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Interesting lawsuit in California against Honda


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http://www.latimes.com/business/autos/la-fi-autos-honda-smallclaims-20111227,0,959031.story

 

Summary:

 

Woman buys Honda Hybrid, which were advertised as getting 50 mpg.

She finds it to be way lower than that in real use (about 30 mpg).

Other owners have the same problem, and do a class action lawsuit.

Honda okays class action settlement, which would give each owner $100 and discounts on a new vehicle (while lawyers get $8,500,000).

She rejects this, and tries a new tactic: Small Claims Court in California, where the limit is $10,000 (and lawyers are not allowed to plead the cases in front of the judge).

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Interesting. I wonder how many other people may decide to go this route instead of joining class action suits. What the article didn't state was who she put down as the defendant. And her website doesn't state it either, just provides links to books you can buy on how to file a small claim.

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http://www.latimes.com/business/autos/la-fi-autos-honda-smallclaims-20111227,0,959031.story

 

Summary:

 

Woman buys Honda Hybrid, which were advertised as getting 50 mpg.

She finds it to be way lower than that in real use (about 30 mpg).

Other owners have the same problem, and do a class action lawsuit.

Honda okays class action settlement, which would give each owner $100 and discounts on a new vehicle (while lawyers get $8,500,000).

She rejects this, and tries a new tactic: Small Claims Court in California, where the limit is $10,000 (and lawyers are not allowed to plead the cases in front of the judge).

 

Last I checked, the EPA estimates mpg.

 

Lady's suing the wrong body.

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http://www.latimes.c...,0,959031.story

 

Summary:

 

Woman buys Honda Hybrid, which were advertised as getting 50 mpg.

She finds it to be way lower than that in real use (about 30 mpg).

Other owners have the same problem, and do a class action lawsuit.

Honda okays class action settlement, which would give each owner $100 and discounts on a new vehicle (while lawyers get $8,500,000).

She rejects this, and tries a new tactic: Small Claims Court in California, where the limit is $10,000 (and lawyers are not allowed to plead the cases in front of the judge).

 

Unless her real world driving habits are NASCAR-like, Honda's little cars should get way better than 30 mpg.

 

I used to be able to get my wife's Prius to 32mpg but it took work to push it that low. With work the other direction (and not much), I could could get it to about 50. Using engine braking, coasting, etc., I pushed it up to about 53mpg a few times. I never overinflated the tires or did any other mods.

 

Just using a light foot for any of the small hybrids should easily get you into the 40+mpg range.

 

I can even coax my 6 cylinder truck and sports car to mid 20s using some smart (not fun) driving techniques.

 

Bottom line: Woman is an idiot.

Edited by John Adams
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Unless her real world driving habits are NASCAR-like, Honda's little cars should get way better than 30 mpg.

 

I used to be able to get my wife's Prius to 32mpg but it took work to push it that low. With work the other direction (and not much), I could could get it to about 50. Using engine braking, coasting, etc., I pushed it up to about 53mpg a few times. I never overinflated the tires or did any other mods.

 

Just using a light foot for any of the small hybrids should easily get you into the 40+mpg range.

 

I can even coax my 6 cylinder truck and sports car to mid 20s using some smart (not fun) driving techniques.

 

Bottom line: Woman is an idiot.

2006 honda civic hybrid 40 city 45 highway 42 combine so never 50mpg people love their hype

 

and the problem claimed is that the hybrid battery has deteriorated, that is probably true.

 

Batteries in hybrid cars are generally expected to last for 100,000 miles or more. Consumer Reports magazine recently tested a 2002 Toyota Prius with over 200,000 miles on it and, after comparing test results with those of an identical car tested when it was new, found virtually no change.

 

But many people posting on Internet discussion boards complained that Honda Civic Hybrid battery performance faded after just 30,000 to 50,000 miles.

 

Both Toyota and Honda use NiMH batteries but Toyota has the secrete sauce that keeps their batteries working for hundreds of thousands miles and 10+ years and Honda hasn't figured it out.

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Bottom line: Woman is an idiot.

I'll never understand why people don't read the fine print. It says very clearly on the sticker in the window that the car can reach 50 miles per gallon based on standard best driving practices, along with the occasional coasting, engine breaking and pushing for the last 18 miles.

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Unless her real world driving habits are NASCAR-like, Honda's little cars should get way better than 30 mpg.

 

I used to be able to get my wife's Prius to 32mpg but it took work to push it that low. With work the other direction (and not much), I could could get it to about 50. Using engine braking, coasting, etc., I pushed it up to about 53mpg a few times. I never overinflated the tires or did any other mods.

 

Just using a light foot for any of the small hybrids should easily get you into the 40+mpg range.

 

I can even coax my 6 cylinder truck and sports car to mid 20s using some smart (not fun) driving techniques.

 

Bottom line: Woman is an idiot.

 

I got a speeding ticket a couple of years ago and after that I stopped flooring it through traffic to get around people. Though it was a fun car to drive that way I stopped doing that and it slightly increased my mileage. Then I got a new car and the guy told me to use the cruise control as much as possible. I'm to the point now where I can use the CC even in heavy traffic. I went from 19 mph to 21 mph and now I get close to 25 mph using CC.

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  • 2 weeks later...

The point is, that like every car, you can do a lot better than the EPA rating. In the hybrids, you have even more control. That's not hype--pretty common knowledge.

 

1. I understand about Hypermiling, I have a friend who aeromods Honda Civics and is into Hypermiling, (claims 70+ mpg from a 2000 civic two door)- I was making a statement about this claim in the article

Peters said Honda advertised that the car would get about 50 miles per gallon, but "the car never got more than 41 or 42 even on its very best day." She said the fuel economy dropped below 30 mpg after a software update that was intended to prolong the life of the car's battery and improve performance.

 

2. Where I think the lady has a point is in the performance of the battery, the Honda batteries have not had the same type of longevity as Toyota's either in regard to mileage or age- my brother bought a used Prius and enjoyed it but he wanted something a little bigger so bought a Civic Hybrid and had battery problems after 4 years - he had a new one put in and ended up paying about 40% of the cost.

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2. Where I think the lady has a point is in the performance of the battery, the Honda batteries have not had the same type of longevity as Toyota's either in regard to mileage or age- my brother bought a used Prius and enjoyed it but he wanted something a little bigger so bought a Civic Hybrid and had battery problems after 4 years - he had a new one put in and ended up paying about 40% of the cost.

 

If that were the point she's making. She's not. She's saying that Honda engaged in false advertising.

 

Which doesn't even make sense. Honda doesn't set the MPG estimates. The EPA does. And Honda is mandated to provide that info to the consumer. Effectively, the bimbo's suing Honda for following government regulations, which is the absolute apex of irony given that the suit is filed in California.

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  • 3 weeks later...

If that were the point she's making. She's not. She's saying that Honda engaged in false advertising.

 

Which doesn't even make sense. Honda doesn't set the MPG estimates. The EPA does. And Honda is mandated to provide that info to the consumer. Effectively, the bimbo's suing Honda for following government regulations, which is the absolute apex of irony given that the suit is filed in California.

 

Of course she is awarded money for not understaning a thing about how MPG estimates are calculated, and of course Honda is liable for following the law.

 

I am sure she will be getting refi-help on her home because it lost value, and that Variable Rate Term Loan she signed is the Banks fault.

 

You simple cannot fix stupid or uniformed.... but you can make it payout for you in court....lol

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  • 2 months later...
  • 3 weeks later...

Hybrid Honda owner loses appeal of small-claims court victory

 

Heather Peters, the attorney who sued Honda in California small-claims court over what she called the disappointing mileage in her 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid, had her $9,687 award thrown out today by a Los Angeles County judge, who found that most owners get close to the fuel economy the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates on the window sticker. Peters says she's disappointed, but that Honda lost the public relations battle even if it won the case.

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