This is a short review comparing my 2012 CT to our 2018 Honda Clarity PHEV. We bought the Honda last May and there is almost 10k on the odometer after a year. This is my wife’s primary car but I drive it to work about once a week to give it some longer highway miles. The battery is rated to give 47 miles before running out but we’ve seen it range from 40-57 miles when it is fully charged depending on temperature. When we were shopping for a car, we were specifically looking for a PHEV because of my employer’s generous incentive. With the federal, state, utility, and employer incentive we got the car for under $20 k out the door.

The car is loaded with safety features that is standard with lane departure warning, adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency warning, right hand side turn camera, etc. The car is heavy, about 4k lbs due to the battery plus it is a rather large car. I am impress with the amount room in the back seat and trunk space despite the battery. There’s just a small hump in the trunk but otherwise looks like a normal roomy space. I must say I really love the electric motor compared to the CT’s engine. The motor is super quiet, smooth and vibration free. I drive a lot of different cars when I travel for work, and the Clarity is the most comfortable car on the highway in comparison. It can absorb bumps and potholes with ease and the electric is quite fun to drive. But when I run out of juice and the ICE kicks in it is quite loud, especially at lower speeds. It’s kinda weird that it seems like sometimes it is revving the engine, but only noticeable in city driving, but at least you don’t feel the vibration like in the CT. The Clarity is a large and heavy car so the CT has the upper hand in maneuvering. Overall driving dynamics, I prefer the Clarity especially on the highway.

In regards to efficiency and fuel savings the Clarity is a champ in this area. With close to 10k, we’ve only visited the gas station 7 times in the past year. So far there is about 1,900 miles since the last fill up and there is still about ½ a tank of gas left. The tank is small and can only hold 7 gallons. I’m guessing I might get about 400 mpg in the next fill up. Theoretically you would think that you would never have to visit the gas station if you could plug in before you run out of juice for all your trips. But the car is designed to force the ICE to engage sometimes even if you are fully charge. I’ve been keeping a close record on Fuelly to keep tabs on how much ICE miles travel so that I know when to change the oil. It looks like that after a year and 10k miles, that the estimate is about 1,600 miles on the ICE. I checked the oil dipstick and the oil still is translucent and not even dark. But I’m going to change the oil soon anyways since it’s been a year and not sure if moisture has accumulated. I’m thinking the brake pads can last a long time since there are paddle like shifter that you can engage in steps to slow the car down, when done right it really also charges the battery quickly.

Overall, really enjoying the ride and has been trouble free despite what Consumer Reports said.

Likes: Great electric motor with nice torque, roomy, quiet, and very efficient. Low maintenance, maybe oil change once a year. Nicely loaded with lots of standard safety features included. Cheap.

Dislikes: Display, prefer gauges and dials; gears are all push button; styling, not a fan of the rear wheel fender; ICE could be loud at lower speed.

 

I like the insight. 50 mpg and way bigger than the CT inside, but not as ugly as the accord.