you come to a full stop the gas engine switches off. No problem, unless you’re running the AC. In that case, it switches off as well. This is due to the Insight having an engine driven compressor rather than electrical driven as in the Prius. (If you’re at a long stop the Insight engine will restart and the AC come back on automatically.) When you release the brake the engine restarts and off you go.

I had read that highway noise was high on the Insight. I made a point to get on a freeway and it is indeed noisy. Also noted that ride at highway speed wasn’t nearly as comfortable as the Prius. In the Insight you feel every expansion joint in the concrete. I also used the freeway entry to sample acceleration. The engine makes a lot of noise but falls well short of the Prius’ acceleration.

The Insight wasn’t bad to drive. I just didn’t like it as well as the Prius. But I still had to check out the Honda deal. If I saved enough money……….. I’d be happy with it.

Long story short – their best 0-0-0-0 deal on the EX was a lease rate of $310/mth. What about a $240/mth deal on an LX? Didn’t have an LX and none scheduled to come in. Period. The line “Bait and switch†came to mind but I kept still. I politely thanked them for their time and left.

Bottom line – I have no particular love for the Toyota dealer, but I’ll be going back. They came far closer to delivering the advertised deal on a lease. This may just be the dealership involved, but it sure leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth for Honda. What a waste of time!

About fuel economy – We are consistently averaging 55 mpg with the Prius. No hypermiling, just moderate driving habits. I have no basis for comparison other than the Honda salesman’s story. Another salesman there bought the very first 2010 Insight they received. He lives a few miles from me and has a similar commute except he has a little greater percentage of in-town driving. He has been a fiend for tracking mileage. He is now up to 43.1 mpg. Their "real world estimate" is 43 to 48 mpg. Obviously, I wasn’t very impressed.

So how do you compare an Insight and a Prius? Here’s an interesting way to look at it. Honda has taken their years of Insight experience (although I’ve seen a grand total of 2 cars from the earlier models) and come out with a new generation hybrid to compete with the Prius. It is significantly smaller and weighs about 300 lb (10%) less. The gas engine displacement is about 10% less than the Prius. Electric motor rating is 13hp compared to 80hp on the Prius. Blended hp on the Insight is 98 as opposed to 110 on the Prius. Less weight and horsepower? You’d think the Insight would have to have better fuel economy. Not so, and apparently there is a very significant real-world difference. A better mousetrap? I don't think so.

 

Bob, nicely stated. Here in NY, the Insight does not qualify for the Clean Pass (HOV lane access).

 

2010 Insight is similar in size, performance, and priced about the same as the 2001 Prius. 9 years and two Prius generations have passed.

 

The Gen2 Prius driver's seating is pretty much garbage compared to the 2010 Insight which has height adjustment and telescopic steering wheel. The seat itself is a little small, but still better than my 2009 seat after $1,200 of modifications.

 

Did you son have any trouble getting in the front? The reason I ask is I hit my head trying to get in. Six foot talk folks come in different trunk/leg ratios and apparently I'm in the longer trunk to leg ratio group.

Thanks,
Bob Wilson

 

You look familiar. Hey!

 

I traded a 2003 MB E320 for the Prius in December 2009. I was pissed as all hell for about eghteen hours. From precision German engineering, power, refinement, to a tin can. Nyah! But I learned to like the Prius. The Certified Pre-Owned warrantee on the MB ran out, and I was worried about some gremlins it was showing. I drove the Insight first, always havong been a Honda guy in the past. I liked it, it was an EX with NAV, and they were having 2.9% financing through Honda, which I'd dealt with before. I decided to play it cool, though, so I drove

 

a Prius, and immediately knew it was the one I wanted. I paid 6.99% finace, and had to put $1,200 down on it, but it was bigger, and more peaceful than the Insight. I did trade it three months later on a new Golf, 2.5 liter five-cylinder, because the Prius, although cool, and likable, had no fahrvegnugen.

 

I just spent a lot of time researching these two vehicles. I am starting a new job where I will be driving about 30k to 40k miles a year. Gas mileage is obviously a big concern but since I will literally be living in the car for a huge portion of my time comfort and space are even bigger priority. Based on test driving a Prius a few years ago and not liking the seat comfort at all it was barely on my radar but I decided to check both out.

I spent quite a bit of time on the highway with two test drives in the Insight and was pretty sure I would be purchasing an EX - right up until the point I went and test drove the Prius.

The Insight is not a bad car and I could have saved about 3k as USAA pricing is very good for Honda's on the OTD price. Things I liked about the Insight - looks, driving experience, seats (good lumbar support) and the standard cruise, tilt, power options.

Things missing:
Storage around the driver is practically non-existent - the center console is TINY. More importantly the armrest is about an inch too low - this makes a major difference in comfort. The glove box is decent size but nowhere near the size of the Prius. The cupholders are poor and a long reach to get to in the Insight. The Prius is so much better in terms of having access and room for your "stuff." The headrests come forward a little more aggressively than in the Prius. While I favor the lumbar support in the Insight - everything else about driver comfort seems better in the Prius - armrests and storage with a decent seat and the steering wheel doesn't obstruct your view so you can put it where it feels best vs. how you can best see the guages.

Back seat space doesn't matter much to me at 95% of the time it will just be myself in the car, but the Prius is of course much better. The storage area in the back is also much better. Also, if you carefully inspect the Honda Insight the storage around the spare tire is made of some kind of foam material that does not seem sturdy at all - nor does the flooring material above it. I would be concerned about loading anything very heavy on it. The Toyota quality seems MUCH better in this area. We have two large dogs that we may put back there in the future and my wife actually asked if I thought their leg might go through the Honda material. While I don't think this would happen the quality here seemed poor. I'm sure they are going for weight savings but I would question the durability.

Other major items -
No audio controls on steering wheel unless you get NAVI.
More controls total on steering wheel of Prius.
Running in ECON mode for best gas mileage shuts off A/C compressor at stop signs - fan still circulates but compressor isn't running. I live in Florida and this was a big concern. You can take it out of ECON mode and the engine will keep running but then you are burning gas when you wouldn't be in a Prius.
Smart Key or whatever they call it on Prius - key stays in your pocket/purse (Hey - it's a European hand bag).
Auto Windows all 4
Lights above vanity mirrors if I recall in Prius but not on Insight.

I think I could have been happy with the Honda and I think if 2 to 3k makes the difference than you aren't making a bad choice but the reality is this is an apples/oranges comparison here as one is a midsize (Prius) and one is a compact.

Let's not forget the approx. 35 hp difference as well and the fact that the Toyota system is just more advance and refined. Bigger car getting better MPG without sacrificing things like the A/C running when you stop.

For someone who will be spending so much time in the car although I started out really thinking the Insight was going to be my choice, after a little research and time with both for my needs the Prius is the right choice.

I am picking up my Gen 3 Prius Package II in the morning. Next week I am putting in the Pioneer Z110BT Avic Navi system with a Backup camera which should propel it beyond what the Package III offers for maybe about $300 more than I would have paid for a Package III with no options. All the parts will run me under 1k after rebate on the AVIC from authorized dealer - ends April 2010 for those who are interested. So I will have a pretty loaded out system with NAVI and backup for under 26K out the door. The Insight would have been $22k plus aftermarket NAVI so 23k total.

If you're a USAA member check out their buying service in your online account - it's awesome. Their finance rates are great as well. Going through them is making for my most painless buying experience ever and I have bought a lot of cars over the years.

 

No, but he's young and limber. On the other hand, I'm old and decrepit. The Insight is low enough that I have to grab hold and kind of "fall" into the driver's seat.

 

I wonder if a comparison of the Prius and Insight in terms of mpg/dollar cost would yield anything useful. I'm also thinking of other fuel efficient hybrid and non-hybrid cars.

Suppose Prius III is 50 mpg and costs $23K. Insight LX is 40 mpg and $18.5K. Mpg/dollar cost is 2.17 (in mpg/K) for Prius and 2.16 for Insight. So, it's a standoff.

It gets more complicated if you factor in the price of gas. The higher the gas price, the more favorable the higher gas mileage car--Prius.

Against other hybrids, Insight favors better, since the others are more expensive than the Prius (probably even after rebates), and their gas mileage is less than the Prius.

So, if you don't need the bigger Prius size, and price is important, the Insight is pretty good value.