In 2010, Honda is going put a lot of focus on fuel efficient vehicles.  They plan on making the Insight and the Civic use hybrid technology more efficiently.  The Insight, for example, has some great new tools that keep drivers informed on just how much fuel they are using and suggests ways of saving more fuel.  The new projector-beam headlights actually use less power but provide greater visibility.

The Civic uses an i-VTEC engine that has been paired with an Integrated Motor Assist gasoline-electric hybrid.  This makes the car perform better and get much better fuel economy.  The Insight and Civic also include a navigation system with a 6.5 inch monitor, an audio card reader for anyone wanting to listen to their tunes, and more.  The navigation system can be voice activated and controlled, allowing for hands-free use.

There is a growing trend among car manufacturers to go green—Toyota started it with the Prius, and now Honda and Nissan have both come out with hybrids of their own.  Nissan, in fact, recently announced plans to create an all-electric car that actually has zero emissions.  They believe that this technology is the future of cars.

While the Prius, Honda’s Insight, and other planned hybrids (a hybrid Yaris and Fit are both in the words) are smaller cars, Nissan is working on bringing hybrid technology to the luxury sedan.  The hybrid Infiniti will be launched next year as part of their new line.  Their all-electric car will, likewise, see launch in 2010 and will feature lithium ion batteries.

Honda’s new hybrid car, the Insight, looks like it may give the Toyota Prius a true run for its money.  The 2010 vehicle, which looks a lot like the Prius, is a small hatchback that can seat up to five.  The basic model features an 88-horsepower, four-cylinder engine with a 10-kilowatt electric motor and is priced at £15, 470, a few thousand less than the 2009 Prius.

However, the Insight is only estimated at getting 40 mpg city / 43 mpg open road, lower than the Prius.  It does, though, have several new bells and whistles that Honda hopes will appeal to the younger crowd, including a dashboard that resembles a video game display.

So with the credit crunch hitting (eugh, sick of that phrase)… we thought we’d put together a list of the cars with the fastest 0-60 times for under £20k. Whilst creating our new car comparison tool we had an opportunity to have a little play with some of the car data and this is what we’ve come up with for under £20,000.

We had UK spec car data available to us and we’ve chosen the top of the range car where possible.

The top 2 cars were not the most practical of cars for obvious reasons, so we’ve chosen to leave out the Westfield Sport and the Caterham Seven. Undoubtedly these are both great cars, but for the purposes of this chart we have omitted them both.

Ready..? Let’s go.

Honda Civic 2.0 Type R

5. Honda Civic Type R

Honda’s updated model of its excellent longstanding type R is a little bit bulkier than its predecessor, however coming in at around £18,000 and doing 0-60 in 6.6s puts the Civic at number 5 in our chart. The Honda Civic has always been a favourite amongst the hot hatch fans, and thanks to its performance deserves its position in our chart.

Seat Leon 5dr hatchback 2.0 TFSI Cupra

4. Seat Leon 2.0 TFSI Cupra

Possibly my favourite on our list is the Seat Leon Cupra. It looks great, it performs fantastically and is comfortable and well made. Perhaps even a 2009 purchase for me, I’m that much of a fan. This car just makes it into our chart’s price bracket at £19,545 and races to 60mph in 6.4s.

Renualt Megane 2.0T Renaultsport

3. Renault Megane 2.0T Renaultsport

This hot hatch is beefier than the Clio version and slips into our range at a price of about £19,395 and pushing itself from 0-60 in 6.3s. Perhaps one of the more understated hot hatches in terms of its aesthetics but handles very well, and is a great all-rounder.

Vauxhall Astra VXR

2. Vauxhall Astra VXR

The priciest car in our chart, edging the closest to our £20k limit. This looks great, accelerates hard, and is quite roomy. The only downside perhaps is that it’s the most likely to lose its value over any of the others in our chart. However, if that doesn’t really bother you (and to be honest, there won’t be much in it), then this will take you from 0-60 in 6.2s.

Mazda 3 2.3 MPS hatchback

1. Mazda 3 2.3 MPS

Looks can be deceptive, and our no.1 is deceptively quick. The quoted spec time for 0-60 is 6.1s, however word is that it can probably beat the 6 second barrier. That’s quicker than a Lotus Elise, which is pretty impressive. It’s perhaps not for the “hot hatch” fan who probably wants it to look as fast as it performs. However, the Mazda 3 2.3 MPS is a surprise package to appear at the top of our charts being the fastest car for under £20,000.

Reviews for all the cars

• Mazda 3 2.3 MPS
• Vauxhall Astra VXR
• Renault Megane 2.0T Renaultsport
• Seat Leon 2.0 TFSI Cupra
• Honda Civic Type R
  

Honda adds a 3rd hybrid to its range

Although not release until 2010 along with their CR-Z coupe hybrid, Honda will be putting out a Honda Jazz powered by Petrol and electric. With the size of a Jazz being relatively small anyway, the MPG and fuel consumption figures should be particularly special.

The engine will be a 1.3 litre with the addition of the electric motor and the expectation is the Jazz to get 80 miles per gallon. It’s good to see that Honda is out there making a concerted effort to add eco-friendly cars to their range.