Can small Clarity battery last long if driving EV mode all the time?

[Landshark]

Yes, he might never say he drove 35 miles, but based on logic thinking since Clarity only has a 50miles range, we assume he drove 35 to 40 miles with EV.
This 11miles range left would never happen if he had BEV.

You really don’t understand this car.

I don’t assume he drove 35 miles, you do.

He said he got home after a long drive with 11 miles of EV range remaining. He may have driven 200 miles and used some of the EV range along the way. It has been mentioned many times that some Clarity PHEV owners attempt to arrive at home with very little EV range. We still have gas in the tank so we won’t be stranded by having no EV range.

Your suggesting that a BEV could never arrive at a destination with 11 miles is another incorrect assumption.

 

[DucRider]

The comments were not about your choice of vehicle.

Read it again. It’s not about you. Really.

Almost every statement that you’ve made in this thread indicates that you failed to do your due diligence prior to purchasing a vehicle. You made a poor choice. It’s no big deal. We all do it.

Once again, what does my choice of vehicle have to do with it?
It's always a bit odd when someone is closed minded and overly defensive about their choice of vehicle and adamantly asserts that no other choice would work for anyone. I have never said that a PHEV is never the right choice, but you seem to think that a BEV is always a poor decision. Insecurity perhaps?

I haven’t assumed anything. You’ve assumed that every BEV driver starts each trip with a fully charged battery, drives 35 or so miles and arrives at their destination with 50-350 miles of range remaining.

I have assumed nothing of the sort. It is indeed very likely that an BEV driver would start with a full charge, but some with longer range BEVs, may not - they could leave with only 300 miles of range as an example.
We are talking about a specific incident where it is fairly safe to assume the OP left with a full charge, but returned home with only 11 miles of range left. If he left with a full charge in any currently marketed BEV, he would have had plenty of range for that additional 14 miles. His assertion that a BEV would have made the trip impossible is flawed by the assumption that a BEV would have the same range limitation as the electric range of the Clarity PHEV.

BEVs have their strengths and weaknesses (as do PHEVs), but driving 60 miles in a day is not a stretch under almost any conditions.

 

[Landshark]

You claim you can charge the battery while driving, I wonder how often you drive that HV charged mode. Even you drive that mode, how much miles range you can get for the charge? Like 10 miles.

Read the manual buddy.

I don’t claim that I can charge the battery while driving. It’s a fact. It will charge the battery up to ~60% SOC. That‘s good for about 30 miles.

I don’t do it much because it is less costly for me to charge the battery with electricity than with gas. A number of owners charge almost exclusively using HV Charge because gas is cheap and electricity is high.

 

[Landshark]

Once again, what does my choice of vehicle have to do with it?

You are really not following along here.

I quoted the OP, not you, when I commented on his poor choice. Did you actually read the post?

He seems hellbent in his belief that a BEV would have been a better choice for him. Maybe it would. But it seems he didn’t really dig into the details or consider his needs before he bought a PHEV.

I don’t care what he drives or what you drive. A BEV does not suit my needs. That’s why I bought a PHEV.

I’m very secure in that decision as well as my other important life decisions. You may want to work on honing your Internet personality evaluation skills.

You’ve also misinterpreted my comments as somehow being a defense of my decision. You couldn’t be more wrong.

 

[Jimmy Vo]

You really don’t understand this car.

I don’t assume he drove 35 miles, you do.

He said he got home after a long drive with 11 miles of EV range remaining. He may have driven 200 miles and used some of the EV range along the way. It has been mentioned many times that some Clarity PHEV owners attempt to arrive at home with very little EV range. We still have gas in the tank so we won’t be stranded by having no EV range.

Your suggesting that a BEV could never arrive at a destination with 11 miles is another incorrect assumption.

This is not true, the poster said he had a full tank left. How did he drive 200 miles still have a full tank left. You then argue, he stopped to fill up the gas. You can do something with DC charger if you want (this is the only valid argument since DC chargers are less available then gas stations). Anyway, it's pointless to cheery pick one particular special case, how often you get into situations like that. We have to talk in general, in general, people with BEV would never have an issue with 11miles left after a drive. But with PHEV people do, you always have 11 miles left after a drive since your PHEV battery range is only 50 miles.

 

[Jimmy Vo]

I don’t care what he drives or what you drive. A BEV does not suit my needs. That’s why I bought a PHEV.

This is a valid argument. It comes down to a person's needs. No point to make an argument further. Point well taken, no argument here.
It's just you are trying to defend a non-valid 11 miles left scenario, hence we try to discuss a little further.

 

[Landshark]

This is not true, the poster said he had a full tank left. How did he drive 200 miles still have a full tank left.

He did not say that he had a full tank, only that he was able to drive the 25 miles using the gas engine.

I don’t know how far he drove prior to arriving at home with 11 miles of EV range. I would not assume that he had just driven 35-40 miles in EV. There are any number of possibilities.

You seem fixated on the 50 mile EV range. Were you unaware of this when you decide to purchase the car?

 

[Jimmy Vo]

He did not say that he had a full tank, only that he was able to drive the 25 miles using the gas engine.

I don’t know how far he drove prior to arriving at home with 11 miles of EV range. I would not assume that he had just driven 35-40 miles in EV. There are any number of possibilities.

You seem fixated on the 50 mile EV range. Were you unaware of this when you decide to purchase the car?

Have a great day, Landshark. I know you enjoy your Clarity. Me too, I do enjoy it, it's a great car after all.

 

[Landshark]

It's just you are trying to defend a non-valid 11 miles left scenario, hence we try to discuss a little further.

How is it not a valid scenario?

Do you believe it is not possible for a BEV owner to ever arrive at a destination with 10, 20 or 30 miles of range?

Is it not possible that an emergency could arise and they might need to drive home, perhaps a distance that exceeds their range, before they had an opportunity to charge the battery?

Is it not possible that they could arrive at a destination, expecting to be able to charge, and there is a power outage?

We can’t dismiss something as invalid simply because we don’t believe it could happen. I mentioned previously that a number of coworkers regularly show up on Monday with as little range as possible on their BEV’s. The plan is to charge up at no cost, drive all week and charge up again on Friday. If there’s a fly in the ointment their plan will melt like an ice cream cone on the 4th of July. It isn’t likely, but it is possible.

 

[Jimmy Vo]

How is it not a valid scenario?

Do you believe it is not possible for a BEV owner to ever arrive at a destination with 10, 20 or 30 miles of range?

Is it not possible that an emergency could arise and they might need to drive home, perhaps a distance that exceeds their range, before they had an opportunity to charge the battery?

Is it not possible that they could arrive at a destination, expecting to be able to charge, and there is a power outage?

We can’t dismiss something as invalid simply because we don’t believe it could happen. I mentioned previously that a number of coworkers regularly show up on Monday with as little range as possible on their BEV’s. The plan is to charge up at no cost, drive all week and charge up again on Friday. If there’s a fly in the ointment their plan will melt like an ice cream cone on the 4th of July. It isn’t likely, but it is possible.

Again, have a great day, Landshark. Enjoy the upcoming labor day holiday, I wish you have a great holiday.

 

[Landshark]

Have a great day, Landshark.

I will, thanks.

Perhaps after the restful holiday, you and Duc might entertain the idea of answering some of the questions I’ve asked, so as to explain your positions.

I’ll understand if you don’t want to talk about it.

 

[Jimmy Vo]

I will, thanks.

Perhaps after the restful holiday, you and Duc might entertain the idea of answering some of the questions I’ve asked, so as to explain your positions.

I’ll understand if you don’t want to talk about it.

LOL, for the third time, please have a great day, Landshark. Let's enjoy the holiday

 

[Landshark]

LOL, for the third time, please have a great day, Landshark. Let's enjoy the holiday

I read your words, the first time and the second time. There’s no need to repeat them.

If you’d like to end the discussion, just say so. I prefer being direct, and my feelings won’t be hurt if the conversation continues or ends.

 

[Jimmy Vo]

I read your words, the first time and the second time. There’s no need to repeat them.

If you’d like to end the discussion, just say so. I prefer being direct, and my feelings won’t be hurt if the conversation continues or ends.

Let's just end the discussion. I feel you have your point of view that are different than mine, but that does not mean you are wrong or I am wrong. It's just different views and different opinions. As you said, it comes down to personal choice, if you think the car is good, then is good. Someone just buys the Clarity just for the look and it's perfectly fine. I believe many people buying the Clarity, not just for PHEV vs BEV, they bought it because it's Honda, because of its look, because of money and ect...
The way you see BEV is different, then that's perfectly fine too. BEV has some flaws, if you don't live in California as I do, then BEV is bad since public charging is limited. Therefore, the discussion PHEV vs BEV will lead to nowhere, it's all depending on personal's preferences and the charging infrastructure available for them. With that say, good discussion though. Your points are well taken as well.
My philosophy about life is very simple. If you pay something that you rarely used, then it's a waste. That's why I question myself after I have driven for 1 month without using gas. And it seems to me am not alone, since many posters have also claimed they never had to put up gas. But still, if they still like their situation to have gas as a backup even though they rarely use it, it's perfectly fine. it's all about personal preferences.

 

[DaleL]

All batteries degrade over time and with use. I have a little over 27,000 miles on my 2018 Clarity PHEV which is almost 2.5 years on the road. When new, I could drive the car almost 60 miles in gentle driving, 45 mpg or so. Now I am lucky to get 52 miles on a fully charged battery. As a result, I believe that my battery has lost between 10 and 12% of its original capacity. From what I can determine, Honda considers normal degradation to be up to 33% over the 8 year/100,000 high voltage battery warranty period. Typically EV batteries degrade more rapidly during the first year or two of use. A 33% degradation would result in just a 35 to 40 mile EV range.

The good news is that the Clarity is also a good hybrid car.

"Greater-than-normal degradation is covered for 8 years or 100,000 miles, and can be determined by an authorized Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid dealer."

This is an update to my 2020 post. I now have over 50 thousand miles. My Clarity has less efficient Pirelli tires. I still can get 47 miles in gentle driving. This indicates about 80% of the original battery capacity, maybe a bit more. I'm planning on ordering a 2023 Ford Mach-e and trading in or selling my Clarity. I expect that considering the $4,000 used car tax credit for a buyer, I should get a good trade in value.

 

[David Towle]

I want to ask the opposite question versus what many have asked. Say you check the battery at 90k miles and you are within 5% of the Honda replacement criteria. What can you do to degrade the battery in the remaining miles so you qualify for a free replacement on the warranty? I would guess:

1. Drive electric as much as possible.
2. Charge as fast as possible
3. Don't charge the battery until the gas engine comes on.

Anything else?

 

[insightman]

This is an update to my 2020 post. I now have over 50 thousand miles. My Clarity has less efficient Pirelli tires. I still can get 47 miles in gentle driving. This indicates about 80% of the original battery capacity, maybe a bit more. I'm planning on ordering a 2023 Ford Mach-e and trading in or selling my Clarity. I expect that considering the $4,000 used car tax credit for a buyer, I should get a good trade in value.

Knowing a buyer cannot obtain the $4K tax credit if they buy your Clarity from you, a dealer may not be as generous as they might have before August 16th. Dealers now have the upper hand and are no longer competing with private sellers.

 

[DaleL]

Knowing a buyer cannot obtain the $4K tax credit if they buy your Clarity from you, a dealer may not be as generous as they might have before August 16th. Dealers now have the upper hand and are no longer competing with private sellers.

A dealer, knowing that a buyer can obtain a $4k tax credit on a used Clarity, will expect to be able to sell the used Clarity for a higher price than a similar non-PHEV. This makes the Clarity more valuable in trade to the dealer. We shall see, but I think that used EV and qualified PHEVs will have a higher trade-in value. I think the intent of the Inflation Reduction Act in this area is to encourage people who own an older EV or qualified PHEV to trade them in. Thus producing an availability of used green vehicles.

I want to ask the opposite question versus what many have asked. Say you check the battery at 90k miles and you are within 5% of the Honda replacement criteria. What can you do to degrade the battery in the remaining miles so you qualify for a free replacement on the warranty?

I don't think it is possible to artificially degrade the battery. The car itself limits charging to level two. Lithium Ion batteries don't like high temperatures or to have zero charge. If the car were stored for several months in a hot location with the high voltage battery depleted, then maybe the battery would age more rapidly without miles being driven.

 

[DucRider]

A dealer, knowing that a buyer can obtain a $4k tax credit on a used Clarity, will expect to be able to sell the used Clarity for a higher price than a similar non-PHEV. This makes the Clarity more valuable in trade to the dealer.

The dealer has no way of knowing if the eventual buyer will qualify for the credit (the income caps are lower than for new vehicles), and since everything seems to already be priced over the $25K cap, there is likely no increase in value to a dealer.
Also worth noting that since the Mach-e will probably not qualify for the $7,500 credit next year, the net price on that will probably match (or exceed) what dealers are getting with the ADM. Once the Secretary of the Treasury issues guidance on the battery mineral and component restrictions, it is unlikely that any manufacturer will be able to provide the required documentation to qualify.

 

[DaleL]

Once the Secretary of the Treasury issues guidance on the battery mineral and component restrictions, it is unlikely that any manufacturer will be able to provide the required documentation to qualify.

SK Innovation, a South Korean company, will provide Ford with batteries from its Georgia plants. The first 9.8 GWh plant is producing batteries this year. The second 11.7 GWh plant is scheduled to begin production next year. https://insideevs.com/news/419036/sk-innovation-2nd-battery-gigafactory-georgia/ May 20, 2021: "Ford and the battery supplier SK Innovation on Thursday announced a joint venture, called BlueOvalSK, that will manufacture battery cells and arrays in the U.S. for future electric vehicles." https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1132323_ford-ski-battery-joint-venture-american-evs-solid-state