craze1cars
Well-Known Member
I say No, and No. Determine agreed price of car, plus cash, plus reasonable doc fee. Pay for it. And decline everything else they throw at you.
And many here will advise differently than I just did.
Only you can decide.
And many here will advise differently than I just did.
Only you can decide.
My total price is $29K including TAX, documentation, DMV fee for the base model (my tax rate is 9.95%). In CA I am eligible for $1500 rebate and $800 PGE rebate. Effectively my payment will be $19200. I was hoping if dealer can add $700 of maintenance package but I might skip based on your recommendation as I my thought process is very similar to yours.
David in TN
Well-Known Member
The deal is awesome indeed. Dealer price is $26K so almost 25% discount on MSRP.
David in TN
Well-Known Member
Something to ponder since you qualify for full federal tax credit, as I do...
I may trade and get a new one each year for the tax credit. Lose $3-4k on trade, net the same after fed credit and have a new one each year. Just something to ponder.
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I may trade and get a new one each year for the tax credit. Lose $3-4k on trade, net the same after fed credit and have a new one each year. Just something to ponder.
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This is an interesting idea and definitely doable. Did you happen to check with them for trade-in price estimate after one year?
David in TN
Well-Known Member
No. I got mine in December. Have 37xx miles. No issues. Will probably wait until fall to consider trading.
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Sent from my SM-N960U using Inside EVs mobile app
How is your experience till now. How much MPG are you getting in Hybrid mode? Any issues so far?
No and no. Japanese assembled cars (vin starts with j) have excellent quality. Maintenance is minimal.
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My honda dealer in socal charges $40 for oil change, with coupon. Only have to do it once a year. The tire rotations would end up being more expensive for me.
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Sent from my iPhone using Inside EVs
David in TN
Well-Known Member
No issues with the car. The dealer is clueless, but that's typical.
Everyone is different. I work one job that is 35 miles from my home. They allow charging on 120 volt at no cost. Most of the time the ICE doesn't come on...unless I'm only there a couple of hours.
Monthly I do a couple of hundred miles on a trip and run HV mode.
My last fill up put my cumulative mileage at 112mpg since purchasing.
I got a Zencar 120/240-volt EVSE charging cord for about $200 from Amazon. I keep it in the car to charge at work, when traveling, or when I need quicker charge at home.
Make sure all service bulletins have been updated and all PDI items have been done, not just checked off the list.
There are many great people on here who can answer questions you have. Enjoy!!!
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Everyone is different. I work one job that is 35 miles from my home. They allow charging on 120 volt at no cost. Most of the time the ICE doesn't come on...unless I'm only there a couple of hours.
Monthly I do a couple of hundred miles on a trip and run HV mode.
My last fill up put my cumulative mileage at 112mpg since purchasing.
I got a Zencar 120/240-volt EVSE charging cord for about $200 from Amazon. I keep it in the car to charge at work, when traveling, or when I need quicker charge at home.
Make sure all service bulletins have been updated and all PDI items have been done, not just checked off the list.
There are many great people on here who can answer questions you have. Enjoy!!!
Sent from my SM-N960U using Inside EVs mobile app
You got a great deal! Enjoy the pleasures of driving ev and take a few hours to read every post on this site. Lots of valuable information and tips. Information in the site is miles ahead of anything you’ll learn from Honda. Just know when a Tesla passes you, you have a great car for less than half the cost and no range anxiety.
ralfalfa
Member
Hotwheel, that is a great deal for sure. I agree with those who say "no" to all the extras; no offense to the dealers, they're just trying to make money, but something seems flawed in the whole "buy a Honda because it's reliable; but it might not be, so buy this policy" schtick....
I have averaged about 110 mpg over my 8000 miles. I've taken a couple of 500+ mile road trips and with overnight charging still get over 50 mpg. I used to fill my tank once a week; now I fill my tank about once every two months (except during a road trip). Having recently commuted using a pickup truck, my commuting costs are literally down over 90%.
If I was buying again, here's a few things I would have done quicker:
-buy a level 2 charger. At first I thought I didn't really need it; but I quickly found how nice it was to come home from work, plug in, and have a full charge again for any evening driving.
-figure out what the various EV, HV, and SPORT settings do for you. My quick summary is as follows. EV mode is for maximizing economics; it's not a pure electric mode, and it purposely degrades throttle response a bit, but it does extend range, particularly in stop-and-go traffic. HV mode is "save the battery" mode. Again, not pure gas engine mode, since you'll still use the battery if you accelerate hard or hit a big hill, but the car tries to maintain the battery at a level close to where it was when you pushed the HV button, good for highway driving. SPORT mode is not about efficiency at all; it simply "upgrades" throttle and steering and say "you drive, I'll take care of the power". Very nice in moderate traffic. One last thing- set the car in EV mode and it stays there. Set it in SPORT or HV and it won't.
-ditto on regenerative braking and the paddles. They behave differently in the various modes above. The paddles set the amount of regenerative braking that happens when you coast; you always get regeneration when you brake. Set the level high and your car basically brakes for you instead of coasting. Note that the level you set is persistent in SPORT mode but not in the other modes.
-be prepared for your EV range to vary with temperature. I live in NE Ohio and was surprised at how variable it could be; as low as 32 miles in 10 deg F weather, as high as 55 in the warmth of summer.
-make sure you're up to date on the various software updates. Honda's tweaking things pretty often, the updates are free (well, they cost the ride to the dealer).
-relax and enjoy it. Of course some people have had things go wrong, as you'll read in the various posts in this forum. None of that has happened to me. And some people struggle with the tradeoffs inherent to a plug-in hybrid, in the sense that it's not a pure EV nor a pure hybrid nor a gas-powered highway cruiser. I know I started out thinking the Clarity would be a pure EV until the battery was empty and then become a pure gas-powered vehicle, but that's not it at all. The Clarity is a very comfortable hybrid with an amazing bonus: the first 35-50 miles (depending on temperature) for the cost of plugging it in. It is a bit more up-scale than a Prius, a bit more comfortable than a Volt, a bit more accessible than an Ioniq, and a hell of a lot less expensive and more practical than a Tesla.
I have averaged about 110 mpg over my 8000 miles. I've taken a couple of 500+ mile road trips and with overnight charging still get over 50 mpg. I used to fill my tank once a week; now I fill my tank about once every two months (except during a road trip). Having recently commuted using a pickup truck, my commuting costs are literally down over 90%.
If I was buying again, here's a few things I would have done quicker:
-buy a level 2 charger. At first I thought I didn't really need it; but I quickly found how nice it was to come home from work, plug in, and have a full charge again for any evening driving.
-figure out what the various EV, HV, and SPORT settings do for you. My quick summary is as follows. EV mode is for maximizing economics; it's not a pure electric mode, and it purposely degrades throttle response a bit, but it does extend range, particularly in stop-and-go traffic. HV mode is "save the battery" mode. Again, not pure gas engine mode, since you'll still use the battery if you accelerate hard or hit a big hill, but the car tries to maintain the battery at a level close to where it was when you pushed the HV button, good for highway driving. SPORT mode is not about efficiency at all; it simply "upgrades" throttle and steering and say "you drive, I'll take care of the power". Very nice in moderate traffic. One last thing- set the car in EV mode and it stays there. Set it in SPORT or HV and it won't.
-ditto on regenerative braking and the paddles. They behave differently in the various modes above. The paddles set the amount of regenerative braking that happens when you coast; you always get regeneration when you brake. Set the level high and your car basically brakes for you instead of coasting. Note that the level you set is persistent in SPORT mode but not in the other modes.
-be prepared for your EV range to vary with temperature. I live in NE Ohio and was surprised at how variable it could be; as low as 32 miles in 10 deg F weather, as high as 55 in the warmth of summer.
-make sure you're up to date on the various software updates. Honda's tweaking things pretty often, the updates are free (well, they cost the ride to the dealer).
-relax and enjoy it. Of course some people have had things go wrong, as you'll read in the various posts in this forum. None of that has happened to me. And some people struggle with the tradeoffs inherent to a plug-in hybrid, in the sense that it's not a pure EV nor a pure hybrid nor a gas-powered highway cruiser. I know I started out thinking the Clarity would be a pure EV until the battery was empty and then become a pure gas-powered vehicle, but that's not it at all. The Clarity is a very comfortable hybrid with an amazing bonus: the first 35-50 miles (depending on temperature) for the cost of plugging it in. It is a bit more up-scale than a Prius, a bit more comfortable than a Volt, a bit more accessible than an Ioniq, and a hell of a lot less expensive and more practical than a Tesla.
The Gadgeteer
Active Member
Ralfalfa made a very good summary. Just note when Ralfalfa was saying “figure out what the various EV, HV, and SPORT settings do for you” the buttons are actually labeled “Eco, Sport, HV”.
On the forum people often use “Eco” and “EV” interchangeably. This is because the “Eco” button turns on/off Eco mode which most strongly favors pure EV driving in the Clarity but like all modes the car will engage the engine under certain conditions. Just a minor point.
On the forum people often use “Eco” and “EV” interchangeably. This is because the “Eco” button turns on/off Eco mode which most strongly favors pure EV driving in the Clarity but like all modes the car will engage the engine under certain conditions. Just a minor point.
KentuckyKen
Well-Known Member
CLARITEA
Member
No, you don't need it because Honda comes with a new car warranty. 3 Years or 36000 mileage, which ever comes first. The Clarity is built in Japan, which means there is a less than likely chance for the car to have technical issues. The new car warranty will cover it as well, if you find any early problems.
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ralfalfa
Member
No source on that at all. I'm pretty sure it does "something" because I've turned off Sport mode a couple of times while in a gentle turn and felt the car "settle" a bit and had to change the steering wheel position; but it's possible that was the accelerator pedal /throttle response stepping down a notch I was feeling. But jeepers, if it's an illusion I'm all for it; the Clarity is welcome to keep fooling me into thinking it's a supercar!