I am from Toronto and for the past few days we are exoexperienc frigid temperature around -20C (-4F). I know the Canadian model comes with battery heater however since the advent of the cold wave, my Clarity has been on the engine run mode every morning on my way to work. Is it normal? It acted like it was in the charge mode but it would switch to pure EV for 5s then the engine will kick in to charge or to propel. Any Canadian owners have the same experience?
Had this happen to me yesterday after my Clarity sat in a parking lot all day (I garage it at night). Figured it needed the engine to keep up with my environmental needs of heat and window defrosting. US model. I expect it to happen today as the high is only 10 F today.
I am finding the same. Cut-off for cars sold in the US seems to be any temp below 10 degrees F...below that temp the ICE comes on much more frequently, but in my experience it just stays at a low rpm...it rarely revs up higher like charge mode or even HV mode would, and this is the only time I've ever noticed EV range continues to reduce long term, even with the engine running, as I have not manually engaged Hybrid mode. So even though the engine is running, the RPMS are too slow so I do NOT consider this any form of attempt at hybrid mode, and it seems to me neither does the car. It seems to be following a different program that is cold-induced, not battery drain induced like usual. My belief is this is by design has nothing to do with protecting or charging the battery, but serves the primary purpose of providing the most efficient interior heat to the car. The electric heater is a wasteful battery sucking resistance unit which would easily reduce EV range by half if forced to keep the cabin warm on a really cold day. So by running the engine at a low rpm, waste heat from the warm engine coolant can circulate into the heater core, so the electric heater doesn't need to waste so much of the battery destroying your range. Shorter version: Clarity has a unique heating system that has a conventional heater core that runs coolant PLUS it has an electric resistance heater inside or near the heater core. The electric heater warms the coolant off the battery allowing the ICE to remain off during cool, but not cold, days. But the car requires engine heat to assist this electric heater during colder temps, when cabin heater demand is high. That's my take on it anyway.
