I believe that it did kick on at 2 bars, but I was going 75 or 80 with the ac on up a very steep hill. I think that it kicked on at 2 bars, quickly went down to 1 bar, then screamed like crazy, I cut off the ac, slowed down, put on the hazards; and hit ev charge. The hill continued to be in front of me, and I went through the last bar quickly.
My terrible morning with the Clarity
- Thread starter Geor99
- Start date
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It’s going to have to throw a code for any warranty work to begin.
I also was using the cruise control. It slams the gas when going uphill, if you are not at the cruise speed. This is probably why it killed the last bars. I had the LCC on 80 or so and it slammed the gas to get there going up the hill.
I commute daily 50 miles and completely deplete and charge the Traction battery twice a day every day.
I drive all EV miles until I'm left with about 5-10 miles on the GOM.
When you switch to HV mode, whatever the EV range is at the time of HV mode is engaged, that's what the computer will try to maintain.
So, if you engage at 15miles on the GOM, the computer will do everything it can to maintain that.
Anything over 70mph, it will really struggle to maintain that. the Traction motor is really out of its efficacy range when your above 65mph.
If this happens again, follow these steps to be safe:
1. Slow down to about 60-65mph and set cruise control
2. Enable HV Charge
3. Enable eco mode
4. Once you have 5+ miles on the GOM, disable charge mode and run HV
Worked every time (3-4 times) when I intentionally depleted the battery to find ways of overcoming the ANGRY BEE'S!
I drive all EV miles until I'm left with about 5-10 miles on the GOM.
When you switch to HV mode, whatever the EV range is at the time of HV mode is engaged, that's what the computer will try to maintain.
So, if you engage at 15miles on the GOM, the computer will do everything it can to maintain that.
Anything over 70mph, it will really struggle to maintain that. the Traction motor is really out of its efficacy range when your above 65mph.
If this happens again, follow these steps to be safe:
1. Slow down to about 60-65mph and set cruise control
2. Enable HV Charge
3. Enable eco mode
4. Once you have 5+ miles on the GOM, disable charge mode and run HV
Worked every time (3-4 times) when I intentionally depleted the battery to find ways of overcoming the ANGRY BEE'S!
It's remembering, which stung me
. I've remembered 99.99% of the time
Like another poster said, I would never loan my car to anyone; for anything over over 30 miles , unless I could beat this entire button push time/when/how long/etc into their heat exhaustively
Id probably beat into their head to always hit hv when starting the car, no matter what.
. I've remembered 99.99% of the timeLike another poster said, I would never loan my car to anyone; for anything over over 30 miles , unless I could beat this entire button push time/when/how long/etc into their heat exhaustively
Id probably beat into their head to always hit hv when starting the car, no matter what.
I am so confused on everything being said on the Honda Clarity. It is a plug in hybrid. It does not require the battery charged... ever. With no battery charge, it will still drive as a normal gas hybrid car and while the power may be a bit less than on EV mode, it will still maintain freeway speeds with gas only. If it does not, SOMETHING IS LIKELY WRONG WITH THE ENGINE, FUEL PUMP OR ACCELERATOR PEDAL FAILURE. Also, using the engine to charge up the battery while driving is very inefficient and costs MORE to drive. Just drive the car in EV/hybrid normal mode and let the engine switch over to hybrid when the battery is depleted. Delaying battery use may give you a bit more pep up hills, but your overall economy will suffer accordingly. It has a 1.5l motor that while small, offers plenty of power for everyday driving. If you want more power up hills, conserve the battery until your climb begins.
Sorry man, if you just drive the car in ev mode and you depend on the car to switch to hv mode when the battery gets low- generally when you get to 2 bars; you will potentially be very disappointed with the performance.
As described in my original post, if this happens to occur at the base of a tall, sleep incline at free way speeds (with the AC on for good measure you can certainly blow through your 2 bars of EV to a single bar. Then, it doesn't take a whole lot on a steep incline to burn through that last ev bar.
Then the clarity becomes a loud engine reving sound maker with virtually no power whatsoever . I don't believe that my car has anything wrong with it. I just so happen to hit a corner case of a corner case.
I'm just trying to encourage people to make sure that they hit the ev button before 2 ev bars makes its appearance.
In certain corner cases, 2 bars of EV is simply not enough to power the clarity through to road less demanding, where it can both power the car and do some battery charging.
Just trying to help the community. And with some bad luck, this could result in an accident and possibly your death. IF you are trying to change lanes on the freeway at a high speed and lose most or all power, disaster could occur. Will this happen? The odds are probably super low; but I want people to at least be aware of this.
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As described in my original post, if this happens to occur at the base of a tall, sleep incline at free way speeds (with the AC on for good measure
you can certainly blow through your 2 bars of EV to a single bar. Then, it doesn't take a whole lot on a steep incline to burn through that last ev bar.Then the clarity becomes a loud engine reving sound maker with virtually no power whatsoever . I don't believe that my car has anything wrong with it. I just so happen to hit a corner case of a corner case.
I'm just trying to encourage people to make sure that they hit the ev button before 2 ev bars makes its appearance.
In certain corner cases, 2 bars of EV is simply not enough to power the clarity through to road less demanding, where it can both power the car and do some battery charging.
Just trying to help the community. And with some bad luck, this could result in an accident and possibly your death. IF you are trying to change lanes on the freeway at a high speed and lose most or all power, disaster could occur. Will this happen? The odds are probably super low; but I want people to at least be aware of this.
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I think you are missing the main difference between traditional hybrids and the Clarity. That 1.5L Engine does not connect to the wheels directly like a traditional hybrid, unless you are at highway speeds and in ideal conditions.
Anything under 60, it's only going provide additional Electricity to the electric traction motor in-line with the traction battery. Something like 90% of the Wheel Horsepower is from the electric traction motor, not the 1.5L ICE.
Most traditional hybrids are the opposite. The ICE provides 90% of the HP driving the wheels thru a traditional 4-6 speed or CVT transmission and the electric Motor+Battery provides the additional 10%.
Anything under 60, it's only going provide additional Electricity to the electric traction motor in-line with the traction battery. Something like 90% of the Wheel Horsepower is from the electric traction motor, not the 1.5L ICE.
Most traditional hybrids are the opposite. The ICE provides 90% of the HP driving the wheels thru a traditional 4-6 speed or CVT transmission and the electric Motor+Battery provides the additional 10%.
PHEV Newbie
Well-Known Member
Unfortunately, the Clarity requires some study to get the best experience out of it. The first issue is that Honda used it as kind of an experimental platform to learn how to build green vehicles with maximum efficiency (remember the BEV and fuel cell versions?). That's why they put in their 1.5 litre Atkinson Cycle engine instead of a 2.0 litre (which they already had and would fit in the Clarity). The smaller engine maximizes fuel economy in hybrid mode and the big traction battery can fill in the power deficits of the engine. That's the problem. Without full battery power, the tiny engine is way underpowered. You would be fine in city driving or cruising on a flat highway at 65 mph but you're screwed if you're going up a hill or trying to pass someone. The Clarity engine can produce only 103 hp at near redline (i.e., engine screaming). That's nothing for an over 2 ton car and it's unclear what the output is at the wheels are after the losses in generating the electricity to power the electric motor. For perspective, a Toyota Corolla puts out 169 hp for a car that weighs more than 1000 pounds less than the Clarity and no one calls a Corolla fast. Honda programming is very conservative to protect the battery. Even before the battery is down to two bars (if in HV mode), it will prioritize engine power (running at high rpm) to protect and conserve the battery. What does this mean? Lithium ion batteries are very tempermental. They like to be at around room temperature and at 50% state of charge. The farther you move from these conditions, the greater the battery degradation, especially if the battery is charging and/or discharging (i.e., hybrid mode). Using a battery to 0% and then charging to 100% kills battery life the fastest. That's why PHEVs and BEVs build in a buffer at the bottom and top (you can never charge to the actual 100% nor discharge to the actual 0% like you can with your phone). But the buffer is not that big so that's why car companies tell you to charge BEVs to only 80% for everyday driving and to charge before 20%. This would be good practice for your Clarity too but make sure you charge to 100% at least once a month for cell balancing. In addition, I think it's super important to switch to HV mode when the battery is at 50% unless you know you can get to your destination well before two bars and you can charge there. The first reason is battery longevity. Your battery is constantly charging and discharging in HV mode so doing that at 100% or two bars is bad for the battery. The second reason is power. At 50% and above, your battery will provide full battery power in HV mode when you need it (like hills and passing). From my experience, Honda programming reduces battery power to the HV system at about 30-40% and gives you less and less the more it gets depleted. Remember, full battery power will give you maximum 120 hp on the electric motor but 232 ft lb or torque. That's why EV mode feels peppy in town. To get the full 180 hp, you need the engine running hard and full power from the battery combined. Thus, when the battery depletes, you SOL in hybrid mode if you need any sort of power. BTW, the Clarity is rated at 212 hp but it's virtually impossible to get that kind of output.
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