Honda Insight + Hybrid Chatter: What the CR-Z should have been all along - Post 288

[Jim Prower]

...But hey, when was the last time that the engineers were able to win-out over the designers?

*tap-tap*

 

[niky]

If I were an engineer at Nissan, I'd have asked for a smaller car.

 

[YSSMAN]

I was almost certain someone was going to post something like this:

 

[Robin]

Meh, both the new Prius and Insight suck in terms of design compared to the Chevy Volt which looks as good as a concept car.... only problem is it might well remain 'a concept car'

 

[Keef]

I was almost certain someone was going to post something like this:

See that gray ring on the sidewall of the front tire? That's how low the air pressure is in that tire. That whole area is rolling on the ground. That's a danger to the driver and everyone around them, especially if they ever drove on the highway on a hot summer day.

 

[Omnis]

Yeah, those are visibly low. Real bad.

 

[Jim Prower]

this has anything to do with the subject at hand? I mean, I suppose his fuel efficency would suck, but...

 

[Philly]

Keef has ADD? Although the tire isn't exactly the shiny part of the car...

 

[Keef]

I thought the irony of the ultimate triumph of engineering over design having a low front tire was hilarious. Apparently nobody else did...

 

[buickgnx88]

Well one has to do with the engineers that built it, and the other has to do with the idiot owner...

 

[Moglet]

Erm...why are they showing off about 55mpg? My car can do that easily...

This whole Prius and eco car thing is a joke, just buy a small diesel powered car, job sorted. You'll have a normal car with normal performance and yet it will still get a higher average MPG than a Prius easily!

Anyone ever see that episode of Top Gear where they got an M3 to follow a Prius at the same speed and it got a higher MPG?

 

[CDailey]

You can't really believe that Top Gear test to be accurate, can you?

The Prius had to use more throttle to maintain that speed than the M3 did, so it used more gas.

 

[Moglet]

The Prius had to use more throttle to maintain that speed than the M3 did, so it used more gas.

That was the point...They were proving that to get the same speed as the Prius you'd use less fuel in an M3.

 

[CDailey]

Around a race track...

I would love to see you get the same gas mileage on the road in an M3 as you can in a hybrid/diesel.

 

[Moglet]

Around a race track...

I would love to see you get the same gas mileage on the road in an M3 as you can in a hybrid/diesel.

Don't get me wrong, you definitely wouldn't get the same mileage on average roads or anything but if the Prius is all it's hyped up to be, the M3 shouldn't have been able to beat it's MPG around a track, travelling at the same speed!

I could, however, slaughter the MPG of the Prius using something as simple as a 1.3 500 Diesel. I just think that there's such a small market for hybrid cars that they shouldn't be as hyped up as they are these days. Most people would be better off with a small diesel car.

I averaged just 34 mpg in a 104-mile week of frugal, A/C-free driving.

Have been driving Prius since Sep 2006. Minimum 20 miles, 5 days a week,from North London to EC3 and back. Have done approx 18,000 miles and average mileage is 47 mpg.

Yet other people are averaging around 55mpg. Still much much lower than a small diesel.

 

[CDailey]

I understand what you are saying now, and I agree. It's not what you drive, but how you drive it.

When I got my car 6 months ago, I was averageing 16MPG. Now I average 20-21MPG.
Not that 20MPG is anything to brag about ( ), but a simple change in driving habits can make your MPG shoot up.
3.5 liter auto V6 with only 4 gears...

 

[Keef]

Around a race track...

I would love to see you get the same gas mileage on the road in an M3 as you can in a hybrid/diesel.

I bet my Si gets just as good of gas mileage at 80mph on the highway as that pitiful struggling Prius does. And then I proceed to cut any of its acceleration times by a third, not to mention every other performance category.

The only places where hybrids would make a huge impact would be in things that spend a lot of time stopped and idling. Police cars, taxis, Manhattan traffic, the mail man's car, pizza delivery guys, etc. Besides that they're not much better and far more costly than a 1999 Civic that can blow it out of the water.

 

[Moglet]

I understand what you are saying now, and I agree. It's not what you drive, but how you drive it.

When I got my car 6 months ago, I was averageing 16MPG. Now I average 20-21MPG.
Not that 20MPG is anything to brag about ( ), but a simple change in driving habits can make your MPG shoot up.
3.5 liter auto V6 with only 4 gears...

What car do you drive?
Mine has an average of 45mpg at the minute, and that's pushing it hard on every journey. But then it is only a 1.2 petrol. Since I reset the trip computer and started driving differently it's gone up to 47.

Fiat actually give out software now called 'EcoDrive' which you install onto the car's trip computer, it takes your driving data and gives you feedback on how to drive more economically.
I'm very proud of my gear change charts;


In 1st gear I'm over the top of 'over the top'.

 

[CDailey]

I bet my Si gets just as good of gas mileage at 80mph on the highway as that pitiful struggling Prius does. And then I proceed to cut any of its acceleration times by a thord, not to mention every other performance category.

The only places where hybrids would make a huge impact would be in things that spend a lot of time stopped and idling. Police cars, taxis, Manhattan traffic, the mail man's car, pizza delivery guys, etc. Besides that they're not much better and far more costly than a 1999 Civic that can blow it out of the water.

I wouldn't be surprised if it came close. In my post about getting the same MPG out of an M3, I almost said "even a base model Civic."

What car do you drive?

2002 Chrysler 300M Special. Check my sig out for links to pics/videos.

Mine has an average of 45mpg at the minute, and that's pushing it hard on every journey. But then it is only a 1.2 petrol. Since I reset the trip computer and started driving differently it's gone up to 47.

Fiat actually give out software now called 'EcoDrive' which you install onto the car's trip computer, it takes your driving data and gives you feedback on how to drive more economically.
I'm very proud of my gear change charts;


In 1st gear I'm over the top of 'over the top'.

That's very cool. 👍 I just have a smiple green display telling me my average/instant MPG, among other things.

that is out of a Jeep, but it's the same thing I have

 

[Moglet]

2002 Chrysler 300M Special. Check my sig out for links to pics/videos.

Cool, never seen one of those before! We don't have anything like that over here.

 

[CDailey]

Cool, never seen one of those before! We don't have anything like that over here.

Thanks. It's surprisingly quick for its size. 0-60 in about 7.5 sec is pretty good IMO for a 3600lb FWD sedan with only 180hp/220tq at the wheels. It's pretty nimble too with nice wide tires and front/rear stabilizer bars.

 

[homeforsummer]

Erm...why are they showing off about 55mpg? My car can do that easily...

That's 55mpg in US gallons, not UK gallons - it works out as about 66mpg in UK gallons. Can your car do that easily? As an average, not just a high?...

You mention a few posts below that your car is averaging 45mpg or more. So does my ten year old Fiesta. It's good but that doesn't mean getting even more, like the Civic, isn't even better!

Anyone ever see that episode of Top Gear where they got an M3 to follow a Prius at the same speed and it got a higher MPG?

And I'm sure an M3 driven to keep up with a Veyron cruising around would use more fuel than the Veyron - it doesn't mean it's a less economical car. The Top Gear comparison should be taken with a very large pinch of salt.

 

[Keef]

My dad and I have taken my mom's Pontiac G6 with its 3.4L V6 on a couple highway trips to Indianapolis. That's plenty of time to experiment with different speeds and the difference is fuel use. We were able to average between 31 and 32mpg at 72mph, which was confirmed by our Garmin GPS. That's fantastic!

But in the city 22mpg is typical, if the engine is warm. My mom drives very short jaunts to work that's hardly long enough to get the thing warm. The other day I got in the car after her and checked the computer and it was at 16mpg! That's because the cold engine never got out of open-loop operation. That made it run rich the whole time until it warmed up.

 

[Moglet]

That's 55mpg in US gallons, not UK gallons - it works out as about 66mpg in UK gallons. Can your car do that easily? As an average, not just a high?...

Of course it can't, why ask that when it's clear from the first part of your post that there is a big difference?

I didn't know there were different measurements, is there any reason why or does it just happen that way?

 

[homeforsummer]

Dunno. UK gallons are just different from US ones! Always important to bear the difference in mind on this forum though, given that both are used depending on who's talking! 1 UK gallon is roughly 1.2 US gallons, so UK mpg figures for a certain car will look higher than the UK figure for that car.

 

[Bram Turismo]

And I'm sure an M3 driven to keep up with a Veyron cruising around would use more fuel than the Veyron - it doesn't mean it's a less economical car. The Top Gear comparison should be taken with a very large pinch of salt.

That Top Gear test was a joke, something we all can expect from Top Gear, unaccurate stuff when it comes to real testing. The conclusion out of that test would be the same as the conclusion out of their most recent test where they had to drive a car to Blackpool on one tank of fuel. The conclusion was: Want an economical car? Get a V6 Jag!

I mean, not to bash Top Gear, I love the show! But to take a Prius, beat the crap out of the acceleration throttle, and then comparing it to an M3 which barely had to use the throttle, that's just joking with cars, rather than doing meanfull tests...

 

[Omnis]

I understand what you are saying now, and I agree. It's not what you drive, but how you drive it.

When I got my car 6 months ago, I was averageing 16MPG. Now I average 20-21MPG.
Not that 20MPG is anything to brag about ( ), but a simple change in driving habits can make your MPG shoot up.
3.5 liter auto V6 with only 4 gears...

Yeah, I know what you mean. When I was driving with my learner's permit I was getting around 30mpg. Slooooooooow driving . Now I get about 26ish because my car is about as aerodynamic as a bath tub.

 

[YSSMAN]

Leaky Leaky Before Detroit

Oooh, I like the red! This may actually be a Hybrid worth getting. Well, outside of the epicly awesome Ford Fusion.

 

[Philly]

I'm still pretty convinced that two-mode hybrids aren't the way to go in terms of long term solutions. Things like the Volt or Tesla seem to be better solutions in the long run. Or even hydrogen.

As for the Insight, I was reading the Top Gear magazine I got for Christmas and they had an interesting read about the CR-Z I believe it was that is supposed to be a hybrid coupe thing that was enjoyable to drive. I'll see it when I believe it, but if Honda can make that fun to drive, it'd probably rank the top hybrid out there in my book.

 

[kikie]

i'm still pretty convinced that two-mode hybrids aren't the way to go in terms of long term solutions. Things like the volt or tesla seem to be better solutions in the long run. Or even hydrogen.

+1