2007 Honda Small Hybrid Sports Concept Review

Specifications

In my humblest of opinions, the Insight was one of the greatest cars that Honda produced during the closing years of the 20th century. At six years of age, it still felt great to drive last year when I tested it last. Of course, you can’t really judge it by conventional automotive standards as it falls short on handling, ride, comfort and spaciousness, but goodness, plunking down in the bum-scraping seat and sliding behind its S2000-like steering wheel did feel special. It didn’t take much more than a couple of corners around a city block to see, feel, and hear the passion that Honda’s engineers put into developing the Insight. This was a car that had the capability to change the way you drive; its fuel consumption, battery and upshift indicators reminding you to maintain as frugal a pace as possible.

The Insight died what I believe was an untimely death. Yes, its sales numbers were abysmal in comparison to the much more popular Prius and other hybrids, including Honda’s own Civic Hybrid. It simply wasn’t practical at all, plus it cost a lot of money to buy. Most of all, however, it was just plain getting on in years. Even though it never received the standard Honda mid-life update in technology or appearance, the Insight still managed to be the most efficient production car sold in North America and the world’s most frugal gasoline-powered car. Honda was just edged out on being able to crown the Insight as the world’s most fuel friendly car, period, if not for the Volkswagen Lupo TDI 3L.

Currently, the Insight’s legend as Honda’s first hybrid is living on throughthe Civic Hybrid and Accord Hybrid, two vehicles that changed Honda’s hybrid game. The Accord was Honda’s first performance hybrid, while the second generation Civic Hybrid was Honda’s first full hybrid. After applying its RandD team to diesel and fuel cell technology, Honda has turned full-circle and returned to hybrids with a new concept car they showed in Geneva, the Small Hybrid Sports Concept (SHSC).

As its label clearly depicts, the Small Hybrid Sports Concept is Honda’s idea of what a future hybrid sports coupe might look like. On the principle of its design and by its exterior shape and proportions, it’s easy to make a link between the SHSC and the Insight. They’re roughly the same size, though the SHSC is marginally longer, much lower and wider than Honda’s first hybrid, and both have very aerodynamic two-door sports car bodies. Honda hasn’t released any images of the SHSC’s interior, but from the looks of things it is most likely a two-seater with generous trunk space.

Aerodynamics ruled the appearance of the Insight. Its fastback body style andcovered rear wheels yielded a record-setting 0.25 Cd (drag coefficient). The SHSC has similar aims, and uses the same flowing profile, although its nose and tail are surprisingly upright and square. A slim row of LED lights outline the SHSC’s hoodline, and are followed by an acrylic nose piece similar to the European Honda Civic, giving the front end the look of a hammerhead shark. The one-piece glass roof sweeps down into the fastback profile. Well-defined shoulders are a page out of the Peter Horbury/Volvo design book, though the squared off tailgate with lower glass insert is something retained from the Insight (CRX). Twenty-inch alloy rims fill the wheel arches, but the 165-width tires that wrap them speak to the car’s efficient nature.

The SHSC is built from a small-car platform, as opposed to a unique aluminum spaceframe chassis. Its architecture, therefore, could be derived from the European Civic; it is within 0.2 inches in width of that model. It hasa four-cylinder IMA engine mated to a CVT gearbox, which could potentially be the same powertrain as the Honda Civic Hybrid. This differs from the one-off one-liter inline-three engine and the manual gearbox offered in the Insight. Of course, the I-4 IMA powertrain provides higher output than the Insight ever enjoyed, at 110 horsepower and 123 lb-ft of torque combined, which in a lightweight package could be pretty quick.

Being its first hybrid, not to mention a drivable demonstration of Honda’s engineering excellence that put economy and efficiency above all - including development cost - Honda isn’t in a position to repeat what it did with the Insight. Though it was never released, the Insight was rumored to have lost Honda money on each unit sold. Clearly, another round with such prospects isn’t in the company’s best interests, and if it is to consider producing such a niche alternative product again, costs need to be limited as much as possible. Therefore, if Honda decides to go ahead and produce the SHSC, it won’t be quite the same as the Insight. I don’t believe that Honda will go to the same great lengths to make the SHSC the world’s most efficient hybrid, but instead it may be the world’s first hybrid sports car, which is an accomplishment all on its own. Of course, they may be in a race with Toyota and its FT-HS Hybrid Sports Concept for that title. May the best car win.