I am ready to move up to a long range pure EV, but where is my path with Honda?
Well, couple thoughts. Like others definitely agree-- don't do brand loyalty, unless it makes sense. If Honda doesn't have a suitable offering, and another top tier provider does, yep that's an excellent reason to "jump ship" as in choosing some non-Honda brand. No knock on Honda, the Clarity is superior in my opinion for what it is and what is available at the moment.
I think before you go full-BEV, I guess I'd ask a few questions (rhetorical, and just for your personal consideration if helpful to you):
- Do you have a commute that's longer than say 30-40 miles?
- Do you occassionally do long road trips? i.e. 1000 miles or more?
- Do you get frustrated even thinking about waiting for your BEV car to charge?
- Do you have another vehicle you intend to keep (including Clarity) for the long trips?
In my case, I don't plan to own multiple cars for multiple purposes. I don't have the space and have no desire to buy insurance (or pay other necessary cost) for multiple cars. So I absolutely want one-car/vehicle fits all. My commute is 5 miles each way. I sometimes do 3000+ miles and think nothing of it (I enjoy driving). I hate even the thought of *ever, and I mean not even once* waiting for my freaking car to charge. I'd switch to full ICE before that. I do not have space or interest in keeping multiple vehicles.
So in my case the PHEV is not an intermediary vehicle. It is an absolute perfect match for what I want. If I can avoid it, I will not buy any BEV in the foreseeable future. That is, until BEV's either include 5000+ miles of range, or recharge times that match or beat gas fill up time.
So I do eventually plan to get another vehicle, and yep it will absolutely be a PHEV if at all possible. The PHEV to me is the destination, not a pit stop along the way. It really is the best of all worlds. And as you've maybe guessed by now, I do care about environmental concerns, but only to the point where the option is practical. And waiting even more than 20 minutes for any 'refill' is a complete non-starter for me (i.e. the multi thousand-mile trips, the stop time does matter). I love that my Clarity fills up at the pump in a few minutes total, and off I go.
And of course to each their own. If for your criteria a BEV is the next step, all the power to you! (sorry for the bad pun). As for me. I'm already driving my dream-car.
-Dan