[Jc_vt]

Looks pretty good:

https://www.motortrend.com/cars/hon...0A1BC74DBCDAE087BDB2EF9577EEF16906756572BEDF6

 

[d3n13d]

The very last sentence in that article is worrying.

"Next update: signs of wear creak in, rubbing us wrong …"

 

[andrew28]

At 7.3 seconds to 60 mph, the Insight's accelleration is pretty good for a hybrid. It absolutely smokes a recent Toyota Prius we tested, which hit 60 mph in 9.8 seconds and took 17.4 seconds to run the quarter mile.

Road test editor Chris Walton notes that the Insight has a "slow launch, but then the engine ramps up quickly (and noisily) for impressive, linear acceleration."

(What do they mean by slow launch? The launch is my favorite part about this car. :grin


At the opposite end of the equation, our Insight needed 122 feet to stop from 60 mph. That's a good deal better than the 131 feet required by the Prius but not as good as the 117-foot stop by a different Insight (Touring grade) we also tested. The difference? Better rubber.

"Its body motions are very well controlled but without any accompanying harshness. The Insight turns in very precisely and has good brake pedal feel, too, as you approach the corner. It seems to like a quick release-brake/turn-in as opposed to trail braking. It understeers but with some steering feel of the tires that offers some pleasantness."

 

[Wifey'sInsight]

I have to agree with Motor Trend. The "launch" is unlike any other car I've driven. Although I'd suspect that traction control plays a part in it.

First gen Nissan Leaf would easily destroy the insight in a 20 ft race.

Traditional Ice cars are closer to the insight, where the car pulls harder as rpms increase, but they have gears (unless cvt).

It's just the fact that peak power requires both ICE and EV input, at 0mph, it's all EV. There's atleast a 1 second delay before the ice/generator combo adds that little extra "go". Kind of like a turbo lag.

Maybe it's psychological, but the fact that I can't shred the tires on Demand, makes it hard for me to ever think about the performance of the Insight from a speed perspective.

 

[andrew28]

I have to agree with Motor Trend. The "launch" is unlike any other car I've driven. Although I'd suspect that traction control plays a part in it.

First gen Nissan Leaf would easily destroy the insight in a 20 ft race.

Traditional Ice cars are closer to the insight, where the car pulls harder as rpms increase, but they have gears (unless cvt).

It's just the fact that peak power requires both ICE and EV input, at 0mph, it's all EV. There's atleast a 1 second delay before the ice/generator combo adds that little extra "go". Kind of like a turbo lag.

Maybe it's psychological, but the fact that I can't shred the tires on Demand, makes it hard for me to ever think about the performance of the Insight from a speed perspective.

The Honda Insight actually has the more powerful electric motor compared to the 1st gen Nissan Leaf.


129 horsepower and 197 lb-ft of torque. (2019 Honda Insight)
107 horsepower and 187 lb-ft (Nissan Leaf 1st gen)


I know some newer EV vehicles(Kia Niro EV) have implemented throttle lag to prevent excessive tire wear. Not sure if the Honda Insight designers implemented something like this. This is to prevent situations like where Tesla owners have complained about excessive tire wear due to how much torque the electric motor can output when accelerating.

 

[hasarad]

You really need to look at the HP/torque comparison in terms of HP per ton. The Leaf is much lighter and may have the advantage because of that.

 

[Wifey'sInsight]

I promise, not bashing the Insight, just simply stating "butt-dyno" comparisons.