Report Says Honda to Withdraw Hybrids From Canadian Market
An article in Autoblog, based on an unconfirmed report from a Canadian web site, claims that both the Honda Insight and Honda Civic hybrid are to be pulled from the Canadian market. As an automobile journalist based north of the border I think this is unlikely to happen, although there is some substance to the claim that poor sales are to blame. The Insight has not sold well in North America and, in fact, has been panned by many journalists who feel that it doesn't match up to the Toyota Prius (ignoring that the Insight sells for a lower price). On the other hand, none have given it a long-term test drive except my friend Aaron Gold at About.com. Aaron put one through its paces for almost a year and came away with a positive review. In fact his only complaint is that the Insight gives him nothing to complain about.
As for the Civic Hybrid, I did a two-week test when the current model first appeared (which you can read here) and was more than happy with its performance and gas mileage. An average 50 mpg is not to be ignored.
In my view the reason Insight and Civic Hybrid sales have lagged can be blamed on inadequate advertising, in contrast to that given the Prius by Toyota. No one in my circle of acquaintances has ever heard of the Insight, and only one knew that the Civic could be purchased as a hybrid. That kind of awareness is enough to kill off any car. That said, I have to admit that the Insight suffers from "me too" styling, looking a bit too much like the Prius but with a lack of panache. It's the invisible car. And the Civic, while noticeable for its advanced design, has no features distinguishing the hybrid from the mainstream gas-only version. One is left with the impression that Honda backed into the hybrid business with reluctance, failing to provide the visual excitement that a technologically advanced vehicle needs in order to succeed.
The same Autoblog article says that "evidently Canadians just aren't taken with hybrids – even the mighty Prius has only found 2,272 Canadian buyers this year." Just don't tell my former test drive buddy Colin Hefferon that he isn't taken with hybrids; he purchased a new one a few months ago and is absolutely delighted with both the driving dynamics and the fuel mileage. The real truth is that the Prius, while certainly no best seller, has more than lived up to Toyota's expectations in Canada. Indeed, I only have to head over to Victoria International to see the large number of Prius taxis in use. That's been the case ever since a Vancouver cab owner bravely purchased a 1st-generation Prius, drove it over 250,000 trouble-free miles, bought a new 2nd-generation, and in doing so provided the west coast taxi fleets with all the encouragement they needed. Believe me, those drivers delivering passengers to and from YYJ would never go back to a non-electric vehicle.
I'm not criticising Autoblog's reporter here, but automobile journalists are inclined to be reactionary and there's a tendency to treat any vehicle that threatens the traditional internal combustion engine's role. We Canadians like small cars, we like hatchbacks, we buy Smarts. And we'll continue to buy the Toyota Prius because we like that, too.
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