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Although these figures are about $1K more than originally anticipated, I believe you very, very close. The yen-USD exchange rate will almost prohibit lower MSRP than the numbers above. That said, Honda will try to hit these numbers including destination charges so the advertised MSRP may end up around $19.3K and $21.3K.
The EX w/navi should be about $23K plus a $700 destination charge.
Honda Insight hybrid sticker price to start at $20,470
The all-new 2010 Honda Insight goes on-sale March 24 with a manufacturer's suggested retail price1 (MSRP) of $19,800 for the Insight LX, American Honda Motor Co., Inc., announced.
1st one includes $670 destination charge... 2nd one doesn't..
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My Insight salesman informs me that many other dealers will impose a $1500 additional markup to the price, to which I ask: why? Are they in such demand? Are car sales in general going great? More to the point, are gas prices so high that they can't keep hybrids on the lot? It is totally absurd. I won't pay it, particularly as the Priuses are being discounted to move them. He still has no date for arrival of my tango red EX w/navi, but he agreed that the price is $23,770.
Has anyone seen any Insights on the Honda lots yet?
I saw the Insight up close at my local auto show yesterday. It looked like an EX but I'm not sure--there was no moonroof. The dash looked better in person than in photos. It was roped off so I couldn't sit in it, so I have no idea whether the back seat would be roomy enough.
Second a $1500 markup would make it more expensive than a Civic Hybrid (which according to Edmunds is selling around $21,500). Also the current Prius is discounted as mentioned.
The next Prius will be more expensive than the Insight but has better mileage (50mpg vs 41mpg), back seats are roomier and more powerful engine (1.8l engine vs 1.3l). So it depends what you are looking for. The Insight should win economically since most won't recoup the extra costs of the Prius III unless gas prices go substantially up and you drive lots of miles.
Motortrend will be posting 2 comparison video's of the next Prius and Insight. First overview part is posted on motortrend.com/youtube.
I would love the great MPG of the Insight (some articles talk about members of the press achieving more than 60 Mpg on an introduction of the cat I believe in Arizona recently).
For me a Yaris makes more sense as it costs much less.
42 MPG or more was the mileage my rental AT Yaris got recently, with ambient temperatures around freezing. I'll bet I can get 45 MPG in summer.
Plus if you get sales tax exemption (like in WA) you would recoup the costs in 7 years at 15K miles. If gas goes up back to $4 you can reduce that to 3-4 years.
Autobloggreen got 63mpg and I think most should be able to beat 50mpg in mixed driving with econ on.
Some dealers got Insights today. Here's 1 dealer that got 16 cars according to their inventory: http://www.priorityhonda.com/new_honda_insight_inventory.php
So comparing the 13.3k Yaris to the Insight LX at MSRP would save about $7200 and you would even get cruise control with the Yaris. Still very difficult to justify on cost alone.
Toyota Yaris
The demand in Japan for the Insight was 3x higher as expected so I would be surprised if you wouldn't see supply issues here in the US eventually as well (same factory). But in this economy no one can predict demand but at least pre-orders appear to be filled about 80% and the car only showed up in the showrooms few days ago.
Sorry to say, even though we had been considering the Insight as our next vehicle, for the money, it makes more sense to buy a year old Corolla. If the money was even, I'd prefer the Civic, but Corolla's are dirt cheap right now - not exactly sure why.
How did the insight look? Tiny? Stylish? Was it an LX or a EX?
What color?
http://lucienk.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!A4AE3FB12A26635!952.entry
It also includes pdf link to US Insight manual. Honda's Insght site is up as well now where you can see all colors.
The lease offer for $229 seems pretty good deal although not sure if every dealer will offer it (since it says that in the fine print that there's a cost reduction by dealer participation).
Do people have to wait and order it? I thought most dealers get relatively big inventory unless those are already completely presold.
$3 is the normalized price??????
I don't understand what you mean.
According to the manual it should play MP3/WMA/AAC from USB (EX). Do you have an LX? In that case I guess you have to resort using data CD (which can play both MP3/WMA). Or there's also an auxiliary input jack that might be an option.
So far I've heard from someone else he got 52mpg on the highway on his test drive but real-world conditions can vary and the average mpg can be quite different.
The only problem was the price... they were asking $3,500 above MSRP. The sales guy said it was a premium because they'd only gotten five and already sold 3. He didn't expect the premium to decrease any time soon.
His boss confirmed their strategy of raising the price although he said maybe they could lower it "a little bit." He said the Priuses also were selling for above MSRP as a point of comparison.
I was kinda turned off at that point. I see that carsdirect.com also quotes the sticker price. $3.5K premium? That's over 15% of the car.
Another potential buyer who was also looking had the exact same reaction.
New models in short supply always go for a premium.... If you have to be the first one on the block, then you'll pay that premium...
I'd rather wait 6 months and pay $4000 less, personally..
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http://rides.webshots.com/album/570741185XOUgIu
If you have any questions about setting it up, just click on my username and send me an email and I'll be glad to help you out.
My main negative finding was with the front seat; it just did not hit me right. When I initially got in the seat, there was some uncomfortable pressure on my thighs from the bottom edge of the front seat (too high) and the lumbar support (too high & too firm). During the test drive, I did not notice lumbar discomfort, but did notice thigh discomfort. Interestingly, although the seats are supposedly the same on the LX & EX, when I sat briefly in the LX, I didn't feel the same pressure, but that was only a minute of seat time. Obviously the feel of the front seat is a very individual thing depending on one's body conformation, but for me, it may be a deal breaker.
In comparison to my test drive of a Fit a month ago. The Fit is not as comfortable as the Insight, but it easily wins in the handling and spacious departments.
Most likely I will buy either a Fit or Insight in the next year. I calculated how long it would take to make up for the extra $4,400 cost (MSRP) of the hybrid assuming that I would drive it about 9K miles/ year & that be able to get 15 more mpg with the Insight. Alas it looks like it would take about 16 years with fuel at $3/gallon, and about 8 years if it goes to $6.gallon to make up the $4,400 difference. So the payback time & the seat comfort may force me to settle for the Fit. The dealer will let me take either car home for an overnight & if I found that the Insight's seat worked with my body, it would be a much harder decision.
I found it curious that even though they had 9 Fits on the lot, they all had a $2K "adjusted market value" sticker. I am certain that this is there for the few naive customers that come in & don't dicker. Believe it or not it happens. 20 years ago , my mother drove by an Oldsmobile dealer, saw a car that caught her fancy & walked in and bought it with no questions asked. Last fall another acquaintance decided to get a Hyundai Accent. Before the dealer was done with her she paid over $4,000 more than the sticker -- and they had about 15 other Accents on the lot! So, it works for the dealer at times. That said, my salesguy readily admitted that they could get a way with the mark up when gas was over $4 /gallon & they could not keep Fits on the lot. Now, they will deal.
In summary I could happily live with either the car. Overall I prefer the Insight over the Fit due to appeance and ride comfort. I plan to keep watching the forums and eventually have one or the other in my garage.
That is a serious consideration that I have been playing in my mind. I hope to keep my next econ hatch for 7 years. I am confident that the engine on the Fit will not need any major repairs & still be fresh after 7 years / 70K miles & that the next buyer can trust if for 100K. With the Insight it may be getting to the point that some of the batteries need to be replaced (I understand the warranty to be 8 yrs in non CARB states & 10 yrs in CARB states. So, will the concern of need to lay out some significant cash in a year or two for the Insight result in decreased resale value. So far the Toyota battery packs seem to be exceeding expections. It would be an interesting exercise to conpared the p% of deprecation of a 2002 Prius to a 2002 Corolla. Not sure I have the time & energy to do that.
The other unknown is will gas cost $3/gal in 2017 (unlikely) or $10/gal. IF gas cost is double or triple what it is today, the Insight should have much higher resale. Unfortunately we don't know today the duration of the batteries (although I suspect they will exceed 8 years) nor the cost of gas (my guess is it will be over $5/gal).
Here there is an interesting discussion on the batteries of the previous generation including this post <a href="http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/WebX/.f0fdb4b/41" target="_blank">http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/WebX/.f0fdb4b/41.. The folder is "Honda Insight Hybrid Battery Pack Questions". Of course the Insight's batteries are "new & improved".
http://www.vtec.net/articles/view-article?article_id=808565
The dealership was very slow for being the last day of the month and many sales people standing around waiting for something to happen which probably will never happen in this economy.
Drove the car 40.8 miles on freeway, city streets and single lane country roads at posted speeds drving the car like an "80 year old Bag lady that was light on the gas pedal.
Many other motorists were pissed off that I was driving the car this way like gliding to a stoplight and taking off from a stoplight slow to get the best gas mileage results.
I averaged 38.7 mpg with the "ECO" button on and 40.6mpg with the "ECO" button off after a 40 mile test drive.
The cornering of the cars was sloppy as well as the steering. The seat fabric seemed cheap and likely to stain.
The car did seem peppy, but seemed underpowered and not of Honda Quality.
It is confusing to figure out all of the electronic controls and found myself not keeping my eye on the road.
I think this car would be fun at first, but the novelty would wear off after a couple of months. I am concerned that the electronics of this car would fail as this car is not a bullet-proof Honda such as a 2009 Honda Civic DX-VP would perform.
I would not buy this car as it has to much "junk" on it and it is too expensive.
The best Honda I owned was my 1991 Civic-Dx 4-door which went 265000 miles and was totally a bullent-proof Honda with no maintenace.
I see this Honda requiring alot of upkeep after the warranty expires.
I see the future in Honda's Clarity and cars like the CRV-LX and the Civic LX.
Overall there is nothing special about his cars unless you want to be the first one on your block to own one and have everyone coming over to inquire about it.
I was not impressed at all!!!