Looking at buying Honda Insight......would appreciate any info from current/past owners

[Anonymous]

Thanks in advance! I am looking at buying a 2011 model and welcome hearing the pros/cons.

[Freeman]

I haven't kept up with the Insight as much, but an important question for me would be how the air conditioning operates. On a Prius(My wife and I both drive one), the air conditioner runs entirely off of the battery, which means if you stop in the summer heat, it keeps going when the engine shuts off. I did a quick search, and I don't think that the Insight works the same currently.(The Civic Hybrid might, but I'm not sure) If you have to run the engine for air conditioning, then it is going to kill your fuel efficiency when you are stuck in traffic. That would be a deal-breaker for me, and it is one of the reasons that we bought a second Prius as opposed to another hybrid last time we were looking. I can't say how big of an issue that would be for you.

Other than that, the reviews I read were fairly positive. I'll probably stick to Toyota personally, based on my experiences though. The Prius C is comparably priced, but I haven't done a direct comparison between the two. Pros and cons are harder to state without knowing what your expectations are, such as MPG, room for kids, etc.

[Anonymous]

I own a 2009 Honda CRV and LOVE IT! I was a Jeep Cherokee person until the last one I bought in 2005 was a complete lemon...bought it for $30k traded it in 2008 for the Honda with a value of $7,500!

My Honda gets amazing gas mileage, the Honda dealership performs great and affordable maintenance, and you just drive and go. My Honda has been a great car for me! I am always going to buy Honda from now on.

[Anonymous]

We considered the Insight when looking for a car with excellent gas mileage, but were concerned about the ability to put a rear-facing carseat in the back without having a front driver or passenger's knees touch the dashboard. If you are planning on using carseats with this car, I would make sure that the fit is OK.

We also considered a Prius c, but again, with DH @ 6ft, the front would have been far too uncomfortable to drive. We are going to spend a few more thousand $$$s to get a Prius 2/3/4.