2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid consumer reviews

Best plug-in hybrid out there that's available in the US in terms of combination of: electric range, cost, ride quality, size and automatic safety controls.

I think most of the things I wrote in my original review still stand. The car is comfortable and very quiet when in electric mode, however the gas engine/generator can be somewhat noisy, particularly in colder weather. The interior of the cabin is well done, however I wish Honda had included a lumbar support adjustment and some type of lane assist feature when passing on the left (there is a camera on the right side that shows a picture on the center screen). I have also found that my Honda dealer is not particularly well trained on the vehicle since so few have been sold. My biggest decision point when buying the car were the odd looks. As I have owned the car for a year, I have to say there are days that I feel that I'm driving a science experiment that went a little wrong. My practical/analytical side doesn't like this since it was such a great deal it I'm using almost no gas, but sometimes looks do matter I guess.

This car is wonderful for saving money. 1200 miles and only 7.2 gallons of gas. Yes, we drive mostly in the city and under 50 miles per day so mostly on battery. When on interstate still got 61 mpg. Love this car. I hope Honda makes a plugin Ridgeline soon.

Once I figured it out, I’m getting 54 mph around town and 47 on the freeways in the HV mode. I don’t use the all electric mode because in So. Cal the electric rate is 25 cents per kwh. So gas is cheaper !! On steep inclines the Sport mode is best. The engine noise can be a little loud at times, but the 1.5 liter engine has plenty of power. I’m actually getting used to the styling. The interior is very comfortable and quiet. I didn’t get the sport model with a NAV system. I use Apple car play maps and WAZE. I like the placement of the big screen too. Now about the spare tire situation - they give you a tire inflator kit instead of a spare. I think they had to or else the trunk space would be too small. I drive to Las Vegas so I was concerned about waiting in the middle of the desert for the Honda roadside assistance. So I got a spare tire kit on line for $225. I only put it in the trunk when we are away from civilization. If you drive over 75mph, the mpg drops to around 40.

This car drove great... for about three weeks. It ran on battery the whole time, and I only commute about 10 miles each way to work, so it was wonderful. I thought I'd rarely ever need to fill the gas engine. And then it started switching over to gas for no reason. I'm not talking about when it's really cold out, or if I'm trying to accelerate very quickly (though I have done that and completely on the battery, when the dealer said that was one instance where it would switch to gas). But for regular drives to work, coasting along or at a stop light, it will switch to gas and run only on gas, or run down the gas and the battery range at the same time. There's no point in even plugging it in, because the battery doesn't run down anymore - it just switches between the gas and the battery so much that my 20 mile round trip to work and back only uses about 5 miles of battery. The rest uses gas. I took it to the dealer, only for them to tell me that "it's supposed to do that". That it's supposed to switch between gas and battery depending on the road conditions and the way the car is driven. This car is advertised as an electric vehicle that has a gas engine to extend the range the car can be driven. This is a plug in hybrid, meaning it should run on the battery first, not switch between gas and battery like a Prius or an Insight. If I wanted a Prius or an Insight, I would have bought one. I wanted a plug in hybrid because I wanted to cut my gas usage down to as close to zero as possible, and this car is not it. Now I'm stuck with a car that doesn't do what it's advertised, a dealer that tells me I'm making things up, and thousands of dollars in debt for a car that I seriously regret purchasing. Honestly I should have just stuck with my 12 year old CR-V. At least that one did what it was supposed to do. This will be my last Honda, and I seriously wish I could return it.

The quality of this car is impressive. Honda put a lot of thought in design and function. I have owned several new cars from different brands in the past and consider the Honda a good value for the money. The plug in hybrid developed by Honda is light years away from the other manufacturers. In the four weeks we have owned the car, we have not used a drop of gasoline. All our travel is within the 50 mile range of where we live. I can't wait to take a long trip to see the mpg from the combination of electric and gas engine.

Agree with all the good reviews. A few comments: on the uphills/sllopes, the battery loses charge very fast and down hills a lot more electric only mileage than 47. I drive it >60 miles a day. When the gas engine kicks, gets noisy. Infotainment is not user friendly esp. with selecting what mode to use and navigate between apps. There is NO AUXILIARY input so you can not plug in any CD player into the car. This is a big deal for me as I want to be able to listen to some CDs that I can not transfer to other digital formats. The big hump in front of the driver's seat is very annoying and uncomfortable. This is probably due to the big size battery. Also the middle back row floor hump which makes the middle back row person uncomfortable. I wish the trunk was liftback instead of old school sedan. This way the space in the trunk would have been much more useful. Overall the best plug in car in the market now. Very quiet and soft on all electric mode. Drove >1700 miles on about 6 gallons and the rest was electric.

I think this hybrid is a winner compared to Prius and other cars I have owned or driven. Interior is very nice, ride is comfortable. I do have some problems with learning the 'saving favorite stations on the radio', but otherwise user friendly. On home charger 240V, takes about 2.5 hours . Short trips around town..no gas use at all. Exterior styling is great also with a sedan/sporty look. Honda is rated as having the best engine in the world and a leader in inovation.

Wonderful car, excellent interior, smooth smooth ride, we just love it. All electric or hybrid. Sport mode adds zip and response. Short commute is no gas. Long trips, almost 50 MPG.

What a great car! Styling and overall looks turn a lot of heads. Fourth day in the car and not a day has passed without a complement. Love it!