On solid ground: with smooth suspension and a comfortable interior the Honda Insight is an ideal entry-level Hybrid

As the sales season gets into swing Honda has launched the cheapest hybrid on the market. The Insight is the latest green car and joins the bigger Civic hybrid to give Honda a strong environmentally friendly presence.


And there is more to follow the Insight. By summertime it will be joined by a CR-Z with hybrid technology and next year the ever popular Jazz supermini will be here with the same treatment.


The Insight, which is based on the Jazz platform, has been dubbed "the world's most affordable hybrid" and undercuts the top-selling Toyota Prius. There are two versions of the five-door model which has a 1.3 litre i-VTEC engine. The ES costs €22,378 and the higher grade SE €23,874. The prices are ex-works and include the government VRT refund. Honda sales and marketing director, Frank Kennedy, believes hybrids could account for one in every six sales for him this year. He is targeting 150 sales with the Insight.


The petrol-electric power combination is hugely popular in Japan with the Prius leading the field and it is growing in popularity here too because of the good fuel returns. The Prius comes with a 1.8 litre petrol engine but the Insight gets a 1.3 litre power unit and is driven through a CVT automatic transmission. The mix of electric battery power/combustion engine and brake regeneration all combine to get a 4.4L/100km (63mpg) fuel consumption and with emissions of just 101g/km it qualifies for the lowest €104 annual road tax.


The combined power output is 98 bhp which gives a lively performance and, in a brief drive at the launch, the Insight proved to be quiet and comfortable. The suspension on the motorway was naturally very smooth but this has to be tested on more rugged roads.


In the cabin there is good space for five occupants with good legroom and shoulder room up front. The comfort of air conditioning and automatic transmission will be appreciated and the dash area includes colour signals that change from green to blue if the driver is too heavy on the accelerator.


This is a good entry-level hybrid offering and the price will attract new followers to the eco flag. The only downside is developments are moving so fast, cars with today's technology will be left behind as plug-in vehicles and new more powerful lithium-ion batteries come on stream which may damage residual values.


But today hybrid is a good investment for those who have the enviroment and fuel-saving in mind.