How to Improve the Clarity
- Thread starter David Towle
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coutinpe
Active Member
Hey, I wouldn't mention the Prius Primer nor the Ioniq, that I think have even smaller cargo space, but have you ever tried storing stuff on a Chevy Volt trunk? I tried helping a friend in Costco to load a 55" TV on it, couldn't find a way in spite of it having a hatchback. That was the deal breaker for me (together with the 'discontinuation...'). Anyways, I still think a hatchback on the Clarity would be way better.
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coutinpe
Active Member
I really missed that today under the showers. I used to have it on my old Mazda...
Tek_Freek
Active Member
The trunk is not on my list. Considering the size of the car it's got a good size trunk. If I'm moving a 55" TV it's going in the sorento. lol.
David Towle
Well-Known Member
Yup that's why I use sport plus 4 chevrons of regen, but still try to hit the brake pedal occasionally. Best for mileage.
Under what conditions did you store the car that it accumulated so much rust on the rotors? I just put ours in the garage for a month, but I can’t imagine I’ll return to a car with rusted rotors.
I’m frequently away from one vehicle or another from 1-6 months and have never experienced this problem.
Our Clarity accumulates snow and rain and then dumps it in our garage. All my shovels and other implements in the garage next to the Clarity have rusted in the 2+ years since we bought our Clarity. @KentuckyKen says he has experienced the same problem and now runs a dehumidifier in his garage.
None of the other cars that occupied our garage over the past 35 years ever had a brake-rust problem and the old shovels and other implements never rusted before, either. Sometimes when I didn't drive my Insights for a while, there would be rust on the rotors, but I could rub it off by the time I got to the end of the block. Not with the Clarity. I tried braking hard for weeks, believing I could get the rust to go away but it took hours at the dealer to fix the problem.
KentuckyKen
Well-Known Member
I noticed minor rust on my rotors shortly after purchase when I backed up with my window down (and hearing aids in). Very minor scraping sound that went away with just a couple of brake applications within 100 ft. No problem since then in 2 years but then as the encyclopedic memory of @insightman mentioned, I have a dehumidifier running in the garage.
Rust is accelerated due to humidity and temperature causing condensation to form. (Technically, pressure also plays a part, but is usually not calculated.) This is know as the dew point. When there is enough humidity or low enough temperature to raise the dew point, you get condensation and rust formation. This is why I have a dehumidifier running in the garage primarily to protect my power tools and it’s cheaper than heating the garage. And I too have noticed that my Clarity drips a whole lot more water in the garage than any other car or truck I have owned. It’s also why I have a 7W warming rod in my Gun safe. This way I keep everything important in a non-condensing environment.
Rust Never Sleeps (Neil Young & Crazy Horse, circa 1979) And if that album and tour ring a bell, you are officially old like me!
Rust is accelerated due to humidity and temperature causing condensation to form. (Technically, pressure also plays a part, but is usually not calculated.) This is know as the dew point. When there is enough humidity or low enough temperature to raise the dew point, you get condensation and rust formation. This is why I have a dehumidifier running in the garage primarily to protect my power tools and it’s cheaper than heating the garage. And I too have noticed that my Clarity drips a whole lot more water in the garage than any other car or truck I have owned. It’s also why I have a 7W warming rod in my Gun safe. This way I keep everything important in a non-condensing environment.
Rust Never Sleeps (Neil Young & Crazy Horse, circa 1979) And if that album and tour ring a bell, you are officially old like me!
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jdonalds
Well-Known Member
I want...
1) More intelligent and powerful LKAS that allows me to keep my hands off the steering wheel.
2) More responsive touch screen. There are too many times when it takes several seconds to respond to a selection.
3) Shrink the console so it doesn't cut into my knee. Get rid of the wings. Better yet make it more like the Odyssey where the shift buttons are on the dash and there is no console wing. Better yet I'd prefer a traditional shift lever.
4) Make the fold down seats real instead of a pass-through style.
5) Change from a trunk to a hatch-back design.
6) Allow me to switch off the slow speed external sound generator.
7) Provide USB outlets in the back seat and eliminate the 12V connector.
8) Provide storage for a spare tire and eliminate the fix-it kit.
9) Real high-beam headlights. The current high-beams are a joke. We have to watch for deer crossings.
10) Remember that I had selected HV mode or EV mode. Don't automatically select EV.
11) I would really like a meter showing how much the ICE has been used for a given period of time.
12) I would like a break caliper indicator so I'd know when the physical brakes were being activated.
Things I'm okay with...
1) The way the accelerator pedal detent system works.
2) The right side camera
3) Lack of lumbar
4) The way the Clarity tracks the road.
5) The fender skirt.
1) More intelligent and powerful LKAS that allows me to keep my hands off the steering wheel.
2) More responsive touch screen. There are too many times when it takes several seconds to respond to a selection.
3) Shrink the console so it doesn't cut into my knee. Get rid of the wings. Better yet make it more like the Odyssey where the shift buttons are on the dash and there is no console wing. Better yet I'd prefer a traditional shift lever.
4) Make the fold down seats real instead of a pass-through style.
5) Change from a trunk to a hatch-back design.
6) Allow me to switch off the slow speed external sound generator.
7) Provide USB outlets in the back seat and eliminate the 12V connector.
8) Provide storage for a spare tire and eliminate the fix-it kit.
9) Real high-beam headlights. The current high-beams are a joke. We have to watch for deer crossings.
10) Remember that I had selected HV mode or EV mode. Don't automatically select EV.
11) I would really like a meter showing how much the ICE has been used for a given period of time.
12) I would like a break caliper indicator so I'd know when the physical brakes were being activated.
Things I'm okay with...
1) The way the accelerator pedal detent system works.
2) The right side camera
3) Lack of lumbar
4) The way the Clarity tracks the road.
5) The fender skirt.
When my rotors were rusty, I could hear the brake calipers activate as soon as I touched the brake pedal, so your indicator would come on whenever the brake pedal was used. I believe the proportion of caliper vs regen varies, but that the calipers are always used to ensure a smooth braking feel (both brake-pedal feel and deceleration feel). Perhaps the Clarity could indicate the proportion of caliper vs. regen instead of just caliper activation.
When a MINI Cooper SE BEV joins our Clarity PHEV next year, I plan to add an interior LED to show me when regen braking activates the brake lights (unless the writers have neglected to report that the electric MINI displays that information already).
jdonalds
Well-Known Member
Yes we do have a USB adapter in the 12V socket already. Every one we've tried works fine but sticks out. I would rather the car simply have USB connectors.
Tek_Freek
Active Member
Look at the picture. They stick out so little it's hard to get them out. In addition I use short L connector USB cords.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XQJV74J/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
David Towle
Well-Known Member
A little heat is all that's needed to keep even Neil's rust sleeping, things need to be able to dry out.
Why do you think the Clarity drips more water, the velour panel on the bottom? Actually I think it drips less than my previous car a BMW 328 but that car was way lower and scraped up lots of snow that other cars leave behind.
jdonalds
Well-Known Member
Can you close the lid with the USB adapter plugged into the 12V socket?
The first change that I will make is to use higher density cells to increase battery capacity. I think with current mainstream tech it is possible to increase size to 24 kWh without major effort. This will increase EV range to about 65 miles and increase performance at the same time.
The second change is improved software. One option is GPS-supported power management, so you enter your route and the car decides when to use the battery to reduce strain on engine in steep climbs. This is complex and unlikely to happen from Honda, so a simple compromise will be a new driving mode, where the battery provides some energy to help reduce engine revs. They can target something like 120-150 mile range in this mode, so battery provides about 1/3 of the power. This is a better alternative to using a 2L engine and with a larger battery I believe will work very well and provides benefits all the time, not just a few times a year.
New infotainment system and driving assistance features are available from Honda and I don't see a reason for not having them in Clarity.
Other changes like hatchback body involve major design/tooling and unlikely to happen in current generation.
The second change is improved software. One option is GPS-supported power management, so you enter your route and the car decides when to use the battery to reduce strain on engine in steep climbs. This is complex and unlikely to happen from Honda, so a simple compromise will be a new driving mode, where the battery provides some energy to help reduce engine revs. They can target something like 120-150 mile range in this mode, so battery provides about 1/3 of the power. This is a better alternative to using a 2L engine and with a larger battery I believe will work very well and provides benefits all the time, not just a few times a year.
New infotainment system and driving assistance features are available from Honda and I don't see a reason for not having them in Clarity.
Other changes like hatchback body involve major design/tooling and unlikely to happen in current generation.
Super simple suggestion that would help me lots. I try to run my as an EV most of the time, but lately I've been taking longer road trips. I usually remember to hit the HV button when I get on the interstate the first time, but any trip of any length seems to involve stopping a few times. Inevitably I forget to hit HV once and look down 20 minutes later and my ev range is almost totally gone. I wish either the "mode" was sticky and didn't change until you changed it, or a little pop up reminder after you've been at highway speeds for 5 minutes "Consider switching to HV mode".
I know I've read that HV mode when you are at 0 ev miles is the same as when you have some ev charge, but I don't believe it. When the EV charge is gone there is noticeably less power available and I really dislike driving on city streets in HV mode.
More ambitiously I wish that I could have more control over the modes, especially the ability to turn on sticky regen braking any mode. I hate how the ICE motor comes on so easily in Sport Mode, but I love the sticky regen braking. It seems obvious to me that the sticky regen should be available in eco mode. Hell we use that to get the most juice out of regen, why would it be unavailable in the economy mode?!?
I know I've read that HV mode when you are at 0 ev miles is the same as when you have some ev charge, but I don't believe it. When the EV charge is gone there is noticeably less power available and I really dislike driving on city streets in HV mode.
More ambitiously I wish that I could have more control over the modes, especially the ability to turn on sticky regen braking any mode. I hate how the ICE motor comes on so easily in Sport Mode, but I love the sticky regen braking. It seems obvious to me that the sticky regen should be available in eco mode. Hell we use that to get the most juice out of regen, why would it be unavailable in the economy mode?!?
Here's my low-tech solution. Print and cut out this button cover, then tape it over your D button. It will remind you to hit HV.