Clarity Issues

Highest range I've seen so far is 50.7 miles Got 50.1 EV miles driving conservatively in Econ mode. Heater was off since temp was ~64deg.

 

No, I drove around all morning with temps from around 4 or 5 F without the engine starting at all. It definitely appears tied to battery temperature. Similar times when it reduces the charge rate to 4kw. I have crossed 10F many times and seen no difference in engine starting or not. It doesn't behave at all like the Volt that starts as soon as it hits an ambient temperature setting of 15, 25, or 35 depending on setting or year.

 

Something I read but can't seem to find now said: the engine will run when the temperature is 14 F or below. Once the engine starts, it will continue to run until it has warmed up.

 

This is very interesting. Was it in heated garage when you first started it? So, perhaps the ICE decides whether to start based on some other factor?

 

What’s with all you guys READING THE MANUAL?

 

So, this morning, I noticed something strange. After the car warmed up in my ultra-cold climate, the engine turned off to run on EV according to the energy usage display. However, the dash gauge still showed a white line instead of a blue line, suggesting it was NOT being powered by the battery, but by the ICE (which was not "lit up". What could this mean? The pictures are not very good, but I assure you that even though the engine appears "lit up" in the picture, it was not. It was lit up earlier but then shut off, with the power line still showing white.

 

I had the same thing a few days ago. The white dither section of the power line means that the ICE can turn on or it can stay in EV. I think the computer gets confused at times.

 

There is NO END to the confusion in this little jewel:

Today on an all HV trek to Monahans TX (60 miles away) I only lost 3 miles of EV range but GAINED 2.3 miles of range on the way back...

After three long trips with consistent loss of EV battery range, this is a real head scratcher - some new variables:

1. 75-80 mph speed limits, but multiple construction slow downs (35-55 mph) going there
2. Same speed limits but fewer slow downs on way back
3. Beautiful 68 degree day with no winds

Go figure...

 

I've been able to drive at least 53 EV miles (actual - the ScanGaugeII is not recording RPM) over my past 5 charges. The range for those charges was between 53.0 to 57.1 mi. The weather's ideal right now - daytime temps between 68ºF–82ºF so no use of AC or heat. (I know, it's not fair… but it does account for the range I think.)

I was also successful in replicating HV dropping the EV range to 36-37 miles before it somehow stops using EV range. So at least over the past few repeated trials, I'm seeing the same EV and EV/HV behaviors.

 

68°F-82°F in February? Where do you live? I want to move there.

 

Far southwest corner of the Continental US… Even though we often have sunny Jan/Feb, it's unusually warm weather for us this winter. And still no rain.

 

Question for fellow Clarity owners - I am getting a constant wind noise coming from the area of the drivers side
mirror at speeds above 35mph. Nothing from the passenger side though. Is anyone else having this issue?

Also, today I drove 55.7 actual miles before the ICE kicked in. Raleigh Durham area and the temp was an unusual 68 degrees.

 

Yes - Mine will go to 48 or 48.5 miles on full charge with a level 1 charger. But its warm here - the garage is 50F or more.

 

After about 5 weeks of local use, running in EV with only overnight charges from a level 1 charger, we finally took a long trip of 683 miles to the Orlando area. The weather was warm, with AC on. We were in high-speed freeway mode most of the time but had intense local traffic and local construction for a few hours total. I used HV charge for only one short leg of the trip. Correcting for the electric charge I put in before I left home, the gas mileage we got was 40 mpg. That is great as far as I'm concerned. The car was extremely quiet, comfortable and reliable for the entire trip.
I have only 2 serious observations (gripes) out of all of this:
1 - As everyone else has noted, the HV range software has a serious bug that needs repair. (I kept thinking of fuel range algorithms on over-water aircraft.)
2 - The GPS shows 2 very different distances: One when you pick a saved destination and a much longer correct one when you actually start to navigate. I figure that this is a user error on my part which will get repaired when I read more of the navigation manual.

 

I've heard something like it. Mine seems to come from the B pillar (by my ears) rather than the mirror, though I haven't had opportunity to really try to pinpoint. Compared to my previous car it is very minor noise, and only noticeable because of how quiet everything else is while driving!

 

Here's an issue I haven't really heard discussed yet: when I call my wife while she is driving the Clarity with the heater on, the fan noise on my end is really noticeable and makes it difficult to hear her properly. She has to turn the fan down manually to have a conversation.

 

We haven't had that issue. In fact, at this point, the Clarity has a better audible connection with my iPhone X than my Tesla. I and others Tesla owners are currently having an issue with the Iphobe X, where people hear a 'scratchiness' on the car side, yet we hear them fine. With the Clarity, both ends are fine. Tesla is going to issue a software fix.

 

@loomis no such interference here, but we don't use the fan that often - once April gets here (with the first 90's) I'll report back...