Honda managed to achieve an impressive level of balance in the brake pedal, where there’s little of the unpredictability and pedal sensitivity found in other hybrids. Though it doesn’t offer a thrilling experience and is far from a handling powerhouse, its ride is comfortable and relatively quiet. Fully depress the throttle, and the engine wakes up and makes plenty of noise, but there’s not much bite to go with the bark. The car is perfect for in-town driving and short trips, but its acceleration fizzles at highway speeds.

Thanks to the pair of electric motors, the Clarity PHEV has good torque and throttle response off the line, but it’s not a sustained sensation. The Clarity PHEV sees a combined output of 212 horsepower from its two electric motors and four-cylinder engine. (The Clarity Fuel Cell was only available in California.)

However, the Clarity Fuel Cell and EV were discontinued at the end of the 2020 model year. Because of its powertrain options, the Clarity competes against a wide variety of cars, including the Kia K5, Honda Accord, Hyundai Sonata, and Toyota Camry. The second-generation cars debuted in 2016, still with hydrogen power, but Honda quickly added an EV and plug-in hybrid. The Clarity began life in 2008 as a hydrogen fuel cell car offered only as a lease to customers in southern California. The car will remain on sale for the rest of 2021 with no changes. Honda is discontinuing the Clarity PHEVin all its forms after the 2021 model year, following its previous decision to cut the Clarity EV in 2020. Even so, innovation continues at a fevered pace, and not every fuel-sipping model will make the cut as the automaker moves forward. That leaves the all-wheel-drive B5 and the plug-in-hybrid T8 as the only two XC60 configurations, since the 295-hp all-wheel-drive B6 is also discontinued.Like almost every other major automaker, Honda is more than a few steps down the path toward complete electrification of its model line. Meanwhile, the XC60 lineup loses the front-drive version of the B5 powertrain. That leaves the all-wheel-drive B5, which has a 247-hp turbo four. The former says goodbye to the standard B4 powertrain, which exclusively fed the front axle through a 194-hp turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder. The gas-fed XC40 and the XC60 will no longer be offered with front-wheel drive. The new model year also brings some notable updates to other nameplates, including the S60 sedan and the all-electric C40/XC40 Recharge. Volvo will make a couple of its SUVs all-wheel-drive only for 2024. Volvo already announced updates to the 2024 C40 and XC40 Recharge, which add RWD variants as well improved electric motors and range.The performance-oriented S60 Recharge Polestar Engineered also exits the latest lineup.For the 2024 model year, the Volvo XC40 and XC60 will not be available with front-wheel drive.

Plug in hybrid vehicles