There's nothing like the convenience of having a gas station on every corner. When you're driving a natural gas vehicle like the Civic GX, however, that kind of convenience is a luxury that simply isn't within your grasp, and this can sometimes be problematic. Case in point: I've had the car for the past few days. Was running low on gas, but figured, "No problem -- there's a station just a couple of blocks from work." Got to that station to do the deed, but found that the pumps weren't operational. Located another station, on the UCLA campus. Spent 45 minutes unsuccessfully trying to find said station -- no one I spoke to, not even the security guard, had any knowledge of it. By now the tank's running pretty low. I locate another station, this one near the airport. Get there, finally achieve a fill-up, and breathe a sigh of relief.
A friend of mine has a GX, and drives 10 miles to the nearest station to fill his tank. That's dedication, man. I couldn't imagine owning this car without having a (costly) Phill installed.
Warren Clarke, Automotive Content Editor @ 31,717 miles
brn says:
09:30 PM, 05/28/09
If you can afford the $2,000,000 to buy one of these things, just have a tanker follow you around.
the_big_al says:
10:17 PM, 05/28/09
you mean it runs solely on natural gas and doesn't have the ability to run on gas at all??
dragonflight says:
11:35 PM, 05/28/09
Guys, it costs a bit over 20k, and it only runs on natural gas (it's completely refitted with a special tank and everything).
Has no one read the previous posts? jeez
the_big_al says:
12:09 AM, 05/29/09
okay - so I was a but misinformed about this particular vehicle. But I know of SEVERAL natural gas vehicles that had both a small gas tank and the special tank for natural gas and the vehicle was capable of running on one or the other.
dragonflight says:
12:50 AM, 05/29/09
@ the_big_al
I've seen conversion kits internationally for CNG and LPG, but once converted, I haven't seen a mass-produced/mainstream solution for either liquid or natural gas from the same engine.
The closest I've seen to that are engines that run on vegetable oil/diesel.
adavis2493 says:
04:01 AM, 05/29/09
I have always had a fear that if I get a diesel, I will never be able to find a station with diesel. I guess that's the same with natural gas.
stephen987 says:
04:02 AM, 05/29/09
Trust me, diesel isn't a problem.
brn says:
06:04 AM, 05/29/09
dragonflight, it cost two million dollars. Honda claims a sale price of $20K, but they won't sell you one. They only lease them. Reminds me of the EV1. They won't lease one to ME, as I'm not a member of the automotive media or a celebrity. They're not going to take a hit like that if they can't get PR out of it.
Yea, the real cost may have come down below 2 mil. The key is that to the consumer, these cars don't exist.
brn says:
06:05 AM, 05/29/09
adavis, there's a whole lot of delivery and long-haul trucks that would go out of business if diesel weren't readily available.
wobbly_ears says:
07:39 AM, 05/29/09
Guys, this is a technology demonstrator. How can you expect a new technology to become as good as an established 100 year old technology in 1-2 years? When electric cars come on, even they would have similar issues with charging ports.
These are teething troubles. Anyone who buys/leases these cars knows the pitfalls. The fact that the car didn't blow up or had some unfixable problem, means that the technology is ready for prime time.
If the CNG cars and/or Electric cars become more ready for primetime, the filling stations would be as prevalent as Gas stations.
A mix of different energy sources is the future.
canadaphant says:
08:33 AM, 05/29/09
Technology demonstrator? That's bogus, as well as any claims this car is a loss leader. Otto cycle engines will happily run on natural gas forever with very few modifications; this has no high tech batteries or expensive fuel cell, it's got a regular old four cylinder engine and a high pressure natural gas tank, that's it. Otto cycle natural gas engines have been used for natural gas compression and power generation for decades, this is just a little tiny engine converted for the duty. All they did is reprogram the ECU and fit a different fuel system-probably took their engineers a week.
As for filling it...I can't imagine what a pain in the butt it would be. Last I heard, the Phill manufacturer (owned by Honda) was shut down recently, leaving all current owners without service or parts help; this includes Honda's own factory, which has a fleet of natural gas powered forklifts, etc., all filled by Phill systems.
felonious says:
09:07 AM, 05/29/09
My wife got a hydrogen car from UCSD to take to LA for a conference. She ran out of gas on the way home after not being able to get to a refueling station up there. They had to send a tanker from San Diego to rescue her.
FAIL
canadaphant says:
10:11 AM, 05/29/09
Felonious-This is a natural gas car (mostly methane, chemically CH4) not a hydrogen powered car.
warren_w says:
10:56 AM, 05/29/09
@wobbly_ears, when electric cars come on? Technically the electric car has been around for over 100 years and at one point outsold gasoline vehicles. Perhaps this will be their second coming.
As per wikipedia: "In 1897, the first commercial application was established as a fleet of New York City taxis built by the Electric Carriage and Wagon Company of Philadelphia. Electric cars, produced in the US by Anthony Electric, Baker, Detroit Electric (Anderson Electric Car Company), Edison, Studebaker, and others during the early 20th century for a time out-sold gasoline-powered vehicles."
brn says:
01:06 PM, 05/29/09
Yes, the EV has been around forever. Three major manufacturers even sold/leased them for a while. None do now. Why? The technology is still coming of age.
"Technology demonstrator" sounds like reasonable term to me.
Warren Clarke replied to comment from felonious
01:23 PM, 05/29/09
brn - You're probably confusing the Civic GX with the Honda FCX Clarity:
http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Drives/FirstDrives/articleId=123662
The Clarity is powered by hydrogen fuel-cell technology, and may be leased for around $600 per month. The Civic GX is powered by compressed natural gas, and retails for around 25 grand.
-Warren Clarke
brn says:
04:36 PM, 05/29/09
Warren, you're right.
I'll cower in the corner now. ;(
brn says:
07:59 PM, 05/31/09
Though looking at my local honda dealers, I can't get a GX. They don't have them.
For me, the GX doesn't exist. I'm still cowering in shame from my mixup with the FCX though. ;(