Back in the 1960s and 1970s the Volkswagen Beetle had a profound effect on society and the reverberations of this popular car still resonate today. Hybrid cars could have the same impact in the 21st century as they are seen to be anti-establishment – even being the anti-status symbol for economically minded drivers the World over. However, one drawback does seem to be that drivers are not seemingly getting the advertised fuel mileage out of these cars as have been advertised.
The Honda Civic’s Electric Motor
The Honda Civic Hybrid is one such motor vehicle, but if you do buy one then you will need to learn to change your driving habits and styles to truly benefit from the fuel-economy claims from the manufacturer. Essentially you need to learn to drive like an old person – sounds funny, but it’s not meant to be. To save your fuel and reduce your CO2 emissions then try to accelerate from stops a lot slower in order to get the best from the electric motor in the Civic Hybrid.
Does it Truly Run on Electric?
Some hybrids will pull away from standstill using just the electric motor – the Toyota Prius being a great example. However, the Civic model can’t do this and still relies on fuel in order to pull away. This is because the Honda Civic Hybrid has a very weak electric 20-hp motor under the hood. The electric motor and engine are also placed together and then connected up to the transmission – this means that if one is running, then so is the other one.
Will Run on Electric When on a Flat Surface
However, despite this flaw, Honda state that there is one time where the Hybrid model will run solely on electricity and this is when it is cruising on a flat surface at between fifteen and twenty miles per hour- but as long as the electric battery is fully charged.
Because the electric motor and gas engine tend to rotate in separation then the car will need to cut off any fuel going to the engine and use the timing system instead. This lets the electric motor do its job better. You will only know if your Hybrid is running on electric when you see a digital graph display on the dashboard console. This can be accessed via the screen on the navigation device – updates to which come on a Honda Civic Navigation DVD.
Conclusion on the Honda Civic Hybrid
This car is certainly a step in the right direction for customers who are more economically minded than your average driver. However, unless it’s running full-time on pure electricity you will not get the advertised fuel mileage out of the car – and it’s clear to see that’s never going to be possible due to the way in which the gas and electric engines work in tandem. Before you buy make sure that you research into other hybrid motors from companies like Toyota and Nissan – generally speaking the Japanese car brands tend to be the ones that are making the greatest head way in this new niche of car.