2018 sales for Clarity.....

That's one whale of a tail… LOL

 

That was the same thinking my wife had. I would have considered holding out for the Model 3 since I was so happy with our Model S, but she wasn’t comfortable with the idea of having 2 cars tied solely to the electric grid.

I understood her reasoning, and one test drive of the Clarity made the choice easy.

 

I agree. Toyota went in a very odd direction with this design. The lines and angles are unnatural. However, some people think the Honda Clarity is the ugliest car on the road. People bash it's looks all the time. I think the Clarity is a very sexy car. Just a matter of taste.

 

Another thing - at least out here in the west - is that while we've gone off the beaten path several times in the Tesla, we've always got one eye on the range. And that's kind of a buzz kill. On the SuperCharger byways, range is never an issue, but there's lots of wide open spaces between those lines. While there are often good options with destination chargers that are off the main highways, that's not always a given. We've taken the Tesla up to 13,000 ft to camp in the Bristlecone Pines, and driven a 35 mile logging road through a redwood forest, but we always knew at the end of those trips we'd be in range of a Supercharger. We've had to leave the car out of other trips to some interesting areas in the Four Corners area as well as some areas in the Rockies because the range was too unpredictable (with all the uphill).



So having a second option not relying on the SC network seemed like the good plan for now. Driving to Dallas was kind of a pain because we had to go north in order to go south. A straight line route wasn't possible at that time. Additionally, now, the network in SoCal is so impacted by the increase in new Teslas that there's now often a wait just to get into a supercharger facility. Tesla has always sent us notifications when we're done charging, but now that notification comes with a warning that if we don't gtfo, we might incur some extra charges. So they've already got that one in place and ready to go. Just one more reason to have an extra option - of course, I do remember red flags, green flags and yellow flags as well as odd and even days when I was in high school. And there's no guarantee that can't ever return for gassers.

 

I went from having cold feet about my Model 3 reservation to a test drive in the PHEV Clarity today. I have to say that as a former owner of several Honda’s, this car gave me a very warm feeling. No worries about quality/fit/finish and the ride is excellent. Also a very nice looking car inside and out.

I bought a touring model in the metallic grey. I figure it will hold me over for two years until I can pick up a mature Model 3 or S. Or perhaps Honda will have an equally compelling BEV by then. Either way, I think I have a pretty nice ride for now.

 

Can’t argue with your logic, there’s no denying the high quality of the Clarity. I’m sure you’ll love it. Congrats! However if I had been left to my own devices, I still probably would have waited for the Model 3. Part of that may come from owning a Model S and the thrill in driving it that I’ve never experienced with any other car. OTOH, my wife was probably right about the logic, or lack thereof, of having two all electric cars.

Back to your point, I wouldn’t be surprised if the fit and finish of the Clarity is better than that of the early Model 3s. BTW, isn’t the Clarity the only Honda still made in Japan?

 

Gas prices are $3.43 in So Cal. Summer blend will kick it up to $4 pretty soon.

Clarity BEV
$899 down + $199/month
$2500 CA rebate
$450 SCE rebate
20,000 miles/year

I'll be using the full 60,000 mile allowance. I'm basically renting the car for free after gas savings. Depreciation is minimum $17,000, which Honda will eat.

 

That looks pretty compelling as a commuter car option.

 

I don't know if it's the only Honda/Acura made in Japan but the 2018 Honda Accords (made in Ohio) on the dealer lot last Dec. had serious workmanship issues. We were considering the Accord so we looked at them pretty carefully. I could see that gaps between body panels and some interior parts were not as tight as usual for Honda. The cloth and leather seats on the Accord had some loose, bumpy bits where the material should taut (different places on different cars) and the stitching was not perfectly straight. Then I looked at the Clarity and everything was absolutely perfect, in and out. Those Accords were the first ones delivered so I guess you have to expect some teething issues. The Clarity has been built at the same Japanese plant for more than a year now (Fuel Cell and BEV first) so they had time to iron out any issues.

 

Assuming 1000+ Honda Dealers across US, that's less than 1 Clarity sold per dealer on average in January. Should we expect to see some rebates / incentives soon? I am planning to put an offer for $2K less than MSRP for the Touring model here in Texas. Do I stand a chance?

 

I got $2000 off MSRP in Dec here in PA. Truecar says the average discount on a Touring is about $1800 in CA so you should stand a good chance.

 

We paid msrp for a Touring model in Tennessee in December. I said to the guy afterwards that I was concerned it would be gone before I could buy it, he said they were wondering how they were going to sell a car like that in Tennessee. I guess I made their Christmas. I would bet $2000 below could easily work for you now, or in the near future. Maybe wait until the next sale event.