The word unusual doesn’t begin to describe what has been called the first gas-electric hybrid vehicle in the United States, the Honda Insight. It’s tiny, it’s a two-seater, it has rear fender skirts, and it’s available with a five-speed manual transmission, which this one has. The seller has this future collectible, first-year, five-speed 2000 Honda Insight posted here on craigslist just south of Everett, Washington, and they’re asking $3,900. That’s a steal, by the way. Here is the original listing, and thanks to Rockin’ & Rollin’ Rocco B. for the great tip!

Don’t laugh at the title. Whether you like hybrids or not (and I know a lot of you don’t, for whatever reason), or like their owners or not, you can’t argue with the fact that a first-year model of the first hybrid sold in the U.S., especially one with a five-speed manual, is a future collectible. It just is. Now, to come up with a timeline on when that will come true is the next challenge. If any of us could predict such things, we wouldn’t be reading about old cars on a website; we’d be in one of our many 49,000 sf mansions around the globe, living the life, because three decades ago, we would have predicted eBay, Apple, and Amazon stock would go through the roof and would have put everything we owned into that stock. For the rest of us, we live our little lives and speculate on which vehicles will rise in value or not. Some of us don’t even do that; we just watch Brady Bunch and eat canned beans. I mean, from what I hear.

Honda made their first Insight from 1999 for the 2000 model year, until 2006, and if this were a rare and desirable Citrus Yellow (lime green) example, I bet this listing wouldn’t have even made it one day. That’s the color you want. For $3,900, though, who really cares what color it is, just so it runs great, the hybrid system works as it should, and it has a five-speed manual. This one checks all of those boxes. This color is Silverstone, just for the record. We’ve only seen one Honda Insight here on Barn Finds, which I wrote up back in May, and I tried my hand at making a four-door version. They only came with two doors from the factory, until the second Insight, which only came with four doors. Speaking of four, the seller has only included four photos, so we don’t get to see the rear cargo area, but – are you sitting down? – they’ve included an engine photo!

There it is in all its glory. “Drop a ___ in it, Gilby!” No, don’t do that. Well, I have to admit it would be one of the best sleepers of all time, but the whole point of this car was to test gas-electric technology and to get the most MPG possible. Car and Driver only got 48 mpg while testing one for a few months, but that’s pretty good. Obviously, like me when I drive my hybrid, I slam the H out of it so I’m not that guy in a #$% hybrid. This engine is Honda’s whopping 1.0-liter IMA (Integrated Motor Assist) SOHC inline-three, which puts out 73 total horsepower, including the 13 hp that the battery pack and electric motor add to the mix. The seller says this one runs and drives well, the AC and heat work as they should, the hybrid system all works as it should, and they’re getting around 54 mpg on average. It does have some clear coat issues on the roof, and there’s a crack in the windshield by the rearview mirror, and it’s a bit “sticky” shifting out of 5th gear. I’m assuming due to the incredible velocity of the car by that point. No, I don’t know what that would be; the linkage could just need to be adjusted, maybe. Any thoughts on this little first-year Honda Insight?