I've been lurking for many months, and this forum was part of my investigation into the purchase of a 2007 Honda Civic Hybrid. The purchase was made in July 2007 and I negotiated a pretty good discount off the MSRP and for the colour I wanted (sparkle grey pearl, aka magnetic pearl?). Actually, the price was lower than what a car purchase firm like apa.ca could offer, so I was pleased. Since I'm in Ontario, additional rebates will take a total of $4100 off the price, making my final cost less than buying a Civic LX Sedan. Incidentally, I am Canadian and do use metric, though I'll try to offer relevant conversions wherever possible. Because of this, my fuel efficiency is tracked in my own spreadsheet and also at Spritmonitor (German site with British translation). The fuel meters in my signature are linked to my pages there.

What else is there? I used to drive a smart fortwo cdi (common-rail diesel injection), which had 40 hp, 3 cylinders and 0.799L displacement, and that was my first car ownership experience. Although it had its merits, I'm much more satisfied now with my new car choice, for a variety of reasons I don't need to get into here. Power was never an issue. Frugality is good!

 

Welcome to the CLUB!

There is a knack to getting the best performance and no doubt the Honda pilots here will share their expertise. I had asked about a block heater and driving last winter but you've answered my question about the driving. We've found block heaters to be a great asset.

GOOD LUCK!
Bob Wilson

 

Thanks for the welcome!

My goal for fuel efficiency is to drive sensibly, safely, and to pursue the vehicles that enable efficiency without exceptional owner intervention. While I cannot force other drivers to drive sensibly and safely, I can demonstrate by example that fuel efficiency is user-friendly. It jazzes me to no end to understand the technical concepts, but I try to leave that under the hood. It's just a car, albeit one that's built for the future.

 

Spinner, what was your average FE with the Smart? H

 

Oh, and wellcome. You will enjoy the HCH2 & the site! H

 

I have the numbers in my signature, but in case anyone has elected to not see signatures... The lifetime average for my smart car was 4.7L/100km (50 MPG US) (link). Currently, with the Civvie, it's 5.3L/100km (44 MPG US) (link).

On the first few days of ownership of the HCH-II I studied how the fuel efficiency went under multiple conditions, then I turned the live meter off. It would feed my compulsive nature to look. My driving style is pretty light and gets reasonable results. If I were to drive only city streets, my average would be 6.0L/100km (39 MPG US). However, we haven't been through all four seasons together, so the numbers may change.

 

Incidentally, if you are interested in what the smart fortwo cdi (not available in the USA) is capable of, including hypermiling, then check out this report (106 MPG US), from Keith Hebert's blog, http://100mpg.ca

 

I had my first taste of Winter driving today in my Honda Civic Hybrid, and by gosh it did the job well. Today wasn't a challenge, but compared to what I had to tolerate in my previous vehicle, this car builds confidence instead of taking it away. If anyone tells you that a smart fortwo is good in the Winter, then they're doing you a disservice.

One of my tools for the car is a 12V air compressor, so I can top up whenever and wherever I want, seeing as temperature swings can be a concern for tire pressure, plus I'm visiting gas bars less frequently.

 

Spinner, I would think you are running with four snow tires? I am, but no snow yet here. I drove from Victoria to Grand Forks [560Kil.] with the ome Dunlaps, over ice, slush and snow and the car handled well. The car was at max. GVW I would think,and still managed 5.6 lit. per 100 kil.. I was very pleased, with the handling and FE being the car was new. H.

 

I'm going to use the all-seasons throughout the year because my circumstances allow for it: Not living in a snow belt region; Rarely travel any substantial distance with my own car; Toronto is 3 degrees Celcius warmer than its surrounding region, often negating precipitation; A high percentage of the season the driving surfaces are bare; I don't have storage for a second set of wheel-mounted tires; And, alternate transportation is available for the worst storms.