Anytime there is a good idea someone copies it.  Major movies companies spy on each other then quickly steal ideals from their competitors…..think Deep Impact and Armageddon, Bugs Life and Ants, Volcano and well I can’t think of the other one right now; but you get my drift.  So it was not really a shocker when the new Honda Insight looks exactly like the Toyota Prius.  Well, why did the Honda engineers copy, I mean decide upon the wedge shape.

Well first, the shape of the Prius has a low drag coefficient.  So exactly what does that mean?  The more aerodynamic the shape of something; say a plane, the less wind resistance there is holding it back.  Think about the Space Shuttle for instance.  The Shuttle has a wedge shape that allows it to cut through the atmosphere.  Well the shape of the Toyota Prius net the best economy possible based on shape.  If the Prius was shaped like a Hummer it would hinder its fuel economy.  So the Prius has a drag coefficient of 0.25 according to wikipedia;  which is lower than a Lotus, Porsche, Lamborghini, and Ferrari.  Actually it has the lowest coefficient of any mass marked vehicle on the road.  So Honda was smart in taking the wedge shape into account when designing the Insight.  And just so you know the Insight nets a 0.26 drag coefficient.

So the other reason is the status.  When you see a Prius you instantly know that the driver is an individual who cares about the environment and therefore is better than you.  That shape is what perspective hybrid owners seek.  So buy an Insight and people will instantly love you.