2018 Clarity owner here. When going on long trips (where the EV range is definitely going to be exceeded) I prefer to put it in HV mode straight away (not HV charge). HV mode acts like a more typical hybrid, attempting to keep the battery at ~60% all the time. So, you get the EV torque and acceleration but it will recoup when cruising. HV Charge mode will recharge the battery to 60% (as able) using the gas engine and then automatically drop to regular HV when it reaches that point. As you may have noticed, switching on HV Charge when already on low EV and traveling at highway speeds doesn't do much. Because at highway speeds on low battery the gas engine is already doing most of the work. HV Charge is really just a stop-gap measure for if your battery is low and you can't plug in. In my experience, letting the battery get too low on this car results in a far worse driving experience. If there is no blue on the dial you're gonna have a bad time. Setting it on HV right away when you know you are going to exceed the EV range makes sure you have plenty of reserve battery power for acceleration or low-speed operation when you get where you are going without taxing either system too much along the way. For the first few months of owning my Clarity, I didn't have a reliable place to charge, so I had to try various things. The one thing I discovered is that I NEVER like to see my EV range at 0. If you leave it in Normal mode you will notice the blue on the dial getting lower and lower and the gas engine kicking in more and more often. Eventually, it will get so low that the gas engine will be on all the time, which is not the way this car is designed to operate. You need to be proactive and set HV (for long trips) or HV Charge (if your EV range is on 0) on your own to try to keep your EV range above 0. The one thing it won't do (which I think it should) is kick into HV Charge when the battery gets too low. When you get to 0 EV range it basically kicks in HV mode ... but that only tries to maintain the battery where it is, not increase it. It will still continue to decrease as you use it. When the battery is nearly entirely depleted it is like driving a 2-ton lawnmower, with the gas engine screaming just to get you to 35mph. I once found myself putting it in HV Charge and sitting in a parking lot burning gas to get the battery up because the performance had become so abysmal. I have no idea which situation results in the absolute best gas mileage, but it seems to me that having both systems operating optimally will give you the best experience per mile and either way better gas mileage than a similarly sized pure ICE car.
@@Mac_Raymond I have a 2019 clarity 66,000km and found starting off on the drive in EV mode which it automatically does is best for me. If my trip is longer than my EV range I stay in EV mode for 10 km just to use some battery capacity leaving the regeneration function available , then switch to HV mode switching back to EV mode to use the remaining battery to 0 back home to my charge station,, I use the google map distance home to pick the reset to EV mode, When I am on a long trip I make sure the EV battery has 10 KM , 6 miles, available to use as driving down to 0 battery range limits the cars high speed performance up hills. Driving in HV mode the car will keep the battery charge near the 6 miles EV range and you will not have the high reviving the 0 battery range problem leaves you experiencing. I have wondered what setting the drivers used going up Pikes Peak ? Possibly a fully topped up battery and HV mode would make it to the top?
@@mikelittle4812 Hi, quick question so in order for the engine not to scream do I switch from ev mode to HV mode after the car have 6 miles of ev range right? Thanks.
2019 Clarity owner. I drive in EV ECON mode until range drops to 15 miles. Then HV until I am 15 miles from home. With 4 adults in the car I put it in Sport mode to accelerate on and off the highway, then back to EV or HV depending on distance to my destination. In general once I am off the highway and back to stop and go traffic I switch to EV ECON to capture some of the charge from braking and coasting down hills by using the paddles...
I have a 2018 Prius and average around 22,000 miles per year. Over around 33,000 miles so far my total average fuel economy is 52.6 (the Prius tracks that) I spend roughly ~$60-70 a month on gas pending on the FL prices. Its a great car no doubt, but I am in the mood to go electric or more electric so been researching the Clarity. Since I drive so much highway and over 80 mph on my daily commute I'm not sure how this car will do for us. Wish we had some to test drive around here... thanks for the videos!
Clarity keeps some electricity in reserve. Even when the EV range says zero, it will still provide some electricity for the HV mode. Some say the reserve has about 5 to 10%, from my own experience it maybe true.
hv charge really kills the fuel economy. you probably could have gotten 50+mpg. that's what i get when i go on trips but my battery charged and I'm in hv mode only.
You get about 250- 300 miles on gasoline before you have to fill it up with no charge at all. Not a great experience though. Thanks for your comment! Cheers!
Thanks for the video I just confused, how many miles you can drive with full battery charge plus full gas tank in HV mode ? And with what mpg ? According to 7 gallon gas tank I calculated with full battery charge and full gas tank the mpg is around 48 mpg, is that correct ? 340 miles total range in HV mode 7 gallon gas tank capacity So the mpg is around 48
It will be different for everyone, but upper 40s if you were to run a whole tank of gas and a full charge. And somewhere over 300 miles and less than 400 miles
@@Aslash304It's just around sport mode mpg, that means full battery charge can help 6 mpg, Actually I live in appartment and I had plan to charge in ev Station and drive with combined mode because I thought combine mode is 110 mpg as Honda said.
@@YG-qe2po in EV mode you get a *110MPGe, but the car gets 35-50 MPG when using gas. That 110 number is a super complex calculation made to create a comparison between the cost of electricity and gas. This car is best when In EV mode. After that range runs out, it’s an Accord Hybrid (or an Insight).
I think it is better to ask ordnance to subscribe at almost the end of video not at beginning. How am I going to waste my time if the video is not good.
2018 Clarity owner here. When going on long trips (where the EV range is definitely going to be exceeded) I prefer to put it in HV mode straight away (not HV charge). HV mode acts like a more typical hybrid, attempting to keep the battery at ~60% all the time. So, you get the EV torque and acceleration but it will recoup when cruising. HV Charge mode will recharge the battery to 60% (as able) using the gas engine and then automatically drop to regular HV when it reaches that point. As you may have noticed, switching on HV Charge when already on low EV and traveling at highway speeds doesn't do much. Because at highway speeds on low battery the gas engine is already doing most of the work. HV Charge is really just a stop-gap measure for if your battery is low and you can't plug in.
In my experience, letting the battery get too low on this car results in a far worse driving experience. If there is no blue on the dial you're gonna have a bad time. Setting it on HV right away when you know you are going to exceed the EV range makes sure you have plenty of reserve battery power for acceleration or low-speed operation when you get where you are going without taxing either system too much along the way.
For the first few months of owning my Clarity, I didn't have a reliable place to charge, so I had to try various things. The one thing I discovered is that I NEVER like to see my EV range at 0. If you leave it in Normal mode you will notice the blue on the dial getting lower and lower and the gas engine kicking in more and more often. Eventually, it will get so low that the gas engine will be on all the time, which is not the way this car is designed to operate. You need to be proactive and set HV (for long trips) or HV Charge (if your EV range is on 0) on your own to try to keep your EV range above 0.
The one thing it won't do (which I think it should) is kick into HV Charge when the battery gets too low. When you get to 0 EV range it basically kicks in HV mode ... but that only tries to maintain the battery where it is, not increase it. It will still continue to decrease as you use it. When the battery is nearly entirely depleted it is like driving a 2-ton lawnmower, with the gas engine screaming just to get you to 35mph. I once found myself putting it in HV Charge and sitting in a parking lot burning gas to get the battery up because the performance had become so abysmal.
I have no idea which situation results in the absolute best gas mileage, but it seems to me that having both systems operating optimally will give you the best experience per mile and either way better gas mileage than a similarly sized pure ICE car.
EXTREMELY HELPFUL. Just got a new Clarity, and I want to learn how to use the car intelligently. This explains a lot. THANK YOU!
What MPG do you get in the HV mode long distance. I have 130 mile daily commute and wondering if it makes more sense to just get an insight
Well said. Answered my questions on best way to operate in different situations. thanks
@@Mac_Raymond I have a 2019 clarity 66,000km and found starting off on the drive in EV mode which it automatically does is best for me. If my trip is longer than my EV range I stay in EV mode for 10 km just to use some battery capacity leaving the regeneration function available , then switch to HV mode switching back to EV mode to use the remaining battery to 0 back home to my charge station,, I use the google map distance home to pick the reset to EV mode, When I am on a long trip I make sure the EV battery has 10 KM , 6 miles, available to use as driving down to 0 battery range limits the cars high speed performance up hills. Driving in HV mode the car will keep the battery charge near the 6 miles EV range and you will not have the high reviving the 0 battery range problem leaves you experiencing. I have wondered what setting the drivers used going up Pikes Peak ? Possibly a fully topped up battery and HV mode would make it to the top?
@@mikelittle4812 Hi, quick question so in order for the engine not to scream do I switch from ev mode to HV mode after the car have 6 miles of ev range right? Thanks.
2019 Clarity owner. I drive in EV ECON mode until range drops to 15 miles. Then HV until I am 15 miles from home. With 4 adults in the car I put it in Sport mode to accelerate on and off the highway, then back to EV or HV depending on distance to my destination. In general once I am off the highway and back to stop and go traffic I switch to EV ECON to capture some of the charge from braking and coasting down hills by using the paddles...
I have a 2018 Prius and average around 22,000 miles per year. Over around 33,000 miles so far my total average fuel economy is 52.6 (the Prius tracks that) I spend roughly ~$60-70 a month on gas pending on the FL prices. Its a great car no doubt, but I am in the mood to go electric or more electric so been researching the Clarity. Since I drive so much highway and over 80 mph on my daily commute I'm not sure how this car will do for us. Wish we had some to test drive around here... thanks for the videos!
love the real world testing
Clarity keeps some electricity in reserve. Even when the EV range says zero, it will still provide some electricity for the HV mode. Some say the reserve has about 5 to 10%, from my own experience it maybe true.
Correct. Thanks for your feedback, Cheers!
hv charge really kills the fuel economy. you probably could have gotten 50+mpg. that's what i get when i go on trips but my battery charged and I'm in hv mode only.
Thank you
how long the gas last before you refuel it.without eletric thanks
You get about 250- 300 miles on gasoline before you have to fill it up with no charge at all. Not a great experience though. Thanks for your comment! Cheers!
To add to @Aslash34 's comment; Note it's only a 7.5 gallon tank that gets you the 250-300 miles.
Thanks for the video
I just confused, how many miles you can drive with full battery charge plus full gas tank in HV mode ? And with what mpg ?
According to 7 gallon gas tank I calculated with full battery charge and full gas tank the mpg is around 48 mpg, is that correct ?
340 miles total range in HV mode
7 gallon gas tank capacity
So the mpg is around 48
It will be different for everyone, but upper 40s if you were to run a whole tank of gas and a full charge. And somewhere over 300 miles and less than 400 miles
@@Aslash304It's just around sport mode mpg, that means full battery charge can help 6 mpg,
Actually I live in appartment and I had plan to charge in ev Station and drive with combined mode because I thought combine mode is 110 mpg as Honda said.
@@YG-qe2po in EV mode you get a *110MPGe, but the car gets 35-50 MPG when using gas. That 110 number is a super complex calculation made to create a comparison between the cost of electricity and gas. This car is best when In EV mode. After that range runs out, it’s an Accord Hybrid (or an Insight).
@@Aslash304very thanks for your clear answer, in my opinion still this Honda is amazing.
@@YG-qe2po Best Consumer Honda Car ever built.
Look at those gas prices a year ago. $1.87.
I miss the bad orange man.
I think it is better to ask ordnance to subscribe at almost the end of video not at beginning. How am I going to waste my time if the video is not good.
Probably shouldn’t subscribe.