# Honda Civic Hybrid drivers?



## tcaud (Jul 28, 2017)

Anyone driving 2011 or older? What kind of fuel economy do you get? I just bought a 2008 model one primarily for rideshare, and I'm getting below EPA numbers in the suburbs (37 mpg vs 41 EPA). I heard the 8th gen series got 48 in the burbs before a firmware update in 2010. The car is also sluggish... I have to put the pedal to the floor to get it past 50 mph on a straightaway, and it takes like 20 seconds or longer to accelerate to that speed.


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## Uber's Guber (Oct 22, 2017)

Deal with it. Cincinnati will let you drive that vehicle another 5 years, as long as it has no cosmetic damage or commercial branding. The fuel mileage is tolerable in your market, and your acceleration is also satisfactory for the traffic you drive in. Drive it until it drops!


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## tmpnick16 (Apr 21, 2018)

tcaud said:


> Anyone driving 2011 or older? What kind of fuel economy do you get? I just bought a 2008 model one primarily for rideshare, and I'm getting below EPA numbers in the suburbs (37 mpg vs 41 EPA). I heard the 8th gen series got 48 in the burbs before a firmware update in 2010. The car is also sluggish... I have to put the pedal to the floor to get it past 50 mph on a straightaway, and it takes like 20 seconds or longer to accelerate to that speed.


That difference in mileage seems negligible, plus the EPA has recalculated how their estimates are done. 
The Civic hybrid has a 1.3L motor that puts out just over 100 HP for a vehicle that weighs almost 3,000 lbs. sluggish acceleration is one of it's major "complaints". 
Also, if you're putting the accelerator to floor, that's when the gas engine really begins to work. Most acceleration is done by the battery (that's how you get such a high mpg) however under heavy acceleration the gas engine comes in to help and that's when you use more fuel.


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## jazzapt (May 16, 2016)

We had a 2009 Civic hybrid. My wife used it as her daily driver to save money on gas after a few years of driving our Honda Pilot. Merging on the highway always scared her to death because it took her forever to get up to highway speed, even going downhill on the entrance ramp. To top if off, we were getting no better MPG than a gas powered Civic.

We eventually traded it in for a 2014 Honda Accord Hybrid. Like night and day. We get about 52 mpg on that thing and it moves like a rocket compared to the Civic and the Priuses we test drove at that time.


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## Risab1981 (Jul 21, 2016)

tcaud said:


> Anyone driving 2011 or older? What kind of fuel economy do you get? I just bought a 2008 model one primarily for rideshare, and I'm getting below EPA numbers in the suburbs (37 mpg vs 41 EPA). I heard the 8th gen series got 48 in the burbs before a firmware update in 2010. The car is also sluggish... I have to put the pedal to the floor to get it past 50 mph on a straightaway, and it takes like 20 seconds or longer to accelerate to that speed.


Those numbers are estimates. Cars lose a bit of HP, and MPG over the years. Only thing I'd worry about it the IMA Battery...very, very common for them to fail around 70-120k... $2500 to replace.


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## tcaud (Jul 28, 2017)

Yeah that's what I'm apparently going to have to do... replace the hybrid battery. I noticed the car was a little sluggish and made weird electronic noises, but chalked it up to being a hybrid. Now after hand calculating my fuel economy, I see that I'm only getting 27 mpg, and the car has tremendous difficulty with even small hills. No doubt will need a replacement battery to pass inspection... that puts the total cost of the car, after insurance and new tires, at $9500 from what I thought I was paying $7000. And looking at the graphs Civic Hybrid 2006-2008 owners have posted, it's pretty clear to me now that the cost of the battery will pretty much nullify my gas savings.

I test drove a Prius 2010 at 200k miles before buying the Civic. It also was sluggish. I've read that the newer hybrid batteries have lower life than the older generation batteries (Prius being driven at 600k miles isn't what Toyota had in mind), so don't expect to save lots of money -- or any -- from buying these new hybrids.


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## Reven1911 (May 17, 2018)

2013 Acura ILX (same as Civic with more jingle-bells and stuff), 40-42 mpg depending on conditions and driving. Using 87 octane instead of the recommended 91. I heard using super high quality oil from Amsoil can enhance mpg by 5-10%. Gonna see what happens, it doesn't cost much more than other full synthetics. Also, do a direct fluid exchange of your transmission fluid. Tires have something to do with mpg. Get lowest rolling resistance tires you can find. A synthetic wax may reduce your drag coefficient, but that may be a stretch.


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## DentonLyfter (Apr 14, 2018)

I drive a 2005, currently 140k, only Lyfting, got in under the wire, but I cannot get less than 40 even in the summer, all driving conditions with the a/c on all day. And I am in Texas, so we know summer. The only performance issue I have encountered is not servicing the trans close to the manufacturer recommendations and it will start to shudder on accel and sometimes braking. $105.00. Great car, has a spiffy led dash that the young males all think was some kind of custom add on. Started 6 months ago, putting about 4-5k a month and my Lyfting career will coincidentally end the same day that this bad little girl of a monster car gives up the ghost, or it is battery time, but my dealer did warranty mine at 90k so maybe I bought a bit more time. The current .50 a gallon Shell gas discount is kinda sweet also.


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## tcaud (Jul 28, 2017)

Denton your Civic should be able to get 40 mpg on gas alone... should pull 65 on the highway. It not only recaptures lost energy from the gas you burn, but it burns the gas twice! Lean burn. If you put the A/C on 75 you might be able to save some MPGs. Also it likes it if you take it slow on the accel, especially in cities. If your battery does die you can pull the fuse and run it without... but you can get the battery new for $1400 so why not replace and sell at a premium?

Well had this car about a month. Last fillup was 38 mpg, this week looks like 42. Probably because I put more efficient tires on and adjusted the a/c (to 75f). Also not forcing the accelerator. Pretty sure if the battery was newer tho I'd be pulling 60 under the same circumstances.


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## DentonLyfter (Apr 14, 2018)

I hope that your rideshare knowledge surpasses your automobile knowledge. Lol. Be safe.


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## ridepjm (Jul 11, 2018)

When it comes down to economy with anything that you drive, it's all about how you start moving. If you gain momentum slowly but not to the point to where your Rider is going crazy you will gain much more economy, because it's all about acceleration. Those jack rabbit starts are where you can throw your economy right out the window.

Press slowly on the accelerator pedal until you get close to the speed you want to go and then hold it until your speed levels out until you're at your desired rate of travel. Something I learned when I was 16 but never used it until I was in my 50s. You see, you can do 70 on the freeway just like everyone else it's all about how you get up to that 70 determines how economical your driving habits are.


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## jazzapt (May 16, 2016)

Anyone having issues with airport trips? There is a pretty good deal on a really nice one that I am considering, because I want the MPG boost as I also use it for my long commute to my day job.

But my concern is trunk space. I know the battery sits in back of the rear seats which intrudes on trunk space.


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