Jeremy Clarkson calls Honda Insight "Biblically terrible"

The one thing Jeremy has always been good at is sugar coating everything. I really wish he would let us all know where he stands on something... :lol:

 

This is the guy who had a series I prius shot by a redneck.
Nuff said.

 

I think I dozed off while reading. Did he say he liked the Insight?

 

He has killed many cars, from Wikipedia:

Clarkson is known for destroying his most hated cars in various ways, including catapulting a [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nissan_Sunny"]Nissan Sunny[/ame] using a [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trebuchet"]trebuchet[/ame], dropping a [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porsche_911"]Porsche 911[/ame] onto a caravan (after plunging a piano onto the bonnet and dousing it in hydrochloric acid, amongst other things), allowing his American friend "Billy Bob" to destroy a [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Prius"]Toyota Prius[/ame] by shooting it with an arsenal of weaponry, shooting a [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Corvette"]Chevrolet Corvette[/ame] with a [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attack_helicopter"]helicopter gunship[/ame], or dismantling a [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buick_Park_Avenue"]Buick Park Avenue[/ame] with a [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulldozer"]bulldozer[/ame]. In Jeremy Clarkson: Heaven and Hell (2005), he purchases a brand new [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perodua_Kelisa"]Kelisa[/ame], proceeds to attack it with a sledgehammer as soon as he purchases it from a local dealership, tears it apart with a heavy weight while it is hanged and finally blows it up. He described the Kelisa as "Built with no soul, no flair and no passion; like a washing machine or fridge" and "A piece of un-imaginative junk"

 

He reads like Gordon Ramsay.. a self-inflated blowhard.

 

If he criticizes and ridicules the Honda Insight (as he did with the Prius on numerous occasions) then the Insight must be one heck of a good car and his scorn of it is a definite ringing endorsement.

Besides being the poster boy for much of what is wrong, Jeremy does manage to be entertaining... at least for those of us who tune in to that kind of humor.

Cheers;

MSantos

 

So true!

 

It's because he is British. The Brits are a reserved lot.

 

As stated above ... he's entertaining ... in a train wreck sort of way. You know it's horrible, but it's hard to look the other direction.

 

That was 17 MPH since I wanted the larger audience to relate to it.

Anyhow, I can hook electric only at any speed above 20 km/h (same as the HCH-II) and keep it there for as long as the SoC allows. You'll also notice that I lost it momentarily when the car went over a road bump - yes, it requires a steady foot. You will also note that the amount of EV I was using was very little and just enough to keep the speed. Had I used more of it, then it would have gained more speed at the cost of the usual SoC penalty.

Cheers;

MSantos

 

So, does "Biblically terrible" imply plagues of locusts? Fire and rocks falling from the sky? Does the car turn into a pillar of salt? Inquiring minds want to know!

 

Yes, a steady foot is required and most first time drivers will simply not get it.
This is true for all IMA's with drive-by-wire and once you hone in your foot skills the rest is easy and fun to come by.

In other words, forget about engine break-in. That has been and continues to be seriously overrated when talking about these cars. It is the driver break-in that is the real key to improved FE.

Anyway, if you switch the playback to HD you may see the readings on the scangauges which also show the fuel consumption at 0L/100km. I suppose I know why you call it a quasi-EV mode and I understand.
But, as it has been for the last 3 years, these vehicles can be exclusively powered from the energy stored in the battery pack from 20km/h all the way up to 100+ km/h... and there is no "if and but" about it.

Cheers;

MSantos

 

I don't want to bring attention to Clarkson, who feeds off the indignation he deliberately provokes, but in logical terms, surely the oft-spoken "what about all the energy used during manufacturing" argument must be a fallacy. If 70% or whatever silly number of the energy used over the lifetime of a car is used during manufacturing, why are cars so cheap to buy?

 

Never liked that jerk anyways.
The way he tests cars, Priuschat members would be better people to use then that jerk.

 

When it comes to Life Cycle Analysis, to me at least, this is the only thing that matters:

2007 Toyota and Honda LCA's

As far as I can tell, nobody on the planet knows it better than Toyota and Honda, and that certainly does not include folks like Mr. Clarkson and Mr. Spinella.

Cheers;

MSantos

 

OMG I didn't realise you know who Jezza was in the US & Canada?

Especially considering his erm, love of the USA. I bet they haven't shown those episodes over your side of the pond!

Clarkson likes to wind people up, just in an eloquent way.

 

Clarkson reminds me of Pete Townshend for some odd reason. Maybe it's that whole guitar smashing thing...

But I think Pete is the better entertainer.