Reminds me of @K8QM's great post with a photo of a groundhog peering up from his Clarity's engine bay.
Longer Term Reliability?
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Reminds me of @K8QM's great post with a photo of a groundhog peering up from his Clarity's engine bay.
Johngalt6146
Active Member
I have a 2018 Clarity Touring that is now 51 months old with about 12k miles on it. It is continuously charged from 110 V in my garage using the included Honda charger. I buy some gas about once per year.
Zero problems thus far, although I know that I must change the 12v battery soon.
Zero problems thus far, although I know that I must change the 12v battery soon.
kcsunshine
Active Member
So far no major issues. Waiting for the A/C condenser to fail. I love the car. It is the good compromise between electric and hybrid. It is a shame that Honda is discontinuing it. With the high gas prices, they should rethink it.
That's really interesting! So the Clarity is the same aside one of the electric motors? Honestly, I like your idea of an Insight Si. I think maybe double the battery space and throw the 1.5T 4 cyl in there. Then you have an engine that can push the car easily without assistance if the battery is drained, and goes damn fast with the motors. Throw in an eco mode that functions like a regular hybrid and you're golden.
That really is a lucky cat! I'm glad she stowed away somewhere that didn't have moving parts and had someone paying attention! Not every day you get a sweet little kitty trying to hitch a ride. Cute little thing, too. With a name like Evie, her parents definitely have a sense of humor lol
Paul Rudden
New Member
We have had a 2018 with approx 60k miles since new. We did have a major battery issue in the first year that took about 6 weeks to resolve due to parts and lack of availability of the tool for installation of the new battery. All work was done under warranty and Honda covered a rental for the duration. We have not had any problems since and I have not heard of it as a recurring problem for others so I assume it was a rare growing pain. On the other hand if it does occur outside warranty I think an owner would face a tough decision based on the potential cost to replace the battery with rental etc or write off the vehicle.
I have a 2018 Touring with 26,000 miles. The car came with a slight vibration around the speaker in one of the roof pillars, which Honda quickly repaired. Other than that, I have had zero problems. The Clarity is obviously great to have during times of high fuel costs. I consider the purchase of the car to have been a really good decision as I absolutely love the car. It is unquestionably the best car I have ever owned.
I had the car in for regular service this week. The service representative told me that the Clarity is his favorite of all the Honda vehicles. I have heard similar things from other service technicians, which I view as another good sign.
The Clarity has also held its value based on my tour of the Honda showroom during my service visit. They had only two cars in the showroom and one was a pristine 2018 base Clarity with similar miles to my own. They were asking about what I paid for mine three years ago!
Now, it may be that the Clarity may not be for everyone. First, you will experience a slight learning curve with the car. Although I found this to be very interesting, some may not be willing to adjust to the new technology. Also, if you live in a cold weather state like I do, you will experience high revving of the ICE during the first few minutes of driving during very cold weather, which is normal. I would rather that this didn't happen, but I can live with it for the little bit of time that it occurs. If this will really bother you, perhaps the Clarity is not for you.
All in all, I give the 2018 Clarity two MAJOR thumbs up!
I had the car in for regular service this week. The service representative told me that the Clarity is his favorite of all the Honda vehicles. I have heard similar things from other service technicians, which I view as another good sign.
The Clarity has also held its value based on my tour of the Honda showroom during my service visit. They had only two cars in the showroom and one was a pristine 2018 base Clarity with similar miles to my own. They were asking about what I paid for mine three years ago!
Now, it may be that the Clarity may not be for everyone. First, you will experience a slight learning curve with the car. Although I found this to be very interesting, some may not be willing to adjust to the new technology. Also, if you live in a cold weather state like I do, you will experience high revving of the ICE during the first few minutes of driving during very cold weather, which is normal. I would rather that this didn't happen, but I can live with it for the little bit of time that it occurs. If this will really bother you, perhaps the Clarity is not for you.
All in all, I give the 2018 Clarity two MAJOR thumbs up!
There are some Clarity PHEV drivers who just get in and drive. Many bought the car only because it lets them drive in the California HOV lanes. Without ever pressing the ECON or HV buttons, these don't-care drivers miss out on the full range of fuel-economy features the Clarity has to offer, but the car works just fine for them.
OTOH, I, as a former gen-1 Insight hypermiler, find it fascinating how involved I can get in maximizing the Clarity's fuel economy.
The one complaint I have about the Clarity is that if you don't drive it often, the brake discs get rusty and sound nasty--the rough scraping sound is present even when not braking. No amount of heavy braking can make the rough scraping sound go away. I've had the discs turned once, but the problem returned. I hate the sound so much that it makes me drive the Clarity less--which, of course, makes the problem worse.
2018 27k miles
First, I have to say I do not regret buying the car at all.. it is an EXTREMELY versatile and comfortable car. Particularly now with the gas prices, I love it.
It definitely has a lot of quirks that you get used to, but really what car doesn't?
Whenever you have electrical problems the Clarity is NOT happy. Had a software update that solved some of them.
The issue about parts is a real pain. The dealership threw out some parts during PDI that took literal months to replace. I had a crack in the windshield and obviously the clarity is the only car with that particular (and huge, due to making it aerodynamic) glass so it took months to replace and no one makes it third party, so from honda it ended up costing around 4k to replace (insurance covered it).
The AC is a real problem. Every clarity owner I've met at the chargers save one has had to replace it at least once (one replaced it three times!). But I have to mention that honda seems to have designed their condensers poorly as my wife's 2016 civic has the same issue and it's a common one. As someone pointed out, it's extended under warranty now.
Again, overall it's great... the issues above, every car has their quirks (even civics).
First, I have to say I do not regret buying the car at all.. it is an EXTREMELY versatile and comfortable car. Particularly now with the gas prices, I love it.
It definitely has a lot of quirks that you get used to, but really what car doesn't?
Whenever you have electrical problems the Clarity is NOT happy. Had a software update that solved some of them.
The issue about parts is a real pain. The dealership threw out some parts during PDI that took literal months to replace. I had a crack in the windshield and obviously the clarity is the only car with that particular (and huge, due to making it aerodynamic) glass so it took months to replace and no one makes it third party, so from honda it ended up costing around 4k to replace (insurance covered it).
The AC is a real problem. Every clarity owner I've met at the chargers save one has had to replace it at least once (one replaced it three times!). But I have to mention that honda seems to have designed their condensers poorly as my wife's 2016 civic has the same issue and it's a common one. As someone pointed out, it's extended under warranty now.
Again, overall it's great... the issues above, every car has their quirks (even civics).
So peak 'horsepower' can be changed quite dramatically using just timing and fuel injection. It changes the efficiency. Like the civics share the same engine as crv's and they can have dramatically different hp/torque curves (even within the same chassis, i.e. hatch vs. sedan vs Si (though Si has a different impeller for the turbo)) just depending on how they've been programmed or tuned.
Now I've wondered about the combined system horsepower as well. It can't literally be the peak horsepower + peak battery power as that doesn't make sense since the electric motor has a max output and the point for peak horsepower for the engine is probably at an RPM that the clarity can't go up to during direct drive (since it's not really geared and peak hp is probably at the angry bees speed). So it must be some place where the engine is engaged to the wheels augmented by the electric motor which can't be optimal for the engine and they arrive at 212...? Also note that the battery alone is not capable of outputting the 135kw for 181 hp, so to get 181 hp when NOT in direct drive you are running the engine in generate mode at the same time as the full power output from the battery.
Sloanhoo
Member
Hey Landshark, I’m in PDX area, and I have a 2018 Touring bought in 2019. I’m looking to buy an extended warranty now that my 3yr/36000 mile warranty is about up. Got any recommendations for that and for where you would take yours when you eventually need repairs?
TanMan, You will find the Clarity forum folks very helpful. I have about 15k on my 2018 Touring, with zero problems whatsoever. It’s the best car I’ve ever owned, bar none, and I feel like a genius for buying Clara T. Every time I drive past the gas station. There is one factor that Clarity definitely beats other PHEVs—room. You can easily sit 5 adults in posh comfort. It doesn’t feel like a car designed for economy.
Roadcam1
New Member
We purchased a 2018 Honda Clarity on December 10, 2021 with 14K miles, it was turned in to the Honda Dealer after a three year lease, we now have 19K miles, also purchased the extended warranty, I will be posting more soon, thanks to everyone participating on this forum. We love the car, so far so good.
Tallerbill
New Member
Tallerbill
New Member
Tallerbill
New Member
2018 Touring. 13,000 miles on 66 gallons of gas. Electric mile in winter is under 4 cents, in summer is under half that. Ran over BIG screw, bought new tire. Annual oil change, three-year brake fluid change. Last bought gas December 2019. Gotta buy some soon. A gallon or two should see me past the big price bump. Bought a HondaCare 5-year plan from Hyannis Honda ( see thread on maintenance plans) for about a third of local dealership quote. Car is comfy, handles well, and shows no wear. Real safety and convenience/comfort features. What's not to like?
IIRC one way they actually differ is that the Insight and the Clarity share the same 1.5L engine. The Accord has a 2.0L engine.
HTH, Skip
The Insight's 1.5-liter 4-banger bangs out 4 more horsepower, so they're not exactly the same. Like the Accord Hybrid, the CRV Hybrid also has a 2-liter engine. So how can the Accord Hybrid, CRV Hybrid, and Clarity PHEV with 181-hp motors all have 212 Total System Power even though the Accord Hybrid and CRV Hybrid engines have 40 more horsepower? There must be one or more unscientific fudge-factors that would embarass Honda if they tried to explain their Total System Power calculations.
I wonder if it has to do with the fact that the gas engine is rarely connected to the drivetrain, and that it's not geared. That might make it deliver suboptimal power. That said, the Accord Hybrid is a damn sight faster the Clarity, so clearly something doesn't add up.
Mowcowbell
Well-Known Member
The disc rotor rust issue must depend on how far north you live and how much road salt you encounter. My 2018 Clarity with 14K miles has zero rust on the rotors in Oklahoma. We typically only see 1 or 2 winter events per season where they use salt in my area.
I got my A02 service today with 14,060 miles on the ODO. They told me they could turn the rotors to remove the rust (at $247 per axle), but because they did that 2 years ago, it will be the last time they can turn them--after that they will have lost too much metal (in 14K miles!). The service rep and I agreed that turning the rotors again now makes no sense unless we start driving the Clarity more than 400 miles a year because they would just rust up again. Since we got our MINI Electric in 2020, the poor Clarity sits and waits (and rusts) for the long trips we hope to take after we emerge from our pandemic cocoon.
The service rep said Civics are having problems with rusty rear discs, but the fronts don't seem to be affected.