Clarity PHEV Range

M

mattheo0118

Member
Hey all,

Looking to see what your thoughts on this are.

4/30/18
I traded in my Acura RL and bought a 2018 Honda Clarity Base. I put 8,500 miles on the car after 11 months then traded it in. ~82% on EV / 18% on gas

3/30/19
I traded my Base Clarity in and got a New 2018 Honda Clarity Touring because I wanted power seat adjustments. I couldn't get comfortable in the base model because it had the manual adjustment. I currently still have my Clarity and it currently has 6,987 miles. (I travel for work so I dont drive as much as your typical American). ~90% on EV / 10% on gas.

One thing i noticed is that my Base Clarity got way better Electric Range than my Touring.
Base Model: (highest ever: 64.2 miles / Lowest ever: 44.8 miles)
Summer: 57 mile range on screen (Actual 51 miles)
Winter: 52 mile range on screen (Actual 46 miles)

Touring Model: (highest ever 56.1 / Lowest 42.8)
Summer: 52 mile range on screen (actual 45 miles)
Winter: 48 mile range on screen (actual 41 miles)

The car has consistently been showing 46-48 on the last 5 full charge... I dont understand it, the temperature outside has been 70-80 degrees.. My old Base Model did so much better per charge than my Touring... My driving habits, routine hasn't changed, My trunk only has a first aid kit, the 120v charger and an 25' extension cord. I'm shocked by the difference.

Do battery performance vary between cars?
Is the Touring that much heavier than the base?
 
There are a bunch of threads on this forum about EV range. Can you get your dealer to do the battery capacity test described in the PDI document? How long did your Clarity sit around in a dealer lot uncharged before you purchased it? You can find the manufacturing month/year on the sticker on the driver's door jamb.
 
As pointed out, there are many threads discussing EV range.
The battery capacity (only accessible through a simple dealer scan) is the only thing that really matters and is unambiguous.

One very plausible theory that has emerged quite recently in the forum is the fact that people are able (and have been) driving significantly faster because of the substantial reduction in traffic due to coronavirus stay-at-home measures. A small difference in average speed have a significant impact on EV range.

The numbers you reported only show a ~10% loss. Easily explained by an average higher speed.

Although I did just notice that you are reporting this change from well before coronavirus...
Best suggestion is get the battery capacity measurement at the dealer... Will quite likely be free.
 
You are only using the guess-O-meter and that is just not accurate. The gauge on the left side of the cluster is showing the charge left in the battery and is accurate. I guarantee you if you drive until you have used up the charge, your real miles will NOT equal the number that is on the guess-o-meter.
 
California speeding tickets are very expensive so I never drive above 72mph..

I'm not using the guess so meter, in reset my trip Everytime I fully charge my battery.

Good advice on the battery testing.. I'll give my service adviser a ring.. I don't want them to charge me since the car won't test below the replacement threshold
 
mattheo0118 said:
I don't want them to charge me since the car won't test below the replacement threshold
Click to expand...

Was it the same dealer for both of your Clarity's?

I think you have a compelling story, and would certainly expect them to gather this data without charging you. It is a VERY simple test for them. It should have been done pre-delivery, and it often is not. If this was not done for you originally, then you have an even more compelling reason they should now do it at no cost.

Just be sure to clarify that you want the HV battery capacity (as identified in the PDI) or they might just test your 12V battery. I suggest you bring a copy of the PDI with you and point to it so it is clear...

I have attached the PDI document for reference. Have a look at the last page (page 13) to see how this parameter is presented. It should nominally be 55 Ah for a new vehicle as shown on the example in the PDI. Please keep us posted if you can get a readout. Several of us have been interested in exploring potential HV battery degradation.

Although I don't have an explanation for your observations, my instinct is that your car is just fine. I don't think it is warranted yet, but occasionally a cold-reboot (disconnecting the 12V battery and re-connecting it) can clear out some anomalous behavior. It results in a host of ominous errors but they clear out after driving a short distance. Again, I would not recommend that at this point.
 

Attachments

Yes same dealer,

Thanks for the advice, I'm bringing it in June 2nd.

Last two full charges shows 46.4 on the screen and I got 38 and 39 miles, same route routine. What the heck is going on with my car?!!!
 
I've got a 2018 touring with 15,700 miles. Driving 70+ mph, I would probably get upper 30s as well. I drove mine today, 89 degree weather, climate control at 66 degrees F and driving at 50 mph for about 30 miles, 65 for about 20 miles. Got 51 miles before exhausting the battery charge about 1/2 mile from my home.
 
Your info is what I experienced with my first Clarity...

This one, I can't get anything near 50 miles per charge. It's been 72* in San Diego the past few weeks. That should be ideal temp for ev efficiency.. no AC used either
 
mattheo0118 said:
Hey all,

Looking to see what your thoughts on this are.

4/30/18
I traded in my Acura RL and bought a 2018 Honda Clarity Base. I put 8,500 miles on the car after 11 months then traded it in. ~82% on EV / 18% on gas

3/30/19
I traded my Base Clarity in and got a New 2018 Honda Clarity Touring because I wanted power seat adjustments. I couldn't get comfortable in the base model because it had the manual adjustment. I currently still have my Clarity and it currently has 6,987 miles. (I travel for work so I dont drive as much as your typical American). ~90% on EV / 10% on gas.

One thing i noticed is that my Base Clarity got way better Electric Range than my Touring.
Base Model: (highest ever: 64.2 miles / Lowest ever: 44.8 miles)
Summer: 57 mile range on screen (Actual 51 miles)
Winter: 52 mile range on screen (Actual 46 miles)

Touring Model: (highest ever 56.1 / Lowest 42.8)
Summer: 52 mile range on screen (actual 45 miles)
Winter: 48 mile range on screen (actual 41 miles)

The car has consistently been showing 46-48 on the last 5 full charge... I dont understand it, the temperature outside has been 70-80 degrees.. My old Base Model did so much better per charge than my Touring... My driving habits, routine hasn't changed, My trunk only has a first aid kit, the 120v charger and an 25' extension cord. I'm shocked by the difference.

Do battery performance vary between cars?
Is the Touring that much heavier than the base?
Click to expand...
This could happen just because the touring consumes more power because of added equipment. One of the constant power taker is the climate control. Also it could be simply a battery cell problem. One bad cell could create a big problem. The leakage tests must be done by someone that knows what he is doing, because the battery packs in Evs are not 12V and if it will not kill you, might create an expensive damage.
 
ashmtl said:
This could happen just because the touring consumes more power because of added equipment.
Click to expand...
There is no "added equipment" of any consequence in a Touring Clarity. I suggest taking that possibility off the list.

I stand by my earlier post... We have seen long threads where people complain about poor EV range, and postulate about all kinds of possibilities.
Fundamentally, the range of the vehicle is dictated by the HV battery capacity. Go and get a measurement of battery capacity. It is the best way to know whether your Clarity is capable of delivering the specified EV range. Extra drains of one sort or another are not impossible, but they extremely unlikely.
 
Battery capacity is important (and a bad cell will change it), but the driving style also has a major contribution. The initial poster says he didn't change his driving, but maybe he did. Maybe the climate control has screw ups or other equipment.
When I got my Clarity (base model) the first week it showed 75 km of EV range, now (after 2 months) it is displaying between 90 to 95 km EV range. If I drive a bit harder then I usually do, next morning it will go down to 83 or 80 km.
If theoretically all conditions were the same, in my opinion, the problem can be a faulty equipment or battery.
 
MrFixit said:
There is no "added equipment" of any consequence in a Touring Clarity. I suggest taking that possibility off the list.
Click to expand...

What about navigation? Keeping a GPS going and running nav has to factor in.

Have people been able to run through what to turn off (e.g. WiFi) to reduce unnecessary drain?
 
My money is on a difference in driving style as highway speed is a major factor. At the beginning of the lockdown someone reported a significant drop in range during their normal commute. Turns out their normal commute no longer had stop and go traffic on the highway. Higher speed + reduced regen from braking = lower range.

Personally I have been driving so little since it was cold that my guessometer still has winter range in its calculations. I’m sure I’ll be back to the 50’s by august. :-)
 
turtleturtle said:
What about navigation? Keeping a GPS going and running nav has to factor in.

Have people been able to run through what to turn off (e.g. WiFi) to reduce unnecessary drain?
Click to expand...
I don't think the Wi-Fi or navigation by themselves will take noticeable power away. My worry is climate control. Would like to know how that system works. In gasoline powered vehicles we can have AC and heating on the same time. Also, I didn't find a way to have just the fan on in one shot. I have to go to climate screen and set AC OFF every time I want to have just the air coming in, but even with this I am not sure the heating will not come on if the outside temperature is lower than the setting in my climate control system. That will be a waste of energy.
 
mattheo0118 said:
Yes same dealer,

Thanks for the advice, I'm bringing it in June 2nd.

Last two full charges shows 46.4 on the screen and I got 38 and 39 miles, same route routine. What the heck is going on with my car?!!!
Click to expand...

Do you have battery capacity test results to report to the classroom?
 
ashmtl said:
Also, I didn't find a way to have just the fan on in one shot. I have to go to climate screen and set AC OFF every time I want to have just the air coming in, but even with this I am not sure the heating will not come on if the outside temperature is lower than the setting in my climate control system. That will be a waste of energy.
Click to expand...

If you want just fresh air (ventilation) without any chance of accidental heat, you need to go to the climate screen and set the AC to OFF AND also crank the temperature controls all the way down (until both displays read "Lo"). This insures that the heat will not come on if the temperature is less than the climate setting. I don't like this either because as you say, it requires more than one step.
 
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