New Hybrid’s EcoAssist Option Sharpens Efficient Driving Skills

Hybrids already get great mileage, but you can save even more by using the same kind of driving habits that give you better mileage in your gasoline-engine car:

• Slow Down! - The aerodynamic drag on the car increases dramatically the faster you drive. For example, the drag force at 70 mph is about double that at 50 mph. So, keeping your speed down can increase your mileage significantly.

• Drive at a constant speed - Each time you speed up the car, you use energy, some of which is wasted when you slow the car down again. By maintaining a constant speed, especially when you are in traffic, you will make the most efficient use of your fuel.

• Avoid abrupt stops - When you stop your car, the electric motor in the hybrid acts like a generator and take some of the energy out of the car while slowing it down. If you give the electric motor more time to slow the vehicle, it can recover more of the energy.

 

The new 2010 Honda Insight’s feature called EcoAssist offers tools to help its driver monitor these factors of efficient driving. It makes driving like a fun video game, and you get an eco-score at the end of your drive.  Just press the econ button and your speed and braking and accelerating style will be monitored for efficiency. Behind the speedometer is a color which indicates efficiency of driving, there are bars that move either to the left or right as you brake or accelerate too abruptly, and little “leaf” symbols appear as you do a good job of driving efficiently, or disappear as you drive inefficiently.

 

To learn more about hybrid technology, click here.