Honda’s first commercial hybrid—the first hybrid to go on sale in America—was the Insight. The two-seat coupe looked more like a Star Trek prop than a regular car. The Insight’s faired-in rear wheels and sharply-sloping glass hatch stood out at the parking lot. It looked sufficiently different that in Jet Li’s The One, it was cast as part of an alternate universe—without changing anything on the car.

The Insight met with limited commercial success, selling no more than 14,000 units. It was designed primarily as a real-world test bed for the technology and the marketing. Honda then decided to go for a mainstream audience with its follow-up car; its next hybrid was a variant of the Honda Civic. Honda installed an innovative drivetrain in its most popular model, boosting its mileage and drastically lowering its emissions.

Though that model was not introduced in the Philippines, Honda Cars is contemplating the introduction of the current Civic Hybrid. The new car was demonstrated as part of Honda’s forum on alternative fuels and propulsion technologies held in October.

Outside, it’s the familiar Civic with the Cylon scowl that we’ve come to admire. The most obvious distinctions are the aerodynamic wheels designed to reduce drag, and the trunklid spoiler. Without the large Department of Energy (DOE) decals on the flanks, the only identifying mark is the small “Hybrid” badge on the trunklid.

The cabin is also standard-issue Civic: large interior room, pleasingly tactile materials, split-level instrument panel. A gauge beside the tachometer indicates whether the electric motor is helping to accelerate the car or charging the batteries. The temperature bar-graph has also been replaced with a fuel economy gauge. Directly behind the rear seat is the NiMH battery, inverter, and control unit. The assembly eats up some of the trunk space.

To Honda’s probable annoyance, the original Civic Hybrid was called a “partial hybrid” in contrast to the “full hybrid” Toyota Prius, as the Civic couldn’t run on the electric motor alone. Even in this model, when you turn the key, you have the conventional start up sequence with the gasoline engine firing up. The gasoline powerplant combines two of Honda’s fuel-efficiency innovations. i-VTEC variable timing, as used in the S2000, allows valves to vary their lift and timing for optimal power at different rpm. Dual sequential ignition, as used in the City 1.3, uses two spark plugs per cylinder for more efficient combustion, resulting in high torque at lower rpm.

Aside from the low-drag alloy wheels, it's hard to tell the difference between a regular Civic and the Civic Hybrid.  But that's what it's designed to do: look normal.