Miles on battery display

D

danama

New Member
I test drove a Clarity I was going to buy. The dashboard showed that the battery was half charged.

1) When I checked the information (using the menu on the screen), it estimated the miles remaining on battery as 13 miles. I was expecting 23 miles, because the Clarity is supposed to have 47 miles when fully charged, and it was half charged.
Is the miles estimate generally inaccurate? Is the estimate inaccurate for new cars?

2) We sat in the car, when it was on and idle (with air-conditioning on) for a few minutes, and I saw the bars on the battery dashboard display go down much quicker than I expected (we lost a couple of bars in a few minutes). Is this reasonable? Does the air-conditioning usually drain the battery?

Thanks!
 
That 1/2 full but only 13 miles EV is exactly why I don't pay attention to the battery gauge. I've found the digital number to be more accurate than the bar graph. On the other side it is just the opposite for me. I pay attention to the gas bar graph before looking at the digital number of miles remaining.
 
One thing to keep in mind about the battery graph vs the numeric value is that the graph should not get to 0 bars. I’ll have it where the numeric readout will show 0kms (Canadian here) range left in the battery and 2 bars left because the battery retains a minimal charge to prevent operation issues, damage, and to still be able to run cabin systems. The numeric value is going to be much more reliable when gauging remaining drive time on EV. Conversely (as jdonalds mentioned) you’re going to get a more accurate reading on fuel level from the gauge than from the numeric value. The car takes some figuring out but once you get a sense of the data it’s providing it’s relatively easy to make informed decisions.


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danama said:
I test drove a Clarity I was going to buy. The dashboard showed that the battery was half charged.

1) When I checked the information (using the menu on the screen), it estimated the miles remaining on battery as 13 miles. I was expecting 23 miles, because the Clarity is supposed to have 47 miles when fully charged, and it was half charged.
Is the miles estimate generally inaccurate? Is the estimate inaccurate for new cars?

2) We sat in the car, when it was on and idle (with air-conditioning on) for a few minutes, and I saw the bars on the battery dashboard display go down much quicker than I expected (we lost a couple of bars in a few minutes). Is this reasonable? Does the air-conditioning usually drain the battery?

Thanks!
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Hi and welcome, future Clarity owner!

You kinda answered your #1 with #2. #1 will never be "accurate" as it is based on Past driving experience on the car, but can easily change if you the driver change something with the driving experience
The 47 mile EPA estimate, is an estimate just like in other cars. However, unlike non battery based cars (partially or full), other things will use up your battery charge like your AC being on. Think of it this way: you can (MAYBE) go 47 miles on a full charge with the AC off, or (MAYBE) 35 miles on a full battery with the AC On.

There's a lot of threads in the forum that discusses the mile estimate, and things that affect it
 
Kyle’s Clarity said:
One thing to keep in mind about the battery graph vs the numeric value is that the graph should not get to 0 bars. I’ll have it where the numeric readout will show 0kms (Canadian here) range left in the battery and 2 bars left because the battery retains a minimal charge to prevent operation issues, damage, and to still be able to run cabin systems. The numeric value is going to be much more reliable when gauging remaining drive time on EV. Conversely (as jdonalds mentioned) you’re going to get a more accurate reading on fuel level from the gauge than from the numeric value. The car takes some figuring out but once you get a sense of the data it’s providing it’s relatively easy to make informed decisions.


Sent from my iPhone using Inside EVs
Click to expand...
Others above have alluded to the reason you saw that information on the display. The 47 miles per charge is an estimate of the average for all drivers in all conditions in all seasons. It actually varies a LOT. Mine has ranged from 29-71 miles per charge! What you observed was completely normal and if you purchase the car (and you should!) the display will soon come to a moving average EV miles for how you drive, where you live, and what time of year it is. Those of us who have flirted with statistics call it a weighted moving average.
 
Sandroad said:
Those of us who have flirted with statistics call it a weighted moving average.
Click to expand...
That explains why in my laboratory days, I had a biostatistician on speed dial. Thag not understand and not gonna try.
Anway, ditto on all the above and the OP should also not worry about that estimate since it’s a new car and has no real world history to form an estimate from. And I have not found that AC usage reduced my range this last summer by any significant amount. I still got high 50s to low 60s EV estimates with actual miles within 10% of those estimates and using the AC didn’t change those enough for me to notice (Legal disclaimer: I have ceramic IR reflecting tint on all glass and beige interior).
However cold temps and cabin heating absolutely do kill EV range.
It’s the dirty little secret of EVs and another reason why this Southern boy ain’t never moving north of the Mason Dixon line. Brrrrr, shiver, scrap, and shovel; no way!
I have nothing but respect for you far northerners and our friendly Canadians, but I have no desire to join you, in what to me, is geographical insanity.
 
Hang on a few years and you’ll move north to get out of the sauna and above water.
Colder temperatures rob EVs of range and heaters really do a number. This is why I’ve gone to pre-heating the car when plugged in to the EVSE units both at home and at work. Summer’s just fine until the temperatures are above 100. Then the heat starts to affect the range as well. This is one of the reasons self cooling and heated batteries are going to be the norm when EVs start to dominate the landscape.


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Since this was a test drive car, it was probably driven previously by folks who had no idea what they were doing. (I sure didn't when I took a test drive before I bought my Clarity.) They may have had lead feet, run it in Sport mode to test acceleration, and done all sorts of things that would drain the battery and reduce the mileage that can be expected by careful conservative driving.
 
Thanks a lot for all your replies. It's good to know that the screen estimate reflects driving history and that it is accurate.
I wonder what's your opinion about this--
The dealership didn't have a fast charger installed, and didn't keep charged the Clarity's it had in stock (turns out they rarely sell Clarity's in Texas). They plugged the car I was about to buy to the outlet the day before I came. I wonder if it's possible that what I saw (fast battery drainage with air-conditioning (slight cooling on a day with pleasant weather) and low mileage estimate on a half-full battery) are partly or mostly due to damage to the battery.
 
danama said:
Thanks a lot for all your replies. It's good to know that the screen estimate reflects driving history and that it is accurate.
I wonder what's your opinion about this--
The dealership didn't have a fast charger installed, and didn't keep charged the Clarity's it had in stock (turns out they rarely sell Clarity's in Texas). They plugged the car I was about to buy to the outlet the day before I came. I wonder if it's possible that what I saw (fast battery drainage with air-conditioning (slight cooling on a day with pleasant weather) and low mileage estimate on a half-full battery) are partly or mostly due to damage to the battery.
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The only way to know is to have the dealer hook it up and run the Battery Capacity Signal. Compare that to the nominal 55 Ahr when new. 8 yr (10 in Cali) battery warranty covers it when BCS goes below 36.6 Ahr. Any partial degradation before it hits this point is a very big gray area and I suspect you would have to prove the dealer failed to follow Honda’s warning that 3 months without charging will harm the battery.
 
Clarity is such a low volume car anyone of us could have had a car that sat for extended periods of time discharged. When I test drove mine is was 0F or in the negative digits and the battery was totally discharged. Which is not good for the battery and definitely not keeping with Honda recommendations for the Clarity.
You want to hear the engine rev? Try having no to 1 bar in the bitter cold with heat and seat heaters on max.
 
I just got my Touring model delivered on Feb 14. Issue I am having is the Battery only charges to about 75%. I have a 240 volt 32 amp outlet at home and same at work. Each time charger stops, range is only at 49kms-about 31miles. I am in Ontario and it's been below freezing since I took delivery of vehicle. Any thoughts?
 
When you say it charges to 75%, How do you know that?

Range of 31 miles is about right for a full battery when it is below freezing temperatures.
 
Michael Arimah said:
I just got my Touring model delivered on Feb 14. Issue I am having is the Battery only charges to about 75%. I have a 240 volt 32 amp outlet at home and same at work. Each time charger stops, range is only at 49kms-about 31miles. I am in Ontario and it's been below freezing since I took delivery of vehicle. Any thoughts?
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Are you calculating 75% based on the range it's showing? That range is just an estimate. Don't be concerned about that. Is the battery gauge showing full? You can also check the state of charge through the Honda app.
 
31 miles more or less estimate is what I am getting currently in VT for a fully charged battery with temperatures in the teens-twenties farenheit.
 
Michael Arimah said:
I just got my Touring model delivered on Feb 14. Issue I am having is the Battery only charges to about 75%. I have a 240 volt 32 amp outlet at home and same at work. Each time charger stops, range is only at 49kms-about 31miles. I am in Ontario and it's been below freezing since I took delivery of vehicle. Any thoughts?
Click to expand...

I’m in the interior of B.C. and we’ve been experiencing temperatures anywhere from +2 to -20 over the past few weeks since I bought the car. My battery gauge always shows full but I think the highest range it’s ever estimated for me was like 62-64km? This morning I think it was something like 53km.

If the charge gauge is only reaching 75% then there’s a problem with your charging system. If you’re coming to the conclusion that you’re only getting 75% of your charge by the reasoning that 50km is about 75% of 70km then you’re misunderstanding the nature of HV batteries. You can lose 20-30% of your total voltage to the cold. Once Spring hits you should start seeing much higher ranges.


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Kyle’s Clarity said:
I’m in the interior of B.C. and we’ve been experiencing temperatures anywhere from +2 to -20 over the past few weeks since I bought the car. My battery gauge always shows full but I think the highest range it’s ever estimated for me was like 62-64km? This morning I think it was something like 53km.

If the charge gauge is only reaching 75% then there’s a problem with your charging system. If you’re coming to the conclusion that you’re only getting 75% of your charge by the reasoning that 50km is about 75% of 70km then you’re misunderstanding the nature of HV batteries. You can lose 20-30% of your total voltage to the cold. Once Spring hits you should start seeing much higher ranges.
Click to expand...


He could be referring to the display on the main touchscreen that shows EV range on a scale of 0 to 50 miles. It is not scaled on a % charge basis, which is confusing if you are not aware of it. It is strictly a guess as to how much range to expect. So a fully charged battery may only show 31 miles, which will look ~62% on that graph. Just guessing that is where the problem is.
 
Ray B said:
He could be referring to the display on the main touchscreen that shows EV range on a scale of 0 to 50 miles. It is not scaled on a % charge basis, which is confusing if you are not aware of it. It is strictly a guess as to how much range to expect. So a fully charged battery may only show 31 miles, which will look ~62% on that graph. Just guessing that is where the problem is.
Click to expand...

Oh interesting. I never look at any of the metrics on the head unit. Only in the instrument cluster. CarPlay has spoiled me and I never have it off haha. I’ll have to check that out.


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