[Miles777]

Hi,

I'm Miles, a retired aerospace engineer living in the Phoenix area, and I've been researching EVs and plug-in PEHVs to take the place of a 2011 Camry hybrid with 130K miles (which is still going strong but doesn't have the more recent safety features).

Yesterday I bought a white Clarity base model.

It took visits to 3 dealers to find the car I wanted at an acceptable price. I paid $35,500 (total price out the door including sales tax, dealer prep, dealer add-ons, vehicle registration fees, etc.) before the $7,500 tax credit which I'll get next spring, so it's a $28K car, which was my target price.

I can tell that I'll enjoy reading threads in this forum, so I'll do that before asking any questions.

 

[longfam18]

Welcome! We've had our base model since October and absolutely love it.


There are some features to learn to maximize your range/comfort, so don't be afraid to ask if you have a question! I've found very helpful people here.



My advice:
If your garage is already wired for 220, you need to get a level 2 charger in your home asap. You can buy a cord for $150-$200 from Amazon or a fancy box and cord ($500+) that tracks usage and emails you stats. Your mileage may vary on the fancier setups, some people here have recommended them but I haven't seen a need yet.

If your area uses time of use electrical billing you can program the car to only allow charging during off hours (default setting and can be overridden in a pinch) using the Hondalink app.


Happy driving!

 

[Miles777]

Thanks! I'll probably spring for a Level 2 charger, but will first try out the 120V OEM Level 1 system to see how frustrated I get with it. I may actually find I don't need one.

I've set the charging timer on the car to avoid charging during the 3 PM to 8 PM high rate period. Today I got home around 6 PM, and it was nice to be able to plug in the charger immediately without it starting immediately. happy that I wouldn't need to remember to do it after 8 PM. That worked just fine, as I went out to the garage at 8 PM just to watch it begin charging at the appointed time.

I have Homelink, Bluetooth and Apple Carplay set up, and am experimenting with the various driving settings. Fun!

 

[Claire Greene]

Hello Miles,
Let me just throw a couple of ideas your way. It's great that you've progerammed your car to initiate charging during non peak hours to save money. Just be aware that should you find yourself with an opportunity to charge for free at a public charger outside of your home tht the car will not accept a charge no matter how much profanity and invectives you hurl at it. Even kicking the front tire will not do anything to help (don't ask me how I know this) The charging program is what keeps the car from charging so you need to erase the program and the easiest way to do this is to use the charge port button on the keyfob as that instantly erases the program so don't forget to program it back when you get home.
Second possible issue with programmed charging is that our cars seem to have an issue with daylight savings time so you might want to double check that it's not charging an hour early or an hour late.

 

[Gunslingerheel]

Any video of that tire kicking thing?

 

[Cruiter]

Claire
That is not accurate. Mine is programed to start charging at 11PM but when I go to Whole Foods and plug it in there for a drink while I'm shopping or eating lunch I only need to hold down the button on the key fob for a few seconds and the charge starts (without erasing what's programed). Honda built that into the program to temporarily over ride the settings. I do it quite often and it's never been a problem. Usually it's topped off if I ate lunch there as well (about 50 min to an hour). All of that info is available in the manual as well.

Hello Miles,
Let me just throw a couple of ideas your way. It's great that you've progerammed your car to initiate charging during non peak hours to save money. Just be aware that should you find yourself with an opportunity to charge for free at a public charger outside of your home tht the car will not accept a charge no matter how much profanity and invectives you hurl at it. Even kicking the front tire will not do anything to help (don't ask me how I know this) The charging program is what keeps the car from charging so you need to erase the program and the easiest way to do this is to use the charge port button on the keyfob as that instantly erases the program so don't forget to program it back when you get home.
Second possible issue with programmed charging is that our cars seem to have an issue with daylight savings time so you might want to double check that it's not charging an hour early or an hour late.

 

[mowcowbell]

I've found that with my new Zencar Level II (16amp) EVSE ($199 from Amazon), I can fully recharge my car each night in only 2 hours. I typically use about 50% of the battery capacity each day commuting to work and running errands. I set a charging program to run from 2am to 4am.

I paid $200 for an electrician to install a NEMA 14-50 outlet in my garage. Also installed a 50amp breaker for this circuit. The install was so inexpensive because the location I chose for the outlet was only a few feet away from my breaker box. I figured going with a NEMA 14-50 at 50amps gives me room for future EV's that can take advantage of faster charging.

I like the ability to engage the climate system while connected to the Level II EVSE without reducing my battery charge. On 16amp, the battery will briefly drop a percentage point on the HondaLink app, but will quickly recover.