Honda boosts Insight fuel economy by lengthening start-stop ability?

Honda has not yet given up in the entry-level hybrid fight. There’s the new, not-for-U.S. Jazz (Fit) Hybrid, for one thing, but the older Insight hybrid isn’t being left in the dust, either. Autocar reports that some of the lessons from the Jazz are being applied to the Insight – most importantly that the “stop” time of the Insight’s stop-start cycle can now be up to 90 seconds long in Eco Mode.

Because of “obscure patenting reasons” that made the system assume a worst-case humidity situation, the previous limit was just 30 seconds. This change can save a lot of gas in city driving. There are no new mile-per-gallon numbers to tout just yet, and the change isn’t likely to affect America’s EPA figures (the government agency’s test cycle doesn’t recognize the benefits of start-stop), but it’s a nice, green upgrade nonetheless.