Fuel door has had problems opening from the very beginning - intermittently at first, and gradually becoming so bad, it would not open at all recently. I had to have car towed to dealership (twice so far) because I couldn't get gas in the car. The dealership is too far away to drive on the battery alone with nowhere to plug in along the way. I'm on the third fuel door assembly system (e.g., door, actuator, cables, gas cap, etc.), along with individual parts having been replaced on multiple occasions.

American Honda Mediation has refused to do the right thing to date, and the engineers/technical folks have accused me of not cleaning the cavity behind the fuel door, stating I've allowed dirt to get into the parts even though it is not required within the vehicle manual. Not to mention the billions of drivers on this planet who ever clean the cavity behind the fuel door?

The local Honda Service Center has already found at least two design flaws and reported it to American Honda - nothing. Talking with Honda, it's all my fault even though the vehicle was designed in such a way (piece of metal attached to a plastic door on a plastic hinge and no gasket or equivalent) to allow dirt/snow into the cavity. The rep for the area finally came out after 4 months, and all that was done was replace the actuator again for the "I've lost count" time. Each time parts have been replaced, the door would work temporarily and then go back to stop opening.

Honda claims in their Vision statement, Honda "...ensures that all of its products meet specific criteria for environmental sustainability, safety, as well as other crucial features. The ability of Honda to recognize different regional needs and tailoring its products to meet all these expectations..." Honda also states, "...enable people everywhere in the world to improve their daily lives." I can speak from experience, Honda has failed in their Vision for their company. I "expect" the fuel door to open each time I push the button (but I guess that's asking too much). My life has not been improved when I am left carless because my vehicle had to be towed to the dealership due to the fuel door not opening, not to mention the stress this ongoing problem has caused. The needs of my particular regional have certainly not been addressed when Honda claims the dirt/snow in the cavity are the fault of the consumer.

At the end of the day, my Clarity isn't worth anything, because I could not sell it due to the deficiencies of the vehicle (not just the fuel door). What I am unable to wrap my head around is the fact that Honda doesn't seem to care about a 3-time Honda owner and making me whole. Instead, all they seem to want to do for nearly 5 months is keep replacing the same parts over and over and over (10 times and counting) and blame me for the problem with the fuel door.

The first time I went to fill my Clarity up with gas the fuel door would not open. After several tries and with a little help from a small plastic pry bar I got it open. Since then I have filled up twice and both times I had trouble getting the fuel door to open. According to the dealership there is a time delay for the door to open so the fuel system can depressurize. I guess I just need to just park next to the gas pump for several minutes before I can remove the gas cap and start filling the car with gas???

Update from Jul 3, 2019: I found that the spring loaded push rod behind the fuel door was sticking. After spraying it with a little WD-40 the fuel door now opens properly.