Inventing elegant solutions to complex problems is a Honda specialty. When the first hybrids arrived in the U.S., Honda beat Toyota to the market, barely, by simply installing a pancake AC motor ahead of the engine’s flywheel. That design, called Integrated Motor Assist, was compact and efficient but didn’t offer pure-electric drive until 2006. Now that hybrids are evolving into plug-in hybrids, Honda has created a new, two-motor powertrain layout that’s also nothing like the intricate CVT-based drive system found in the original Prius and many subsequent hybrids. READ MORE ››