My terrible morning with the Clarity

[brianc35]

Everyone is entitled to an opinion. We allow all experiences here: good, bad, and otherwise.

But what will never be tolerated is personal attacks. So long as the topic is sort of on topic, we will allow the opinion to be stated.

Debate the thing with facts and experience, and not each other/name calling.

 

[Landshark]

For whatever it is worth, I love the Plug-IN Hybrid idea.

I still like the idea. What I don’t like is the execution from either Honda or Stellantis. Maybe Chevy got it right with the Volt? I spent some time in a friends BMW X5 PHEV which was a pleasant experience but it got poor fuel economy when operating as an ICE vehicle. Swapping cars every 2 years until I find one I like isn’t on my to do list.

Another drawback with these vehicles is that they all have a battery that is costly to replace. The battery can fail without warning and it’s baked in the cake that it will degrade over time which could necessitate a replacement. Same applied to BEV’s Conventional cars can certainly have issues, however they rarely require a $6K-$12k expenditure to replace a single component.

 

[Geor99]

I still like the idea. What I don’t like is the execution from either Honda or Stellantis. Maybe Chevy got it right with the Volt? I spent some time in a friends BMW X5 PHEV which was a pleasant experience but it got poor fuel economy when operating as an ICE vehicle. Swapping cars every 2 years until I find one I like isn’t on my to do list.

Another drawback with these vehicles is that they all have a battery that is costly to replace. The battery can fail without warning and it’s baked in the cake that it will degrade over time which could necessitate a replacement. Same applied to BEV’s Conventional cars can certainly have issues, however they rarely require a $6K-$12k expenditure to replace a single component.

I was really torn back in 2018 between the VOlt and the Clarity. I really liked the look of the VOlt. BUt when I found out that the VOlt may be discontinued, the decision was easy. It would be very interesting to hear from someone who has owned both to compare and constrast. Yes, there are stories of this topic online; but I would like to hear from a real person.

 

[David Towle]

I was really torn back in 2018 between the VOlt and the Clarity. I really liked the look of the VOlt. BUt when I found out that the VOlt may be discontinued, the decision was easy. It would be very interesting to hear from someone who has owned both to compare and constrast. Yes, there are stories of this topic online; but I would like to hear from a real person.

I agree about the look of the Volt, but its people packaging was not family suited. Only 2 skinny people in the back seats is not good in a car that size.

 

[Dan Albrich]

I happen to "live in the sweet spot" for PHEV. My commute to/from work is 5 miles each way, no highway speeds, think 25 mph the whole way back and forth. Every day, I drive to and from work twice because I go home for lunch, which makes it 20 miles a day. Some days I go back into town so add 10. So my usual daily usage is between 20-30 miles. Anyway, I mention this because most often my Clarity can drive all electric. On the weekends in errand mode, I'll do 70 miles on a saturday, but I can space my trips as to recharge between them. So a very high percentage of my driving is electric.

Some say, why no BEV then? Well, it costs some money to insure and maintain each vehicle. 100% of all the BEV drivers I've ever known (many) all have their ICE vehicle for long trips. So the Clarity to me is that sweet spot of 90% electric driving and for days when range isn't adequate I just burn (a small amount of) gas. And for long trips, I don't need a dedicated second vehicle.

But yes, the magic all ends if I encounter say a $9000 repair bill in year 11. I figure its a roll of the dice. I planned to have the car working well for at least 10 years to have my back of the napkin math work. And since I live in a ZEV state, I can pretty much guarantee 10 years of traction battery or without me paying for replacement anyway.

Where I win the game is if I can go beyond 10 years without a disabled vehicle. I don't mind degradation in terms of burning more gas at all. I mind getting an error message on the dash -- or the car disabled, that effectively means I can't drive anymore. So if it becomes a mild hybrid over time I win. If it becomes a pumpkin, well it was a good ride for the time I had it. That assumption that I'd go to mild hybrid mode in later years is the assumption I made that allowed me to buy the vehicle to begin with. If that proves wrong, well, I'll join the mild hybrid club and move on.

[And yes, all of the cars I've owned in my life have exceeded 200K miles. They were normal gas cars. Even my terrible Datsun B210 with the rust through the floor exceeded 300K miles. Anyway, I think for a modern car, it needs to go 150K+ miles to be respectable. My Clarity looks brand new, garaged all the time, and has 90K miles presently]