Pretty excited about owning my first car - and a hybrid to boot! I'm the first in my circle of friends to own a hybrid so this forum is great. Looking forward to hearing about driving in Canadian winters - and how to deal with hiccups and roll backs at red lights (I assume it can't be fixed).

 

Congratulations on your purchase & welcome to the forum.

Cheers;

MSantos

 

Man that is one nice car for your very first. Of course being from north you will not get the fantastic MPG results that folks in warmer climates can get so don't be dissapointed. Wow a new hybrid as a first car! I'm jealous.

Do Honda's come with block heaters when sold up your way? If not you might want to get one.....

 

welcome, maggie. don't let them scare you about the mileage. i got my hybrid last september, and in my first winter with it here in minnesota, i managed to average 50MPG. there are a great many threads on here about how to obtain the best mileage, so i am sure you will find a lot of good suggestions. enjoy the car....i really like the look of the 2006, but wanted a 5 speed, so i stuck with the 2005.

 

re: Block heater

A block heater wasn't included with the car - not sure if this is across Canada or just where I bought it. The salesperson said it wasn't necessary and that a battery warmer would suffice on the coldest days. We'll see.

I had to wait a month longer to get the Magnetic Pearl, but it was worth it. Apparently the 2007 models are arriving in October, but I was too impatient to wait *that* long.

 

Block heaters are not standard for canadian Honda models. But even in southern Ontario they are a necessity, especially during the winter months - I strongly recommend you get one installed as it will improve your milleage and reduce engine wear.

For instance, in my case, I plug in the car to a timer every night even during the summer days. The timer simply turns on the power to the block heater exactly 1.5 hours before I unplug and leave for work in the mornings. On most vehicles this could be seen as overkill, but on hybrids the milleage and efficiency benefits are undeniable.

Cheers;


MSantos

 

Thanks - I'll look into getting the block heater.

 

Congrats on your new car! Wow a hybrid for one's very first car! Only thing I can say about my HCH2 is that it is my very first brand NEW car. I was looking for a used one but no one in the area was selling and the radiator leak in my old car was getting progressively worse that I couldn't wait much longer.