Watch out Prius: Honda’s new dedicated hybrid to get more than 60mpg

Watch out Prius: Honda’s new dedicated hybrid to get more than 60mpg
We learned earlier this week that the upcoming dedicated hybrid-only model will be priced under $19,000. According to InsideLine sources the compact 5-door hatchback sedan will debut at the 2008 Paris Auto Show in October.

Internally the car is known as the ‘New Dedicated Hybrid Vehicle’ or simply the ’small hybrid.’ Honda has been previously rumored to revive the old ‘Insight’ name. Don’t forget that the ’small hybrid’ is a part of Honda’s four new gas-electric hybrid models. Also in the works is the CR-Z Hybrid coupe, a Civic Hybrid and a hybrid version of the 2012 Fit. The Japanese automakers plans on selling 500,000 units by 2012.

Power will come from a 1.3 liter engine mated with...
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investor27investor27 - 8/7/2008 12:54:10 PM
+1 Boost
Yeah. In JAPAN.


NItePhireNItePhire - 8/7/2008 1:36:54 PM
+1 Boost
I dont think that real world will be that much.


mattman953mattman953 - 8/7/2008 4:26:53 PM
+1 Boost
They rarely are. Your mileage depends on your driving style. I can regularly coax near 40mpg from my Civic and my Saturn in mixed driving.


HSCenterconsoleHSCenterconsole - 8/7/2008 2:55:54 PM
+1 Boost
The Battle of the Boring.


528i528i - 8/7/2008 3:24:04 PM
+1 Boost
Why hybrid cars look so f@#kin ugly?


Agent63Agent63 - 8/7/2008 6:55:39 PM
+4 Boost
Honda should have kept going with most hybrid technology in their lineup. They were the first maker to produce at a mass level for hybrid, even before Toyota. It's a shame they aren't doing better than Toyota or on par with them.


enp83enp83 - 8/7/2008 9:34:12 PM
+3 Boost
Actually Toyota was selling the Prius in Japan at least 2 years before Honda sold it's first hybrid. Honda only beat Toyota to the US market by selling it's Insight in the US before Toyota brought their Prius to the US market.

Imagine what an Insight could do now with almost 10 more years of advancement. Think about how cheap gas was in 2000 compared to now too, they'd sell a lot more. Which might be where this new dedicated hybrid comes in...but with it's larger engine and larger body it's still a different class than the CRX sized Insight. Perhaps Honda will follow through with the CR-Z hybrid coupe.


Agent63Agent63 - 8/8/2008 9:03:09 AM
+1 Boost
Sorry my mistake. I meant in the US & Canadian market. Honda should have made a push to market the technology they were offering in the US. However it is just bad timing.


DieselRulesDieselRules - 8/9/2008 1:46:25 AM
0 Boost
The fact that Toyota sells mostly Diesels anywhere they offer them (they are chosen over hybrids for a variety of reasons) indicates how ridiculous gasoline hybrids are.


drake0707drake0707 - 8/7/2008 8:10:43 PM
-6 Boost
Hybrids are stupid


nozferatunozferatu - 8/8/2008 2:00:59 PM
+6 Boost
Spoken like a true ignoramus.


DieselRulesDieselRules - 8/8/2008 2:26:24 AM
-3 Boost
In England they sell a Civic hybrid getting 50.4 MPG.
Or you can have a larger, faster, safer Accord Diesel getting 51.0 MPG.
So, why would I want to pay more for the extra weight of a motor and a bunch of batteries that I have to replace in a few years ???


enp83enp83 - 8/8/2008 7:41:54 AM
+7 Boost
For one, your diesel accord would need to get 20% better gas mileage than the civic hybrid since diesel fuel costs 20% more here in the largest automotive market in the world.

Second, who says you have to replace the batteries every few years? In any state with California emissions standards the Civic Hybrid's batteries are covered by a 10 year or 150,000 mile warranty.


DieselRulesDieselRules - 8/9/2008 1:42:24 AM
0 Boost
In the civilized world, diesel costs less than Gasoline.
Once Bush is gone, the oil bandits might actually get prosecuted for punitive pricing on diesel to prevent the sale of efficient cars ... maybe.


enp83enp83 - 8/9/2008 7:11:40 AM
+1 Boost
By civilized you must mean fantasy.

Diesel is only cheaper than gasoline in europe because of their ridiculously high fuel taxes (hey gotta subsidize mass transit somehow). The US federal fuel tax is something like 18 cents per gallon for gasoline and 24 cents per gallon for diesel. Our tax policies are not making diesel higher. US refiners produce A LOT more gasoline than diesel, so theres less supply while at the same time world wide demand for diesel is outpacing the growth of world wide demand for gasoline.

Going off your Bush comment though I doubt you'll take time to understand how the market works. It's just so much easier to listen to Coast to Coast or Alex Jones and so much more fun to repeat conspiracy theories. (oh sorry did that one hit a little close to home?)


truckmentruckmen - 8/8/2008 4:07:19 AM
0 Boost
NMH batteries? What year is it? How long does it take these companies to get up to speed with cutting edge tech? This car looks ugly! Although I would still consider buying this car because it would be a functional efficient family hauler, and you can assume it would be safe coming from Honda. I love Obamma's idea of 150mpg! It can be done! But not with any of the available hybrids available today.


Maverick2020Maverick2020 - 8/8/2008 2:57:56 PM
+2 Boost
Real-world 60 MPG would be a breakthrough.

I give kudos to any manufacturer who can pull that off, because if we are ever going to reduce our foreign oil addiction, it's going to take cars like this.

That being said, I need to go now and drive my 15 MPG vehicle.


DieselRulesDieselRules - 8/9/2008 2:03:12 PM
+1 Boost
Real world 60 MPG is normal for a 2009 Jetta TDI.
Real world 75 MPG was offered years ago with the Audi A2 and VW Polo TDI models.
They have a tiny 1.4 liter turbo-diesel engine, but still hustle along (there's lots of aluminum in them ... like a Prius)
One fellow drove one across western Europe and back and averaged almost 90 MPG!


mplsmpls - 8/9/2008 2:40:48 PM
+3 Boost
How about this :-

165mpg in a hybrid Honda Insight — would recommend FAS during normal driving driven a a guy named Wayne Gerdes ...


enp83enp83 - 8/10/2008 8:13:38 AM
+1 Boost
Size does not equal safety. If that Expedition had t-boned a Ford Five Hundred/Taurus it still would have been a nasty wreck. The doors, roof, etc of a Taurus aren't really any thicker than the doors on a Focus/Fusion.


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