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Insight... |
Honda will have its hybrid vehicle on sale in the US before Toyota ships the Prius. This 2 seater utilizes a parallel hybrid drivetrain and a host of high-tech wizardry. Is it really the answer we're looking for? Well, it does get 70 mpg on the highway and 60+ in town. It is first to market. It is a Honda.
I'm giving Honda a fat raspberry for its entry. While the price is better than GM's immensely unpopular model, 2 seats still don't get it. The very light weight definitely will be a disadvantage when dueling with the road's most desired transport, an SUV. Crash tests are painfully deceptive in that the frontal rating is only valid for a head-on collision with an identical vehicle at 60 mph closing speed. What are the chances you will encounter another vehicle weighing less than a ton?
The structure is an all-aluminum design, built alongside the S2000. The engine is extremely efficient, utilizing VTEC and an offset crankshaft. The electric motor is very small and is ingeniously placed on the output shaft of the engine. It provides added boost when needed and charges the batteries. Given its significant weight reduction, I'm disappointed they aren't gettiing more MPG out of this thing. Kit cars have been achieving this kind of mileage for years with two seats, but what they haven't been able to bring at this level is a family car. Honda could have left out the electric assist and ended up with a new CRX.
Apparently being able to boast about being first to market was far more important to Honda than giving us a real hybrid. 4 doors and a minimum of 4 passengers are the only way to get America seriously interested in making the move to hybrids. This vehicle will have Ed Begley, Jr. and all the other blind-faith tree huggers standing in line, but don't count me in that group. My money is still waiting on the Prius, a real hybrid.
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