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Honda unveils the 2019 Insight, its new upscale hybrid sedan

It'll sit in the lineup between the Civic and Accord hybrids.

Honda has debuted the 2019 Insight, an all-new hybrid sedan positioned in price between the Civic and Accord hybrids. Unlike the Clarity EV and plug-in hybrid, it's a so-called "series hybrid," with the 1.5 liter Atkinson-cycle gas motor acting as a generator to produce power for the propulsion motor and 60-cell lithium-ion battery pack. At higher speeds, a lock-up clutch engages the gas engine for more efficient highway and freeway driving.

The new insight has very little to do with the funky original Insight (1999-2006) and a later model produced between 2009 and 2014, other than they're all hybrids. It's a sedan rather than a hatchback, for one, and looks much more, er, conventional than the others. It uses the Civic platform, but has a longer wheelbase and battery positioning that allows for more passenger legroom and a bigger trunk. With 151 total horsepower and a lightweight structure, it offers the best power-to-weight ratio in its class, Honda says, along with a 55 mpg city mileage rating.

The Insight offers other driver perks you'd expect on a Honda, like a fully-independent suspension, variable-ratio dual-pinion electric power steering, and mechanical/regenerative braking "for ultimate stopping performance."

Honda notes that the Insight is the fifth electrified vehicle it has released in the last year, following the hybrid Accord and full EV and plug-in hybrid versions of the Clarity. Much like Toyota, however, Honda should be much further ahead in vehicle electrification, having beaten other automakers to the punch by miles with the original Insight and Clarity.