Choosing between a 2010 Insight EX and a 2010 Prius II

Hello!

We've been looking at the 2010 Honda Insight EX Non-Navi since it came to town in March. But we're now considering a 2010 Prius II for almost the same price.

Of the Insight trims, we found that the EX hit our sweet spot for $21970 including destination. It adds a 6-speaker stereo w/ ipod/USB port, cruise control, traction control, and alloy wheels. There is a higher trim that includes a Navigation unit, but that's another $1800, and hardly worth for us. As a straight-rip out of another Honda vehicle, its rectangular shape looks downright cheap when framed by the curvy space where the standard radio would have gone.

So, when the new pricing and trim info was released, I was excited to see the Prius II has everything the Insight EX has plus more -- especially when it came to power, space, and overall fit-n-finish -- all for just $22750 (MSRP + Delivery). Only $800 more for an arguably better vehicle.

But there's that tiny matter of the USB port.

In order to get a USB port on a 2010 Prius, you have to buy a more expensive Prius III ($23750 w/ delivery), add Navigation for $1800, and then $300 for the USB hardware itself. That's almost $26000, just to enjoy line-level audio, view track info, and safely control an ipod or thumbdrive. For the extra $3250 over the Prius II (and $4000 over the Insight EX), we could enjoy a pretty navigation unit, slightly better audio system, and bluetooth and XM features we will never use.

To be fair, the Insight does not have steering wheel controls at all for audio unless you get the "EX w/ Navi" model for $23770 w/ destination, but my gripe is more about the Prius lack of USB port than the non-Navi Insight's lack of steering-wheel audio controls.

Clearly, I'm nit-picking, but for $300-400 a month, I want to be happy w/ my purchase. I suppose in the end, my Prius USB issue would be moot if there were an Ice-Link or similar aftermarket solution for the Prius II.

Aside from the wheels and USB port, the Prius II seems a better value than the Insight EX even if it costs $800 more. Then again, $800 is $800 and there's not much that differentiates the two cars to me. On the other hand, the cars are priced close enough and the MPG is high enough in the Prius that the difference would be made up in a realistic timeframe.

My other considerations:

• The Prius has more power than the Insight. Would I notice it, though?
• Prius II's wheel covers vs. the Insight EX alloys. Are there pictures of the Prius II wheel options?
• Prius central gauge cluster vs Insight's more conventional though still "futuristic" appreach. Coming from conventional cars and trucks, either car will take time getting used. Probably more so w/ the Prius.
• Prius A/C can run even when the ICE isn't running -- something nice to have in a hot summer of stop-and-go traffic. Insight's will only run while the ICE does. (Or something like that.)
• Availability. Will dealerships stock naked Prius II's, or is the $22,000 MSRP just marketing BS? As long as gas prices stay this "low", I can get the Insight EX any day of the week.
• Smart Key and Push-button start is a non-feature. The Insight's key-plus-remote is good enough for me. I wouldn't be surprised if those were taken off the Prius I trim.
• Don't really care that the backseat is more comfortable in the Prius. I won't be sitting there, and rarely will anyone else.
• Cargo space. The Insight would be just fine for groceries and other everyday needs. We have another vehicle for larger loads.
• Handling/ride. I'm leaning towards the Insight here simply because I prefer the Civic and Accord over the Corolla and Camry.
• Color. The Insight's non color-keyed bumper really bothers me unless it's against white/silver/grey/black paint. I'm leaning towards the Polished Metal (grey) anyway, so that's not a big deal.
• MPG numbers. I honestly won't be doing too much hypermiling, but I don't think I'll be much of a lead-foot either. So I think more realistic MPG figures for me would be around 45-50 in the Insight and 55-60 in the Prius. Using the 50 and 60MPG figures and a 10,000 mile year, I'd save 34 gallons a year. At $3/gal (let's not kid ourselves about $2 gas) that's only $100 a year. I'd break even on the Prius II (instead of an Insight EX) after 8 yrs. Of course this is just a guess. The point is that at MSRP, the Prius II is close enough in price to the Insight EX to be a worthy alternative.

 

Thanks for the link to your spreadsheet. Nice job! :thumb: And a very good point about the cargo cover. One minor correction: the Insight does have standard Active Head Restraints. I don't have enough posts to create a hyperlink, but it's there on the Insight product page under Featurs > Safety > Driver's and Front Passenger's Active Front Head Restraints

 

You're correct. The standard aux port will probably suit most people just fine. I'm just spoiled by the USB/ipod connector on the aftermarket stereo in my Sequoia :blush:.

Two reasons why I prefer the USB link: 1) The audio quality is cleaner. No fumbling w/ the ipod volume to get the song loud and clear w/o being so loud that it clips/distorts. 2) Control MP3 playback from the head-unit (or in the Prius, from the steering wheel). Safer, and I don't have to take my driving gloves off in the winter to handle the ipod -- especially my iPod Touch.

To each their own. I was just hoping Toyota would have made this issue much easier for me, a budget-minded consumer w/ a thing for USB connections

 

Thank you for the warm welcome and thoughtful response.

If I do get a Prius, I'm more convinced than ever that it will be a plain vanilla Prius II with an aftermarket USB/iPod connector.

I see what you mean about the Insight and Prius instrumentation vs the mini/yaris/ION. By comparison the Prius doesn't seem all that bad. I still don't understand why it's not fully "left-aligned," but I'm sure that's explained more than once elsewhere on this site. The Touch-Tracer is a neat trick. I wonder if that works even with gloves on.

I might be wrong, but I now think that the Insight stops the ICE when A/C is running but only in "ECO" mode. Either way, the Prius A/C does have the advantage of being fully independent of the ICE.

Regarding color-keyed bumpers, the Insight's bumper is invariably grey, regardless of the actual body. In the prototypes, this was actually chrome, but that was dropped for cost (and weight?) reasons. Chrome would have looked better and allowed for a more exciting color palette beyond the current white/grey/silver/black/red/blue options. The Prius is obviously one color all around.... Except for behind the Toyota emblem on the nose? Is it always blue there?

Thank you again for your responses. I look forward to spending more time here and learning more ins-and-outs of the Prius.