Because it's a hybrid, the familiar Honda starter hiccup has been replaced by the silent stirring of a 10-kilowatt DC electric motor. The 1.3-liter gas engine flickers to life only the moment your foot leaves the brake for the throttle. Driven normally, the Insight responds like a normal compact car-if you're used to the peculiar feel of a continuously variable transmission (CVT). Matting the throttle unleashes the full fury of motor and engine, though only the latter is heard; the busy buzz of a small-displacement four-cylinder mixed with a monotone CVT drone.
More fun comes from going green. Pushing the emerald-green ECON button on the dash initiates Ecological Drive Assist: a wide array of fuel-saving functions, including earlier idle-stop engagement, a smoothing out of throttle inputs and CVT operation, and more-efficient air-conditioning and cruise-control modes.