Sheer wrote: >I get the impression that you're biased strongly towards the Prius. That's >fine, and let us know how your Prius conversion goes! But please make sure >you understand the Insight's frame, and what a wonderful peice of work it >is, before you make negative comments about it. I wish that every car out >there had the Insight's frame - a lot more of us would be walking away from >high speed accidents if that were the case. I'd rather be in a Insight than >a Ford Explorer if I had to hit a wall at 60 mph.
Perhaps its because I work on aircraft for a living, but aluminum structure doesn't excite me - I see it all the time. The Insight has plenty of things I like. That box in the back can make an EV conversion more straitforward than a small Pickup. 3 cylinder engines - same displacement for less friction surface (and electric vibration taming, very cool). An engine that doesn't have to sit idling - we need alot more vehicles doing that! I'm not going to convert a Prius. As I have mentioned its special transaxle would be a real PITA to deal with. But that transaxle excites me too. A single planatary gear set with the engine hooked to the planet carrier, MG1 hooked to the sun gear, and MG2 and the output to the final drive hook to the annular gear (no clutches or brake bands) The only mechanical thing the shifter does is engauge and release the park cog. The throttle pedal hooks to a throttle pot, like an EV. But the Prius lacks any clear place to put an EV size pack, like most passenger cars. If I was going to buy a nearly new vehicle to convert (not in my budget) I would choose the Insight. A red 5 speed w/o AC (I even drove one around a few hours one afternoon). If I find myself spending alot of time working in Seattle in the future I may buy one to commute with (this is where the Insight shines, IMO). I do with the Honda had a flatter power band in the ICE, and more noticeable electric assist. As far as safety goes, aluminum is nothing special for making a car safer. All Hondas (and Toyota cars) have quite good safety numbers. Most SUVs have quite poor safety numbers. Neon
