Autobitz: Honda Insight EU Version

Honda Insight EU Version

Although the Honda Insight design team started with a blank piece of paper - in that this was a brand new model with no history - they faced many challenges in creating the exterior appearance of the Honda Insight.

On the one hand, as a low emission hybrid car, it had to express environmental credentials - it had to look like a 'green' car - but on the other hand it had to appear dynamic and fun to drive; part of Honda's key design principles. Above all, in line with the positioning of Honda Insight, the design had to appeal to a broad range of people.

"We wanted the car to be widely accepted," says Creative Chief Designer, Motoaki Minowa. "If we just created an environmentally-friendly car it could have looked dull, or boring. We wanted to insert a sporty factor to make the car more appealing - and after all, sportiness is in Honda's DNA."

While the 'greenness' of the car may have challenged the sporty direction of the overall design, in some areas it actually helped the dynamic cause. Because the newly-developed IMA system is more compact, it meant the nose of the car could be shorter, creating a snubbed, more aggressive look to the front end.