Automaker strives to catch rival Toyota with new gas-electric vehicle .
Honda will reveal a concept version of its new small hybrid vehicle, to be named Insight, at the 2008 Paris International Auto Show on Oct. 2.
Tokyo - Honda is bringing back the defunct Insight nameplate for a hybrid-only vehicle planned for the Japanese, European and North American markets early next year, as the automaker strives to play catch-up with rival Toyota in hybrids.
Toyota Motor Corp. has been wildly successful by promoting the Prius as a hybrid-only model — a move often praised as effective in highlighting its commitment to ecological technology.
But the industry view is still divided on devoting a model to a hybrid.
Nissan Motor Co. of Japan, which now buys its hybrid system from Toyota but is developing its own gas-electric technology, is less bullish about hybrid-only models. It has said it will instead likely offer a hybrid version of one of its standard gasoline engine vehicles.
Honda Motor Co. executives have repeatedly expressed their determination to come out with more hybrids.
Honda’s original Insight hybrid was introduced in 1999 but it was discontinued in 2006 after sluggish sales totaling a cumulative 17,000 worldwide.
Toyota, by contrast, has sold more than a million Prius cars over the past decade.
The reasons for the Insight’s failure to catch on are unclear, but relatively high pricing, its unusual styling and other reasons may be to blame. ‑
Tokyo-based Honda, Japan’s No. 2 automaker, will show a “concept model” of the Insight at the Paris Motor Show next month, Honda said in a statement Thursday.
It will be a five-door hatchback compact, whose design is based on the sleek FCX Clarity, Honda’s fuel cell vehicle, according to Honda.
“The name Insight was chosen to denote Honda’s ’insight’ into a new era in which hybrid vehicles come within reach of most car buyers,” the company said.
参考译文：
制造商努力追赶着他们最大的竞争对手丰田公司的新一代的混合动力油电汽车 。
本田公司将会在2008年10月2日的巴黎国际汽车展上推出他们的最新概念混合动力车，命名为Insight。
本田东京将曾经放弃了的名字Insight重新命名到这款纯混合动力车上，意味着本田将会努力的追赶丰田公司的混合动力技术，该款车最早到明年将会在日本本土，欧洲和北美上市。
同时，丰田汽车公司通过推进混合动力车普瑞斯获得了巨大的成功，这项举措一直被评为对保护我们周围的生态环境最有效的方法之一。
但是业内人士对混合动力的模式始终持有两种不同的观点。
日本尼桑汽车公司从丰田公司购买了混合动力系统同时也改进了自己的油电技术，但是仍然比不上纯混合动力的模式。但是它或许能够用混合动力理念来替代现有的汽油发动机技术。
本田汽车公司执行总裁已经重复的明确他们将在未来推出更多混合动力汽车的决心。
本田曾在1999年推出混合动力Insight但是在2006年停产，由于销售迟缓全球一共积压了17，000台。
但是与之形成鲜明对比的丰田公司却在过去的十年里卖出了超过一百万辆的普瑞斯混合动力汽车。
Insight的失败不是很清楚，但是可能是由于它高昂的价格和它奇异的外形还有其他一些被责备的原因。
本田东京，日本的第二大汽车制造商，将会在下个月的巴黎国际汽车展上展示他们全新的“概念型”Insight ，本田公司在本周三声明。
它将会是一款5门紧凑型汽车，基于FCX Clarity流线型的设计，燃料电池汽车，依照本田公司一贯的风格。
“选择Insight这个名字意味着本田的insight将会进入一个新的时代，更多的混合动力汽车将会沿伸到更多的汽车用户中。”本田公司说道。
（转载）
