Used 2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid Sedan Review
Consumer reviews
Read what other owners think about the 2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid Sedan.
Most helpful consumer reviews
The Breakthrough Car - A PHEV with No Compromise
RVDuluth, Duluth, MN, 02/23/2018
2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid 4dr Sedan (1.5L 4cyl gas/electric hybrid CVT)
I have resisted buying a battery electric vehicle because of the widespread range anxiety. Despite the fact that most of my driving is the short 4-mile trip to and from work, the idea of going through the inconvenience of renting a car for longer trips and the potential of getting stranded after an unpredictable busy day of driving (especially in my cold Minnesota climes where the … battery can drain rapidly in sub-zero temps), has prevented me from seriously considering an electric vehicle. I looked briefly at the pricey Chevy Volt but was not willing to step down from the midsize sedan convenience I had become accustomed to. The standard model hybrid versions such as the Accord, Sonata, and Camry all have reduced federal tax credit incentive. I found out about the Clarity by accident. It must be one of the poorest marketed new models in history. Everything I read about it met my requirements and I finally purchased one soon after I could get my hands on it. The experience has been fantastic. It is an Accord-sized sedan with a massive interior and comfortable seating for 5, has an extraordinarily quiet and luxurious interior, has most of the safety features I was looking for (except for the mysteriously missing blind spot detection), and qualified for the full $7,500 tax credit that brought the price down to the range of any mid-size sedan, hybrid or not. The 47-mile range allows for almost all driving to be done in EV mode (I have managed a range over 30 miles in the Northern Minnesota winter, but can see the range increasing as the weather warms). I averaged about 42 mpg on a 300+ mile roundtrip up north (yes - right to the Canadian border), and have only nitpicky complaints so far as I come up on my first 1000 miles in the vehicle. This car is a home run in every way and if it were not for the exceptionally lousy marketing, would be one of the top selling new sedans in America. Get it now before others discover it.
UPDATE: I have owned the car for over two years now and still love it. It is by far the best car I have owned. The car is quiet and trouble-free. It still meets all the needs I specified in my original review. I get a range of 50 miles in the summer/fall and about 30 in the winter. Highway hybrid mileage in the winter is about 40. Small issues include the poor wipers and inconvenient Infotainment system.
2.5-YEAR-UPDATE: I have had the car for over two and a half years now and I seem to grow in my appreciation for this car. It is by far the best car I have owned. I still enjoy driving it and marvel at its quiet, smooth ride. Summers consistently give me close to 50 miles in EV range and the hybrid range is usually about 40-42 (hard to track on pure hybrid as I usually leave fully charged and charge at my destination. When my fiance needed surgery last week, we needed a large back set for her to lie down as I brought her back home from the surgery center. Surprisingly, she found more room and comfort in the Clarity back seat than in her Kia Sorrento SUV. So, the Clarity is what we took. Still amazing and a hopelessly under-marketed car.
3-YEAR UPDATE: Over 35,000 miles and still great. Just paid off the car and it still runs as smooth and quiet as butter. If Honda was making significant upgrades to the Clarity to get rid of the minor annoyances (poor wipers, awful sound system controls, inability to default to sport mode), I would consider upgrading. But it still is the favorite car I have ever owned and I plan to keep it for the long term until there is another leap in the value offered by PHEVs. Amazing vehicle, horribly marketed.
5-YEAR UPDATE: I have had this car for 5 years now and it is still the best car I have ever owned. The battery range seems to have dropped (manage only in the low 40s in the summer and high 20s in MN winters). Absolutely trouble free and reliable. Still deathly quiet inside when cruising. I can't believe they discontinued this model. If they make a 4WD version of this vehicle. I would stand in line to buy it. Fantastic car that sold for $32K BEFORE the $7500 tax credit in 2018.
Smooth & quite Plugin Hybrid with enough EV range
DK, Wellesley, MA, 05/28/2018
2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid 4dr Sedan (1.5L 4cyl gas/electric hybrid CVT)
EV range (battery only, per charge): 60-70 miles local commutes (60-80F), 54 miles (one sample HWY, 50 F), HV (Hybrid mode): 50+ MPG (only one sample, 50F), Really quite and smooth ride compared with my 2015 Honda Accord. It smooths out uneven road surface not like my 2015 accord. I had to move around uneven surface to be comfortable with my accord, but with this car, I did … not know that i was driving on the same uneven road surface that I drive over daily. Really quite and great sound. The interior gives me luxury feeling (far better than 2015 accord).
My favorite car ever- like a new toy
Big Nose Frank, Garner, NC, 07/30/2018
2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid 4dr Sedan (1.5L 4cyl gas/electric hybrid CVT)
I wanted to wait 3-4 weeks of owning this car before casting a review on it. First of all I had no intention of replacing my old car yet (a VW) but reliability issues forced me to re-examine my strategy of hanging onto a German car that was about to go off warranty and was requiring a lot of expensive trips for service. I knew my next car would be hybrid and/or electric but thought it … would be 2-3 years down the road. As of two months ago I never heard of a heard of a Honda Clarity. I liked the looks of all the new Hondas and thought before trying out a Hybrid Accord I would try out the Clarity just to 'eliminate' it from my candidate list. Instantly I liked the quietness and the feel of it and the ultra modern interior. The accord was of course nice and I felt the salesman was pushing me towards the accord, and they had tons of Accords on the lot and only two Clarities. I stepped away from shopping for a bit to resolve VW engine issues and when i returned to it went straight for the Clarity, and have not regretted it once. So like other reviewers I have now had it for almost a month, and have driven it 360 mi and still have 3/4 tank of my original gas! I have run out of charge a few times and the last time I was really trying to observe what happens when you do? And I could not tell. I did go into HYBRID mode automatically but nothing other than a dashboard message would lead me to know that. Several times I have tried out SPORT mode and punch the accelerator and am quite pleased at the power it has. But typically i do not even use it around town. I a more interested in squeezing out as much of the battery charge as possible. The regenerative braking paddle shifters are very cool (had to watch a Youtube video to see what they were about). Now when i come into corners i try to use those rather that braking to regain a little juice back into the battery pack. If you have driven motorcycles or standard shift cars its very much like downshifting into corners which is more fun than braking like an old lady. With respect to the radio- I love it. It has excellent sound and CarPlay is perfect for both iPhone use and Android- which we have both of. i owned a VW 5 years and never once could get my smart phone to 'pair' and with this I synched it up at the dealer and drove home with the Smart phone maps. I play Spotify and that works well, the transition between main menu and smart phone usage is a little clunky - for example smart phone maps AND SIRIUS works but I tend to fumble around with it. In all I love the the infotainment system some complained (alot) about no volume knob- I guess I would like one but the steering wheel controls work easily. All in all I like the car a lot and am very happy I got it. I have owned many cars over 40 years and have never enjoyed one this much. I still use the 120 V charger but my garage has a 220V outlet so I just need to buy the charger but they are a bit pricey and the one (that comes with the car) has worked fine. Interior space is excellent but coming from a compact SUV that was just plain small (and stupid). I did not opt for the leather as the cloth seemed nice on the test drive and it was >$3k for the leather plus nav and few other things I did not care for- at that price. all the interior surfaces and finishes are of a nice quality, nothing downscale about any of it. They do not offer a sunroof in any models - thats a bit of a bummer but not a showstopper and my other car is a 2 seater convertible so no biggie (but it uses GAS...) So I have no idea why there are not more on the road it almost seems like Honda wants to keep it under wraps? ITs a great product- I hope its reliable, it's s my first Honda auto but have had 4 Honda motorcycles and all were excellent. The info screens/radio is so cool i hope I don't get killed playing with it instead of watching the road closer. I wish Honda had more options for cars like this- i.e. an SUV or large hatchback, though this is almost hatchback like. With the tax rebate its an amazing bargain. Couple that with a reduction in gas bills its really a no brainer. I am retired so do not commute. If you commute less that 25 miles each way this car makes perfect sense unless you hate comfort, value, and efficiency.
***update- still love the car... One and only ding I can give it is the ability to hold battery charge in frigid weather. Instead of the 50 or so miles on a charge, for example, this number dropped to under 30 over thanksgiving in upstate NY as it was -1 degrees
And the car was parked outside. I don’ love it in gas engine mode but for long trips its sort of necessary. And this is relative to electric mode which is amazing - smooth quiet and powerful. I live in NC and its always garaged, and we don’t go out in nasty weather.
out.
Two year update...now at 28k and two.years of ownership. I have had 0 problems with the car, without question the best car I have ever owned..
*****Four year update... To date ZERO problems , still love the car!!
Outstanding value! Perfect for my needs.
dacash, Kissimmee, FL, 05/24/2019
2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid 4dr Sedan (1.5L 4cyl gas/electric plug-in hybrid CVT)
I wanted to purchase a plug-in, not to save the earth, but because it costs about a quarter of what it costs per mile to run compared to gasoline. But I also needed room for at least 4 adults to ride comfortably, and so the Prius and Volt were out. If you live in CA, there are lots of options. If you want to spend the cash, Tesla is an option. But if you would rather spend in the high … $20K's (after rebate) rather than more than $50K, *this* is your best option. Charging at home using a normal household outlet kept my gasoline use to a minimum, but installing a 220V charger has virtually eliminated my need for Dino-juice in day to day travel. After a year, I've found I generally get more than 1,000 miles out of my 7 gal tank, even with the occasional road trip. Ordinarily I only run the gasoline engine once a week to keep it lubricated. The beauty of being a hybrid means that when I do have to make a several day trip, I still get a range of almost 400 miles. Around town, I get premium parking spaces for EV's and have only had minor issues with charge stations (there was a small learning curve). Having owned and driven many luxury cars (Audi, Mercedes, Acura. etc.) I know the interior could be more plush - it is a Honda, not an Acura - however it is nice and comfortable with plenty of room of 4 adults, 5 for shorter trips. The only time I hear any engine noise is when using the gas motor at surface street speeds. but what really sets this vehicle apart is acceleration. In most hybrids you could finish your coffee waiting to get up to freeway speeds, not in the Clarity (it was by far the quickest 0-60 in all the models in my comparison group). I was a bit worried about the looks when I read about (not like I got to see these on the road before buying), but most folks seem to really like it, I find it unique, which suits me well.
Pros: quick, quiet, inexpensive to operate, distinctive styling, prem. parking spots
Con: not the best implementation of adaptive cruise control, Android auto requires physical cord (won't operate in BT).
Typical first impression from others: "Wow, this is huge inside." and then "Its so quiet" typically followed by "How much did you pay for this?... that little?"
One year later: I've put on over 10k miles, only needed the yearly service (where they updated some of the software so that range is now calculated correctly). I've bought maybe 75 gallons of fuel, mostly operate on electrons. People still ask if it is new, it is wearing exceedingly well. Still loving those premium parking spaces!
One more year: Still a great car. Battery has not fatigued (I still get into the high 40's and sometimes even over 50 mi per charge). It is wearing exceedingly well (it is garage kept and not very high mileage). On my 2 yr service the tech asked if I really wanted to replace the perfectly white air filter! Still whisper quiet inside.
2023: Mileage on "battery only" has dropped, but it may be the new tires or a combination of the batt age & new tires (the factory tires were not as grippy). Despite only getting about 40 mi per charge, I only buy gas about 4 or 5 times a year. I have yet to have any mechanical or structural problems. I typically replace after 6 years, and they no longer make this model. But nothing on the market (except the Volvo S60/90) are even close so I may hold onto this car a bit longer as it is still comfortable, quick and quiet.
Edmunds Summary Review of the 2018 Honda Clarity Plug-In Hybrid Sedan
What’s new
- New plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) variant
- Part of the first Clarity generation introduced for 2017
Pros & Cons
- Pro:Comfortable, well-appointed cabin seats five people
- Pro:Solid driving range in all versions except Clarity Electric
- Pro:Pleasant ride quality in electric and plug-in hybrid versions
- Con:Touchscreen infotainment system can be cumbersome to use
- Con:Limited availability of all but Clarity Plug-In Hybrid
- Con:Polarizing styling
Which Clarity does Edmunds recommend?
Among the three versions, the Clarity Plug-In Hybrid easily makes the strongest case for itself. And among the two trim levels, we say stick with the base one and forgo the Touring trim's leather seats and navigation. Options are limited to accessory items, except for the rear parking sensors that we'd suggest adding.
Full Edmunds Review: 2018 Honda Clarity Sedan
byJason Kavanagh
Senior Vehicle Test Engineer
Jason joined Edmunds' testing team in 2006 as a vehicle testing engineer. Jason believes true appreciation of modern cars stems from owning really, really bad old ones.
Driving
8.5The Clarity isn't an exciting car to drive, but it is accessible and easy to deal with in everyday driving. Acceleration and handling are adequate but nothing more.
Comfort
8.0Its electric propulsion is quiet. Operation of the fuel cell powertrain is more audible than a battery EV, but it's endearing rather than annoying. Its seats are soft, and the ride quality is acceptable.
Interior
8.5This is a car that can transport four people comfortably, and five in a pinch. Its sizable cabin provides ample room for occupants and is easy to access. Visibility is excellent for the most part, though the standard rearview will help when reversing.
Utility
8.0Its cargo area is superior to the Mirai's but falls short of a conventional car's in size and versatility. The Clarity also follows the typical Honda approach to cabin space, providing a variety of storage locations for small items. Car seat LATCH points aren't difficult to work with.
Technology
7.0Smartphone integration and voice controls work well and are a convenient way to not have to use the touchscreen interface, which is a letdown. It's straight out of the Honda parts bin. Owners of this much pricier car deserve better than the system that's in Honda's entry-level sedan.
Edmunds Insurance Estimator
The Edmunds TCO® estimated monthly insurance payment for a 2018 Honda Clarity in Ohio is:
not availableLegal