[Amster]

When I first got the car, which was only four months ago, it started with the stated 47 EV range after a charge. After it adjusted to my driving, it dropped a few miles to 43. I live in a very hilly area, and do half my driving on the freeway, neither of which does do good things for EV ranges. But as of the last month, it's dropped to 37 after an all night charge. Is this normal?? I know batteries do lose some of their charge over time, but I didn't expect it to happen so quickly. I'm leasing the car. I had just about decided that I would keep it, but not I'm leaning the other way.

 

[1969tc]

Cold weather also affects range. My summer range of 60s has dropped to the low 40's.
Terry

 

[Groves Cooke]

Cooler weather!

 

[Sweepy]

Yes I found the same and it seems weather related

 

[Lieblet]

Charging

I noticed the same thing. But today it was in the high 60s and only got 44 miles on a full charge. I had some software updated a few weeks ago, mileage went down after that but it was cooler. I wonder if the software update has anything to do with it.

 

[Amster]

Cold weather also affects range. My summer range of 60s has dropped to the low 40's.
Terry

I knew weather had an effect, but didn't realize it was such a drastic one. It's been warmer the last week, and the range has gone back up to 41 to 43.

 

[IhaveClarity]

I have the same issue. I got mine in August and the range was 47-48 and by the end of September and now November I am seeing 35-37 at 100% charge. I'm not happy about this at all. That's a huge % loss.

 

[Geosak]

When I first got the car, which was only four months ago, it started with the stated 47 EV range after a charge. After it adjusted to my driving, it dropped a few miles to 43. I live in a very hilly area, and do half my driving on the freeway, neither of which does do good things for EV ranges. But as of the last month, it's dropped to 37 after an all night charge. Is this normal??

Hi. I have had a similar experience. I live in upstate NY. I got my new Clarity on Oct. 17, about 4 weeks ago. The car had 90 miles on it because it had been driven from another dealer by one of their drivers. For the first 2 weeks when fully charged the range read 43 miles. I never saw the promised 47 mile estimate. Since then the mileage read out has been declining steadily as the temps. have dropped. Now when fully charged it is displaying 36 miles of EV range. I don’t have a heavy foot (with this car anyway) and I rarely drive on the highways. No hills either. Any ideas? Do you think the data collected from the initial drive by a dealer’s driver of 90 miles on the NYS throughway has affected the mileage estimates? Could the battery system be defective?

 

[jpl418]

Agree- 42-47 mi initially when purchased a month ago, now 32-35 after overnight charge! What’s the deal Honda?

 

[Jgillmer]

When I first purchased the Clarity PHEV in July 2018, I was getting 58-60 mile range on a full charge. Then they did a recall for a software update at the beginning of November after I had a power systems idiot light trip and now I'm at 39. Honda claims it's because of weather (it's in the 50s here in DC) and it's within tolerances...but won't tell me how much loss happens at a given temperature, nor will disclose what the tolerance is.

I am intensely disappointed.

 

[Walt10410]

When I got the car, range was between 48 to 58 miles, September in Houston, 70F to 80F. Dropped to 35 miles when temp. was in the high 30F. Now back to 52 when temp in low 70s F.

 

[Claire Greene]

I don't know whether to be amused or cry in tears by what I observe as REVERSE RANGE ANXIETY. Here we are with a 47 EV mile vehicle with a back up gas motor and we have 10 or 12 threads about mileage and tactics of using EV vs HV. Can't we just enjoy our cars instead of worrying about the smallest details and taking focus away from how wonderful and sophisticated the Honda Clarity is? It is what it is and if we lose 5 or 10 miles because of the cold, will it really strand us in the middle of nowhere?That's what the gas engine is there for. I understand the urge to use as little petroleum as possible and yes it feels good when we get away without using the ICE for as long as we can....yes I get that. But let's stand back for a moment and take a look at the big picture....when summer comes around we'd all be back to our 47 EV miles of full charge. If I'm understanding people's frustrations and rejection of cold temperature as possible culprit of low EV miles may I point out that this is not confined to the Clarity. All electric vehicles suffer lower mileage due to the cold temperature. Part of the rejection of this explanation I'm guessing is focusing on the theory of reduced chemical efficiency of battery charging in low temperature. But let's take our Neil de Grasse hats off for a second and put on our common sense hat instead. Perhaps it's more than just the reduced battery chemical reaction causing the low EV range. There are other possible causes....let's start with increased use of cabin heater and seat warmers or defrosters. Keep in mind prior use is taken into consideration when calculating EV mileage after each charging session. Then there's the matter of battery temperature when charging, do you charge as soon as you get in the garage while the battery is still warmer than ambient temperature from being used or is it programmed to charge later at night when electric rates are lower and the battery has cooled down to ambient temperature? A simple trial and error should pinpoint what is causing this drop in EV miles if there's doubt the cold weather is to blame. But how far would you go to get back the original 47 miles of EV range? Would you sacrifice a toasty nice warm commute and not turn on the heater and seat warmer? That would be laughable and taking things out too far don't you think? Which brings us back to my original suggestion....why not enjoy the car and heck with the drop in EV miles? Yes it's a matter of principle to bypass gas stations as much as we can but during winter time sometimes one has to do what one has to do.

 

[Shermo]

All you say is true and accurate. However shouldn't we have the right to expect what is advertised and promised or at the very least a valid explanation for the reduced EV range. I originally was charging every second or third day and now it's every night- sort of adds to the bother and diminishes the joy.

 

[Claire Greene]

I must confess that considering ALL battery cars without exception suffer from diminished capacity during cold months I'm at a total loss for a VALID explanation to satisfy my inherent right to expect a manufacturer to deliver on their advertised range. Me thinks a class action lawsuit is in order.

 

[Amster]

I must confess that considering ALL battery cars without exception suffer from diminished capacity during cold months I'm at a total loss for a VALID explanation to satisfy my inherent right to expect a manufacturer to deliver on their advertised range. Me thinks a class action lawsuit is in order.

But think of ICE cars, and the mpg ratings on the stickers at the dealership. Has anyone ever gotten the quoted amount of mpg? I've never heard of anyone saying they did. My last car said 28mpg city/38mpg highway. The only thing real about that was the 38. If I drove all freeway, I'd get close to that. But a mix of city and highway usually wound up at 26mpg for the tank.

 

[Shermo]

I have a few questions and would appreciate any responses:
Does charging at 240V with an appropriate charger affect long term battery life as compared to 110?
Does running charge down to zero before recharging diminish battery longevity as composed to regularly daily charge ups regardless of status?
Since my garage is so full of stuff, I have to park and recharge from my driveway rain or shine. Will these cool weather charge ups reduce the battery efficiency and if so by how much? Winter is on the way!
I've noticed that on coldish days my heated seat is autonomously on at start up. Since I rarely need this feature, can I disable it and heat my seats by discretion?

 

[etch]

I'm loosing battery capacity as well. I've owned my Clarity since March. My range has decreased from 40 to 32. Isn't this covered under my warrantees?

 

[pqdad]

Come on people get a grip! If you failed to research the fact that batteries INHERENTLY reduce capacity as it gets cooler that is on you! Don't blame Honda (or any car manufacturer). This is physics. The battery capacity WILL go down, if you don't like it move to somewhere where it is warm all the time! Like EPA mpg the values given for 47 miles on a 100% charge are AVERAGES for a certain state and NOT guarantees!

 

[JS Grover]

Upstate NY. Hills + cold and getting colder. EV range in the very low 30's. Stopped by the Honda dealer today, and they provided little in the way of a concrete answer, but did suggest that temperature does have a negative impact on range.

 

[etch]

I had the same problem. Then I went to my local Honda dealer and they updated my battery charger Software. It worked for me.