Torn between Clarity and Outlander PHEV

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Ordell98

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I've got two kids, 2 and 5, and my wife and me. We currently drive a Corolla, and need something bigger (I'm 6'3'', my boys are taking after me height-wise).

I'm incredibly attracted to the Clarity but I worry that it will not be large enough for our family for next 6-8 years. The Outlander PHEV has some size and cargo, but not nearly the awesome EV qualities of the Clarity.

What do you folks recommend? I need more room and really want to go PHEV.
 
I'm 6'5", and I think you'll find the Clarity roomy for a sedan. Of course, you should try sitting in the back seat but I find it comfortable.
 
Clarity owner here. A quick look at the Outlander shows that it looks like a nice car. What jumps out at me, other than some price difference:

-The Outlander has much more cargo/storage space, esp given the small passthrough in the Clarity
-The difference in battery range is immense: low 20s for Outlander, vs high 40s for Clarity.

Judging from my own experience, and most of the comments in the forum, one of the real joys of the Clarity is that with a 40-50 mi range, for many people it can be driven as an all-electric almost all the time. There are people who have driven thousands of miles on one tank of gas. Electric is fun. Really only the Volt has the same range and Clarity is felt to be quite superior on this forum comfort-wise.

The Outlander is in a different class:, more like Ford Fusion. if you have a very short commute and ample recharge time, the 20 mi will be OK bit otherwise not.

So if you like to travel with tons of gear, and don’t mind using the ICE a lot, Outlander might suit. I love the Clarity myself with its range.

Try them both—you’ll see quickly I think—BUT be sure,for both, to call ahead and ask them to be charged up.
 
2 completely different cars, the Clarity may be a tad smaller than the Corolla.
This isn't so much an EV question since the Outlander with a 20Km range is basically just a hybrid.
You are going to need a car that is comfortable, if you don't need one now and want electric powered hold on a couple more years if you can.
 
I have sat in both, and I can tell you for a fact that the Clarity is not smaller than a Corolla. PrestoOne, do you even own a Clarity? It’s more accurate to say it’s a tad smaller than an Accord or Camry. Just look up the published dimensions. Try sitting in the Clarity with the seat down and back and I think you will have enough room but only you will know for sure.

You are comparing an SUV with a sedan so there will be strengths and weaknesses for both.
The Outlander gives you more room for passengers and cargo but at the expense (pun intended) of only 74 vs 110 MPGe, only 25 vs 42 MPG, and only 22 miles of EV range vs 48 for the Clarity.
So the question for you is how often will you need the extra room and are you willing to pay for it if you only need it for a few occasions?
I would also have to consider the reliability of Mitsubishi vs Honda.

Be warned, if you can comfortably sit in the front seat, don’t take a test drive! You will end up buying it!!
 
Tsk, tsk tsk Ken. Sounds like you are making blind guesses again and presenting them as facts.
Don't have to own a Clarity to have sat in one and since I moved right from a Corolla into a Clarity I can definitely tell you that I did feel that the Clarity felt slightly smaller in most aspects.
I don't know what Corolla the OP has, but it sounds like you think do.
The OP has to judge for themselves if it seems more cramped, roomier or about the same as their current car or a Corolla they are looking to buy.
 
PrestoOne, just look at the published dimensions from the manufacturers and the facts must trump your “feelings”.
I made no guesses, blind or otherwise; I just asked you if you owned a Clarity to know if you’ve done more than just sit in it.
Surely your not saying your “feelings” are correct and the measured dimensions are not.
Posting inaccurate information is not very helpful. But I will be the first to apologize to you if I am wrong.
 
So here's my 2 cents (and worth what it cost you!). We looked at all known PHEV options a the Detroit Auto Show this year. In my opinion, there are no viable PHEV SUVs at this time, including the Outlander. It's not reviewed very well anyway, and the short EV range makes it too much like a hybrid to be a viable PHEV. There are likely to be some nice PHEV SUVs in the coming years, since the U.S. market it headed strongly in the SUV direction, but it's just not there yet.

On the other hand, there are some really nice hybrid SUVs on the market right now. The Highlander Hybrid, for one, is stellar. If you want family room in a high mpg SUV, look first at the Highlander. I owned one for several years and easily got 31 mpg in an AWD, 3-row SUV that was a blast to drive (V6 combined with 2 electric motors; it was fast).

On the 3rd hand, if you want a 4 door sedan PHEV, the Clarity is right on the mark. I would consider it fine for a family of 4, but whether its right for you is a subjective thing you can only decide for yourself after some test drives.
 
The Clarity feels and is much larger than a Corolla. It is closer in length to my minivan and even with the seat set for me in the front I have plenty of rear seat room in the back.

The Clarity is also longer than the Outlander PHEV, but probably feels more cramped. The Outlander PHEV is a small SUV based on the Sport model, but is much taller and airier and has a hatch.
 
KentuckyKen said:
PrestoOne, just look at the published dimensions from the manufacturers and the facts must trump your “feelings”.
I made no guesses, blind or otherwise; I just asked you if you owned a Clarity to know if you’ve done more than just sit in it.
Surely your not saying your “feelings” are correct and the measured dimensions are not.
Posting inaccurate information is not very helpful. But I will be the first to apologize to you if I am wrong.
Click to expand...

This is what I did.....I sat in them and measured the distance between my head and the roof. Front and back.
The center console in the Clarity takes up a lot of room and they gave me part of the "feeling" of it being a bit smaller in the front, not as much wiggle room.
Also the back door opening didn't seem as large as the Corolla.
Kenny...you don't even know what years we are talking about here but there you go with your absolutes. What year(s) of specs are you going to post for the Corolla Ken?
Lets see those specs Ken. I bet they don't say what you are pretending they say.
All I said is that it may be a tad smaller and I said that because I am smart enough to know I don't have all the details.

Waiting for those dimensions Ken.
 
KentuckyKen said:
PrestoOne, just look at the published dimensions from the manufacturers and the facts must trump your “feelings”.
I made no guesses, blind or otherwise; I just asked you if you owned a Clarity to know if you’ve done more than just sit in it.
Surely your not saying your “feelings” are correct and the measured dimensions are not.
Posting inaccurate information is not very helpful. But I will be the first to apologize to you if I am wrong.
Click to expand...

BTW that is pretty aggressive there Ken.
Do you own a Corolla or have you just sat in one? I am not taking your advice, maybe you should take your own.

also I did look up the specs. I don't know if the OP is a big guy or a small guy. All I know is that they are 6'5".
The current Corolla (don't know about the one he currently has) is .1" better for leg room and .8" less for head room as per the spec (wow, a massive difference lol) but I don't even know if they use the same measurement methods. Do they use the same measurement methods Ken?
 
KentuckyKen said:
I have sat in both, and I can tell you for a fact that the Clarity is not smaller than a Corolla. PrestoOne, do you even own a Clarity? It’s more accurate to say it’s a tad smaller than an Accord or Camry. Just look up the published dimensions. Try sitting in the Clarity with the seat down and back and I think you will have enough room but only you will know for sure.

You are comparing an SUV with a sedan so there will be strengths and weaknesses for both.
The Outlander gives you more room for passengers and cargo but at the expense (pun intended) of only 74 vs 110 MPGe, only 25 vs 42 MPG, and only 22 miles of EV range vs 48 for the Clarity.
So the question for you is how often will you need the extra room and are you willing to pay for it if you only need it for a few occasions?
I would also have to consider the reliability of Mitsubishi vs Honda.

Be warned, if you can comfortably sit in the front seat, don’t take a test drive! You will end up buying it!!
Click to expand...

For those considering a PHEV that is reported to get ~25 miles EV, if you live where there are winters you need to realize you will only get ~15 miles when it is cold. The Clarity gives you a much greater chance of driving all EV, which is delightful, even in winter.


Sent from my iPhone using Inside EVs
 
Ken and Presto, I appreciate your passion and thoughtful replies! I think you both make some great points regarding the Corolla, and as you both say I’ll just have to test out the Clarity to see how the size compares—- it’s hard to really know until I feel it, measurements may be accurate but misleading.
 
One issue with the Outlander is the battery is air cooled, and they announced the 2019 version will have improvements. That makes the 2018 model not so desirable, though I don't think they will change the air cooling. We have an old Corolla, not particularly big in the rear seats. Although the newer models do use the front seat tunnel to provide big leg room in the rear, but the vehicle width is narrow compared to a Clarity or Camry.
 
LAF said:
For those considering a PHEV that is reported to get ~25 miles EV, if you live where there are winters you need to realize you will only get ~15 miles when it is cold. The Clarity gives you a much greater chance of driving all EV, which is delightful, even in winter.
Click to expand...

I believe the Outlander has to run its engine to heat the cabin because it doesn't have a resistive heater like the Clarity PHEV can use when the engine isn't running. Of course, when the Clarity's engine is running, it, not the battery, heats the water to warm the cabin. The Outlander does have heated seats AND a heated steering wheel. Many wish the Clarity had a heated steering wheel.

Edit: I was wrong, the Outlander PHEV does have an electric heater for the upper trim levels.
 
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Spec sheets for leg-room, especially rear, are easily manipulated. The rear seat legroom is often with the front seat set unrealistically far forward .

Corolla vs Clarity, Car and Driver
Wheelbase: 106/108
Front head: 38/39
Rear head: 37/37
Front hip: 53/56
Rear hip: 44/56 (12 inches wider rear seat space)
Front leg: 42/42
Rear leg: 41*/37

(* given wheelbase Toyota is manipulating this, the front seat goes further forward, not practically more if someone is sitting in front seat, maybe meaningful for Lyft/Uber driver with passenger in back right seat)

Again, that rear seat hip room is why we bought the Clarity, if you never seat more than 4 in the back Corolla might be fine. To be fair, it looks like newest Corolla has lengthened the wheelbase by 4" over the one I drove last. The Clarity trunk is also 20% larger or so.

From a driver's perspective, the drivers seat room is fairly similar in most vehicles and might feel bigger in a small car like a Smart. That is not really what I am getting at here. For us, we absolutely needed to get three across in the back, where a lot of small SUVs lack severely as well.
 
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ClarityDoc said:
Perhaps you could take this outside, you two? Just a thought.
Click to expand...
Thanks ClarityDoc, that is wise and thoughtful advice and I will heed it. So I will quit before PrestoOne gets another of his posts deleted by the moderator. I’ll just go out and take a drive in my Clarity which is always a calming experience.
The facts kindly posted by Viking79 make a much more eloquent argument than I ever could.
 
prestoOne said:
Tsk, tsk tsk Ken. Sounds like you are making blind guesses again and presenting them as facts.
Don't have to own a Clarity to have sat in one and since I moved right from a Corolla into a Clarity I can definitely tell you that I did feel that the Clarity felt slightly smaller in most aspects.
I don't know what Corolla the OP has, but it sounds like you think do.
The OP has to judge for themselves if it seems more cramped, roomier or about the same as their current car or a Corolla they are looking to buy.
Click to expand...

Presto One , You surprised me when you compared Clarity with Corolla. I own Corolla currently. I have set on Clarity and I can see that it is more comparable to Camry or Accord. I this time Agree with Ken.
 
Atul Thakkar said:
Presto One , You surprised me when you compared Clarity with Corolla. I own Corolla currently. I have set on Clarity and I can see that it is more comparable to Camry or Accord. I this time Agree with Ken.
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Agree with him on what?

That the specs say it is bigger so it is? That was shown to be poor logic and the specs favor the Corolla for long legs.
That everyone is shaped the same? That isn't true either.
How about access to the back seating area for the kids?
That emotional feelings are the same as me feeling a bit more cramped in the Clarity for what I am used to?

When I got my Corolla the difference between that and the Camry was very small.

Jumping to conclusions? Are you agreeing with that too? Why waste time with actual facts when fake facts are just as good?
Maybe you are right the OP should just jump to the conclusion that the Clarity will be far more comfortable for him and his family for the next 10 years and he should just buy a Clairity over all else.
Or
Maybe he should just try it out a bit.
What do you think?

I do believe that you find the Clairity feels like a better fit for you. <---I actually think this is what you meant but took the opportunity for a short rant. :)
Just a little rant but I try to give my head a shake before jumping to conclusions.....that is how big mistakes are made, like "clairty won't support a roof rack".
 
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