[tterag]

Okay, just a quick note about filling up the Clarity. I have always filled my cars at half tank, you know, just in case whatever happens. Stuck in a snow drift in the UP of Michigan etc. I've only had to visit a gas station twice in the two months I've had it, but both of those visits were awkward because a half tank is just over 3 gallons. The 12-pack I purchased cost more than the fill.
I get over it pretty quickly though when I realize that I've driven over 1100 miles on 3 gallons. :smile_big:

 

[Purity]

Ill bet that the person filling up after you is wondering what kind of car needs so little for a top up. There's a clever marketing play that could be made with this.

 

[The Gadgeteer]

A slightly larger tank would be nice to save me the embarrassment of asking for a small amount of gas. I also do not like having less than half a tank. In NJ you are not permitted by law to pump your own gas. Most gas stations give a substantial cash discount. NJ gas is pretty cheap compared to other states. The point of all this is that I end up having to tell the attendant to put in a small odd amount of gas like $7 and I get odd looks. You can’t tell them to just “fill it” because they try to make it $10 or $15 and make a mess.

 

[Lucid]

Full-service gas stations are going to have to become more hybrid-friendly because the number of them on the road is only going to increase. I do agree that the size of the tanks on these newer cars could be bigger, especially for those who make longer trips frequently.

 

[The Gadgeteer]

There are several hybrids with ranges well over 500 miles per tank.

The Clarity already gets good gas mpg it would not take a much bigger tank to get impressive range. Even 1 gallon would make a difference.

In practical terms it is not an issue. Today I told the attendant that I just need a little top up even though the car had at less than half a tank. After the car took only 3.7 gallons the attendant said “oh, you were almost full already”. I just smiled.

 

[TampaClarity45]

I do wish the Clarity came with a 12 gallon tank. Then, the range would be around 600 miles. For longer trips, its nice not to have to stop every 3 or 4 hours.

 

[DucRider]

I do wish the Clarity came with a 12 gallon tank. Then, the range would be around 600 miles. For longer trips, its nice not to have to stop every 3 or 4 hours.

Honda had to choose between batteries and gas. More gas capacity = fewer batteries and lower electric range.
The Clarity Electric batteries (25.5 kWh) take up the space the PHEV uses for the gas tank and some of the trunk space.

 

[mowcowbell]

I do wish the Clarity came with a 12 gallon tank. Then, the range would be around 600 miles. For longer trips, its nice not to have to stop every 3 or 4 hours.

I need to stop to get out and stretch and use the bathroom every 2 hours, so having to fill up every 300 miles or so is not a big issue for me. In fact, I'd rather have more EV range, even at the expense of a few gals of gas.

 

[The Gadgeteer]

Honda had to choose between batteries and gas. More gas capacity = fewer batteries and lower electric range.
The Clarity Electric batteries (25.5 kWh) take up the space the PHEV uses for the gas tank and some of the trunk space.

The choice is not just between batteries and gas tank size. The trunk is very large. I can line up 3 gallons of water at the back of the trunk and easily be ok with losing that equivalent amount of space to have a 10 gallon tank.

I just took a trip this weekend with a group of people spread across 3 cars. There was 3 legs of the trip totaling about 360 miles. None of the stops were to gas up or charge. If I had driven my Clarity instead of the CRV I would have had to make an extra stop the regular ICE vehicles didn’t need to make. Is it a big deal, no. Would it be convenient to have even just a one gallon bigger gas tank, yes.

 

[trengle]

Grocery Store Gas Points

My wife was at Harris Teeter yesterday and the clerk was very excited telling her she has over 800 gas points! She smiled and said "oh that is great" but did not tell the clerk our gas tank has been at 1/2 for a month now! Seems like the gas points are not that important any more I wonder if we could sell them.

 

[Groves Cooke]

Full-service gas stations are going to have to become more hybrid-friendly because the number of them on the road is only going to increase. I do agree that the size of the tanks on these newer cars could be bigger, especially for those who make longer trips frequently.

I haven't seen a full service gas station in years. Doubt if there is one within a 500 mile radius of St. Louis!

 

[mowcowbell]

I haven't seen a full service gas station in years. Doubt if there is one within a 500 mile radius of St. Louis!

I think that full service stations only exist in Oregon and New Jersey.

 

[DucRider]

I think that full service stations only exist in Oregon and New Jersey.

Oregon stations are not "full service". They only run your credit card and stick the nozzle in your tank. When it clicks off, they come back around (sometimes takes a bit) and replace it on the pump and give you your receipt.

No cleaning of the windshield or any other tasks that I grew up with as "full service".

Oregon has amended the law to allow self service in rural areas - and they always have allowed motorcycles to fill their own vehicles - but NOT run their credit card (the attendant runs you card then hands yo the nozzle) . Not sure how either of these are reconciled with the "unsafe for consumers to do it" argument.

 

[AtlantaRene]

Government Regulations?

@tterag might be a little embarrassed. At least he’s not driving a BMW i3. It has a 2.4 gallon tank.

This is a little off topic but the i3 had such a small tank due to the California Air Resources boards classification of what a BEV should be. Alex on Autos had a good explanation on their YouTube Channel. Here is another reference https://www.autoblog.com/2013/10/28/why-the-bmw-i3-has-such-a-tiny-gas-tank/

The Clarity is PHEV and did not classify as BEV but I suspect they also set limits on the recharge levels of batteries. I suspect that recharge to 55.7% to “HV hold” has something to do with 20 miles of range at the destination.

Perhaps government regulators want to make it difficult for a PHEV to be used as a regular Hybrid. I wonder if Honda is navigating a government regulation with the 7 gallon tank?

So when you go to the gas station, be a little embarrassed but be proud that you’re not an i3 driver. :smile:

 

[DucRider]

The i3 REx gas "capacity" was originally software limited to just 1.7 gallons in order for the AER to be > than gas range. This allowed them to be have a different classification with more ZEV credits and additional CA carpool access.

The Clarity has none of those restriction and the tank size is not affected by any regulations/credits/incentives. Purely an engineering/design/marketing choice by Honda.

 

[The Gadgeteer]

Plus having just 1 more gallon in the Clarity would make math easier. 1/4 tank = 2 gallons. 1/2 = 4 gallons. 3/4 tank = 6 gallons. But with our 7 gallon tanks every quarter tank is 1.75. Not as easy to compute.

 

[obermd]

My wife was at Harris Teeter yesterday and the clerk was very excited telling her she has over 800 gas points! She smiled and said "oh that is great" but did not tell the clerk our gas tank has been at 1/2 for a month now! Seems like the gas points are not that important any more I wonder if we could sell them.

It's been three months since I've filled my Volt and a month since the Clarity had to be filled. Fortunately for us Safeway has extended their gas points program to be used for groceries. I do like pulling into the gas station and filling completely while the SUV at the next pump is still trying to get a quarter of a tank.

 

[michaelwei]

Just wondering if anyone know if the car can run on EV alone, without any gas in the tank? I am thinking of the scenario when there is a gas shortage or when they ban gas altogether in 2040. Thanks for your comments in advance.

 

[obermd]

Just wondering if anyone know if the car can run on EV alone, without any gas in the tank? I am thinking of the scenario when there is a gas shortage or when they ban gas altogether in 2040. Thanks for your comments in advance.

My guess is the Clarity isn't able to do this. I base this on the fact that the car uses the gas engine under heavy loads, even when there's battery available.

 

[Groves Cooke]

Reminds me of a current Bluegrass song that goes something like this:

"Give ne 59 cents worth of regular, check my oil too if you don't mind. Put some air in my tires won't you mister, and clean my windows too if you've got time."