Hondalink Now Officially Useless--Perhaps Discontinued

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insightman

insightman

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I guess Honda was tired of people who enjoyed the free Hondalink service complaining when it had problems.

I just received the following email message from Honda. It doesn't mention what Hondalink is still good for. Will it still start the Climate Control?

LOL: "Vehicle Mileage and Fuel Level may be accessible via your vehicle’s instrument panel."


We're reaching out to inform you of upcoming changes to HondaLink services for your Honda vehicle. Starting March‌ 5‌, ‌2026, certain HondaLink features will no longer be available for the 2018-2021 Clarity Plug-In Hybrid.

What's Changing?
The following HondaLink features will no longer be accessible through the HondaLink app:
  • Vehicle Notifications – Warning Lamps and Maintenance Minders
  • Vehicle Mileage
  • Fuel Level
  • Send Destination

What You Need to Know:
  • These features were provided at no cost and do not require a paid subscription.
  • Other services such as SiriusXM® Satellite Radio, myQ Connected Garage, and emergency features (where equipped) will continue to function.
  • Vehicle Mileage and Fuel Level may be accessible via your vehicle’s instrument panel (please refer to your owner's manual).
Have Questions?
We've prepared a detailed FAQ to help you understand what's changing and what remains available. You can view it here.

If you need additional support, reach out through our Contact Us page or use the Contact Us feature in the HondaLink mobile app.

Thank you for being a valued Honda customer.
 
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insightman said:
I guess Honda was tired of people who enjoyed the free Hondalink service complaining when is had problems.

I just received this email message from Honda. It doesn't mention what Hondalink is still good for. Will it still start the Climate Control:


We're reaching out to inform you of upcoming changes to HondaLink services for your Honda vehicle. Starting March‌ 5‌, ‌2026, certain HondaLink features will no longer be available for the 2018-2021 Clarity Plug-In Hybrid.

What's Changing?
The following HondaLink features will no longer be accessible through the HondaLink app:

  • Vehicle Notifications – Warning Lamps and Maintenance Minders
  • Vehicle Mileage
  • Fuel Level
  • Send Destination

What You Need to Know:
  • These features were provided at no cost and do not require a paid subscription.
  • Other services such as SiriusXM® Satellite Radio, myQ Connected Garage, and emergency features (where equipped) will continue to function.
  • Vehicle Mileage and Fuel Level may be accessible via your vehicle’s instrument panel (please refer to your owner's manual).
Have Questions?
We've prepared a detailed FAQ to help you understand what's changing and what remains available. You can view it here.

If you need additional support, reach out through our Contact Us page or use the Contact Us feature in the HondaLink mobile app.

Thank you for being a valued Honda customer.
Click to expand...
Honestly they should have killed it sooner, they haven't bothered maintaining it for years.
 
I'm sure someone here has reported this previously, but does this FAQ imply that the above discontinued services come across via communication between the car and the app directly when your phone is connected and so, app functionality that relies upon the HL server is unaffected?

Will my in-vehicle Center Display be affected?

  • For select vehicles, the following functionality is affected:
    • HondaLink Connect - Phone Connection Status will display “Disconnected” regardless if your smartphone is connected to your vehicle.
 
It's surprising they didn't continue to offer these "free" functions as paid subscriptions.
That is the way everything seems to go any more.
Companies try and rope people into more and more subscriptions in order to try and establish perpetual revenue streams.
 
Mark W said:
The three items I use most are Start Climate, battery level, and Find My Car. As long as those work, I'm good.
Click to expand...
Assuming "fuel level" includes battery, you'll be lucky if you retain 2 out of 3 of your favorites.
 
I'm one of those that use the climate control every few days in the winter time (now-ish). So hope that stays. Just the same I used the contact us link to let them know how I feel about it. The HondaLink has been super-useful to me, and I considered it a function of the car. I also did research enough to know the car's modem is ATT LTE (LTE isn't going away for many years). Anyway, if this had been a deal where the car say had 3G modem, and ATT cut 3G support (which did happen), I would understand that.

So yeah, I'm a huge fan of HondaLink, it has worked very well for me, and I use it often. I basically look at it daily to see fuel/ev range, and to see if I remembered to plug it in. i.e. you see the lightening bolt icon when its charging.

But yes, if they preserve some function (i.e. climate, charge schedules) that would be much better than nothing.
 
The way I see it, they will eventually eliminate the app or make you pay for the few shitty features it has. Very disappointed in Honda.
 
Rav said:
The way I see it, they will eventually eliminate the app or make you pay for the few shitty features it has. Very disappointed in Honda.
Click to expand...
Today, March 4th, the HondaLink app repeated the February 2nd emailed warning saying formerly free HondaLink features are going away on March 5th. No mention of a subscription option to retain those features.

Will Honda be updating the HondaLink app or just let us angrily punch the disabled Locate My Car and Climate-Control buttons in the app?

To paraphrase a 1975 NY Daily News headline about Gerald Ford denying funds to New York City: "Honda to Clarity PHEV Owners: Drop Dead." Should I buy a spare windshield and battery pack while they're still available?

1772679917971.webp
 
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Today, March 5th, I received an email from Honda reminding me that HondaLink has been downgraded. It turns out it isn't just the Clarity's HondaLink service that's changing. It's for the entire Honda line-up: Accord, Civic, CR-V, Fit, HR-V, Insight, Odyssey, Passport, Pilot, and Ridgeline. And the changes aren't as extensive as I'd feared.

The email said:

What's Changing Today?
The following features will no longer be accessible through the HondaLink app:
  • Vehicle Notifications – Warning Lamps and Maintenance Minders
  • Vehicle Mileage
  • Battery and Fuel Level
  • Send Destination

However, as you'll see below, the "Link" features supposedly include: "Dashboard: Check the electric range and fuel range from your app," so I'm confused about the "Battery and Fuel Level" going away today. I just pressed the app's Refresh button and it still shows my Clarity's electric range and fuel range. Was there formerly a read-out for Battery and Fuel Levels?

My odometer read-out almost never worked, so I'd already lost that (will they remove the inactive odometer display from the app?). I don't use the Remote Climate Control often, but I tried it and it couldn't connect. Perhaps after the HondaLink programmers' party celebrating the reduced feature set, they'll get back to work and make the features that weren't eliminated work all the time.



Today's info for the 2018 Clarity Plug-In Hybrid on Honda's MyGarage


Under "Compare HondaLink features by 2018 Clarity Plug-In Hybrid trims" it says both Clarity PHEV trims get Basic and Link features.


My Garage says Basic features include:

Vehicle Guides
Access to digital guides such as the owner's manual to learn about your vehicle.

Service Appointments
Find a Honda dealer near you and easily book a service appointment.

Roadside Assistance
Get 24-hour help for towing services, jump-start, flat tire, fuel delivery and more while tracking the status of your request. Requested services are available at no cost throughout the vehicle warranty term.

Recall Notifications
Your safety is our top priority. Receive notifications regarding important recalls for your vehicle.


My Garage says Link features include:

Remote Climate Control
Get comfortable by cooling down or warming up your vehicle ahead of time.

Plug-in Reminder
Get daily reminders on whether you have properly plugged in your vehicle.

Find My Car
Never forget where you parked by getting your vehicle location right in the app.

Find Charging Stations
Use the app to search for nearby charging stations and their status.

Dashboard
Check the electric range and fuel range from your app.

Charge Schedule
Set a recurring time each day to start charging your vehicle. You can also remotely stop and start charge at any time.
 
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