Honda Insight delayed for here

Honda has pumped up the Insight as an affordable and frugal family car — and it looks like the major markets agree.

It hasn't yet been on sale for a month in the UK and it has already outsold the Toyota Prius — 229 sales to 198 — while in the US, Japan and Europe it has a waiting list. Honda UK sold 79 Civic Hybrids in the same three-week period.

Good news for Honda but it means supply can't match demand in its prime markets so Australia may have to wait.

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Honda Australia spokesperson Melissa Cross says "there's no timetable".

"It will be launched in 2010 but we can't tell you if it's in the first or second half," she said.

The Insight is cheaper than the Civic Hybrid with which it will share the Honda showrooms. Later, the CR-Z coupe will join the pair.

Part of the success of the Insight in the UK is the government's pro-active 15 per cent annual road tax reduction.

On top of its unofficial US fuel consumption of 5.2 litres/100km, it has a high forecast residual rate of 44 per cent and is exempt from London's Congestion Charge.

Honda has indicated the US economy may be incorrect, stating that it will match the Civic Hybrid at 4.6 l/100km.

Like the Civic version, the Insight has a 1.3-litre, four-cylinder engine mated to an electric motor to work together.

Honda's system in the Insight is a smaller, lighter, more powerful yet more frugal version of the Civic Hybrid powertrain.

Helping the fuel economy is the Insight's lightweight body that, with a drag coefficient of 0.28, is one of the most aerodynamic cars on the roads.

The battery is 31 per cent smaller and 35 per cent lighter than the unit in the Civic Hybrid.

Honda expects to sell about 7000 Insights in the UK this year.

The annual global sales target is about 200,000 units.