Featured Honda Clarity Plug-in

Do you just drive it in normal mode with a light touch on the accelerator or do you use the eco mode and regen paddles?

 

I use Eco Mode but only occasionally the paddles (like when a light turns red ahead of me). I don't find a lot more responsiveness in Normal, and basically Eco helps reinforce a gentle(r) throttle and acceleration. Just about the same way I drove my Prius III, but with more zip and smoother acceleration.

I have a sneaking suspicioun that as I get more comfortable with daily range I'll open it up a bit.

 

i hope it catches on!

 

That's much better than the Clarity, and there is some storage.

New Odyssey

 

i thought it was the clarity.

 

Wish there was more data on the Clarity - I am going to plug in the Scan Gauge II and begin collecting some data. I want to learn more about when/how the ICE gets triggered - whether or not it stays engaged or drops out (and when). I felt like I had a really good handle on the Pip as far as knowing how to game the system. So knowing how long ICE remains on - is it time or temp (like the Pip), what speed does ICE kick in for the different modes - that kind of stuff. Should be interesting.

 

The dealer by me still hasn't received their two Touring models yet. I wonder what is taking so long.

Edit: They just called me and said it is now scheduled to arrive in January. They checked around Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky and they are all on the same timetable.

 

Greetings, first time poster here.

Our silver Clarity PHEV Touring is only about 4 days old, but we're really enjoying it. This car replaces a Sonata PHEV and sits alongside my new (3 months old) Tesla S. This has been quite a year for us in the world of cars.

I'd agree with most everything dstrauss mentioned regarding the Clarity. What stands out to my wife and I are:

* Amazingly quiet car at virtually any speed
* Very well balanced ride and handling
* Handsome styling. In the first 2 days of ownership, we had, coincidentally, 2 BMW owners compliment us and ask about the car. It seems nobody knows what the car is. I actually never heard of the car only days prior to us actually taking ownership! We test drove the car and immediately fell in love with it. We wound up buying the same car we test drove...it was the only one at the dealership.
* Excellent fit & finish
* Cavernous trunk, the biggest I've ever seen on a PHEV with the exception of my Tesla...not sure which is bigger to be honest
* I call it our 'other Tesla', though obviously it's not nearly as fast.
* I was shocked to learn that the Clarity is actually heavier than my Tesla! I imagine that's the aluminum body of the Tesla that shaves off some pounds.
* My wife and I differ on the 'flying bridge'. She likes it for its open storage and I'm not crazy about the look
* Yes, buttons please on the radio, but at least there are steering wheel controls like on my Tesla. Geesh, these automakers have an aversion to buttons.
* We too would like a normal blind spot mirror instead of the lane watch. But my Tesla doesn't have on either and the onscreen indicator of cars in the Tesla's blind spot, shows up too late to be reliable. However adjusting your mirrors properly, pretty much eliminates blind spots.

In general we really love the car and kudos to Honda for developing a really nice, practical PHEV.

 

I'm really surprised by the lack of love for the Clarity's looks. With only 2 posts, I wasn't able to post the 'offending' remarks. However as I mentioned above, 2 BMW drivers complimented us on the looks of the car. IMO it's a far nicer looking car than almost any hybrid/PHEV on the road. I suspect many will find it much nicer when they see it in person, just as many that have seen the Tesla 3, indicate it too is much prettier in person.

As they say though, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.

 

External looks aren't very important to me. I ride inside and there is where my attention goes. But still I do like the looks of the Clarity.
When I see the white version I don't like it as much as the black, red, or green. Those dark colors blend with the black segments of the exterior. They look more elegant. But the white clashes with those black accents. Everyone's taste is different though.

All my life I've wanted a luxury car. This is it. We really like the Clarity. First and foremost we can drive free of gas most of the time. Second is the quiet interior. Third the comfort and smooth operation.

I am able to pick out the sound of the ICE when it is running. But I have not been able to feel when the ICE kicks on or shuts off. The other thing is the Clarity doesn't exhibit the high rev that the Prius does when accelerating. It's just a smooth quiet operation.

Great car.

 

We also have a Tesla Model S, so it's hard not to compare the two. I was a little surprised that both cars pretty much use the same tires - 245/45 R18 for Tesla and 235/45 R18 for Clarity.

I wanted a car for times when we KNOW we'll be off the beaten path. Tesla is great if you are close to the supercharger network. But there've been a few places we wanted to go where it'd be pretty much impossible. More places have destination charging now than a few years ago, but the PHEV should fill in the travel gaps nicely without range anxiety - and just as comfortably.

I wish Toyota would've made revisions to their Prime that were similar to the ones that Clarity introduced, for example: enhanced EV range to 50 miles, beefed up HP, toned down tech/star trek interior and just made the interior more comfortable. I drove the Prime, but it was just as much a dog as my 2012, and the fake Tesla screen - that does pretty much nothing a smaller screen could've accomplished- was just over the top ridiculous. However, the range on that vehicle is much better than the Clarity. My Clarity driving experience after the first few days has been great.

 

Yes, you can set the Clarity to automatically lock the doors as you walk away. My Tesla has the same feature. However if that’s not what you want it to do, that can be turned off in the Clarity.

I’ve noticed one minor bug and I’m wondering if others have this issue. The remaining charge gauge on the left of the instrument panel (the vertical graph) shows more charge remaining than actually exists. So if I’m actually at a 50% charge, the graph looks like it’s more at 65%-70%.

I’m not sure if this estimate will improve with more charge/discharge cycles.

 

How do you know that your charge is 50% when the bar graph shows 65-70%? Where did you get the 50% number?

 

From the numerical display that you can call up on the instrument panel (to the right of the graphical depiction) that can give you the miles remaining for both gas & electric.

If you started at a fully charged value of 44 and the numerical value now showing is 22, the graph should be at or close to 50%. That 22 numerical value is accurate since when it goes from 1 mile electric remaining to 0, the ICE kicks in. Further, when the numerical value shown is 22, that’s pretty much what I find is actually left. If I used the graph, I’d assume I have closer to 30 miles of electric when it’s actually 22.

The graphical display on mine is always overestimating the electric remaining and doesn’t ‘catch up’ until the electric is nearly depleted. As a result, I use the more accurate numerical value and disregard the graph.

I’m hoping this corrects over time.

 

One other thing I've noticed that has me scratching my head. Our previous Hyundai Sonata PHEV only had an electric range of about 25-27 miles. However if we had used say 6 miles of that range, recharging to full took only about 35 minutes to replenish that 6 miles. On the Clarity, recharging that same 6 miles, takes about 1 hour & 15 minutes.

I'm using the same 240v 20amp charging circuit that I used on the Sonata. It's not a big deal, but it is an oddity I can't figure out, unless that onboard Clarity charger doesn't accept as fast a charge as the Sonata did. I suppose it's also possible the Clarity knocks down to a trickle charge once a certain battery level has been obtained. I know I should upgrade to 40 amps, but it's what I have now.

BTW, the most I've seen on a full charge thus far, is 44 miles on electric. However I assume that's because here in N.Y., we've had temps in the 30s & 40s. You normally expect less of an electric range with the colder weather.

When all is said and done, we're really loving the car.

 

it's not just EV - non renewable fuel burners have the same dynamic. The colder it gets, the worse the efficiency. Not that I'd ever wish Sub-Zero temperatures on anyone, but in that kind of weather? Fun fact; electrons don't even like to be pushed INTO a battery at all.
Okay, maybe that's not so fun.
.

 

The manual says charging is slowed on purpose when the battery nears full charge. I can see that effect on our JuiceBox Level 2 graphs. It was running about 28 amps @ 240V when the battery was lower, then dropped down rapidly to only about 4 amps when it got closer to full.

I would agree that starting at 44 miles EV range, using 1/2 of that range the battery might show aboutt 50%. But that assumes the output is linear.

 

Yes, slowing the rate of charge makes sense. Can you tell at what % full this slowing takes place?

Today I started at 44 miles of electric range, and even though I had dropped to 37 miles, the graphical depiction still showed a full charge! I understand the graph may not be linear, but you'd still think that dropping 7 miles of range would have at least ticked off one block from the graph. It seems the numerical readout is far more precise, and does seem to react in a far more linear manner than the graph.

At any rate, as I mentioned before, I have come to realize you really need to use the instrument gauge numerical readout of range to get a more accurate range assessment.