Toyota shows off fuel cell car with 480-mile range

While we've yet to hear any more about Toyota's planned tests of its plug-in hybrid, the company has apparently made quite a bit of progress with its fuel cell vehicles, two of which recently made a non-stop 350 mile trip from Osaka to Tokyo (with the air conditioning on, no less). What's more, according to MSNBC, the vehicles still had 30 percent of their fuel remaining, giving them a total potential range of 480 miles. That's apparently more than double the range of Toyota's earlier fuel cell vehicles, a feat due in no small part to this model's ability to hold twice as much hydrogen as its predecessor (it's also 25% more efficient). While there's no word as to when any of this might actually make it into a commercially available vehicle, Toyota is apparently (slowly) headed in that direction, with it now working to boost the range even further, improve durability and, most importantly, get the cost down.

[Via Straightline, photo courtesy of Robert Gilhooly / EPA]

[Paul @ Sep 28th 2007 12:42PM]

How much did it cost to fill the hydrogen tank?

[Ignatius @ Sep 28th 2007 1:05PM]

The funny thing is that they never tell how much it'll cost to fill the tank til its actually on sale. My question is, how much does the damn car cost? Methinks somewhere in the $40k range...

[Corndog @ Sep 28th 2007 2:01PM]

MOST importantly, how much fossil fuel is required to create all that elecricity to produce all that hydrogen to fill up that gas tank?

I'm all for alternate fuels, but at this point it is well documented that Hydrogen is NOT the answer.

[nikola @ Sep 28th 2007 4:27PM]

corndog, there are many alternate energy sources out now depending on where you live. Seeing as your original point is based on a position of ignorance, so I can only guess your conclusion must be equally flawed.

Toyota keep it up. I'll take 480miles-per-refuel over gasoline any day.

[Twitchy @ Sep 28th 2007 8:04PM]

As much as I like the principle of fossil fuel-less cars, corndog is right. Why waste resources developing a hydrogen powered car when the electric car is more efficient.

One only needs to make electricity and charge the batteries for an electric car (better yet, a PHEV), not make electricity to power hydrogen extraction/compression/cooling, which then needs transportation to a domestic refuelling station. This distribution network may be in place, but the petrol stations will require major retrofits in order for them to be able to store and handle hydrogen as a fuel. Not to mention the inherent risks involved in handling such an explosive gas.

But everybody has a plug at home.

[Spiza @ Sep 30th 2007 12:22AM]

If you watch the documentary "Who killed the electric car", the national manager of advanced technologies for Toyota says the car is decades off and costs more than a million dollars to produce. This was when the documentary was made a few years back though.

[Bob @ Sep 28th 2007 12:46PM]

Is there a chance I might end up Toasty! like the two people in the forefront of the photo?

[DickHardknocks @ Sep 28th 2007 12:46PM]

FUSION POWER is what humanity needs. Fusion unlike fission is clean - produce waste with much shorter half lives than fission - and would be easier to produce worldwide once technology reaches a certain point. Also, Fusion power cannot be reverse engineered to be a nuclear weapon (unless you spent billions upon billions).

Fuel Cells and these stupid hybrids are simply a way of patronizing these stupid tree huggers.

Hybrids are actually WORSE for the environment than regular cars due to a number of factors including energy production and increased driving. I'm all for clean, efficient energy but I want to see it done right...not some rush job that creates more problems than it solves.

[staniel @ Sep 28th 2007 12:51PM]

how do hybrids lead to increased driving???

yea, people are worried about fuel cell cars blowing up, and you're talking about fusion cars??

[Paul @ Sep 28th 2007 1:09PM]

Last time I checked (I will admit it has been a while) fusion requires more power than it produces.

[nobody sane @ Sep 28th 2007 1:25PM]

Hybrids lead to more driving because people choose these are environmentally conscious people choosing hybrids over public transit.

However, that's not the only conclusion I think we can reach here. What it means above all else is that the public transit system is failing: if it can't even get people willing to pay several thousand dollars more for a vehicle into their buses, things need to change.

[Chris @ Sep 28th 2007 2:11PM]

Your post lends no credence to the concept of bridge technologies. I agree with your sentiment, but in order to get from point A to point F, we have to go through points B, C, D, and E first.

Hybrids are just a means to an end, not the ultimate solution. The spotlight on Hybrid cars helped Americans into a mode of thinking where the less dependent we are on (foreign) oil the better and/or the less CO2 we put in the atmosphere the better.

This is probably the most important effect Hybrids have had. It does not matter that producing ethanol from corn actually releases more CO2 into the atmosphere than burning gas in cars. The impetus for change is ideas, and the ideological shift has taken place thanks in no small part to attention placed on Hybrids and Hydrogen vehicles. Eventually we will be energy and fossil fuel independent, but it won't happen over night.

[eEZER @ Sep 28th 2007 1:04PM]

When will Apple begin to make cars? It'll be iCar vs. crappy cars worldwide. Steve, pull your stick...

[Mike @ Sep 28th 2007 1:47PM]

Then when you go to actually drive your car (as Apple's use case will be to leave the eye candy parked in the garage), Apple will void the warranty and later release an update that renders it inoperable.

[jmattick @ Sep 28th 2007 1:52PM]

Apple introduces the iCar... Only drives on certain interstates, not compatible with country roads. Small, sleek package, with some inherent flaws in the initial design (Drivers cannot see out of windshield. Blacks appear reversed. Oh, and it won't drive 60mph due to sluggish speedometer interface.) If your battery goes out, they'll give you a loaner iCar while you wait for them to replace your battery.
But it'll play your ENTIRE LIBRARY from iTunes...

Oh, and if you do hack it to drive on country roads, expect to have to go back to the dealership and be stuck with interstates for a while...

[Nex @ Sep 28th 2007 1:06PM]

i like the hybrid in the foreground.. 100 miles on a Rockstar energy drink and a twinky. pretty good fuel millage. tho slower. not sure if the cost per mile vs. mile per hour ratio makes up for the lack of HD radio

[NaeemTHM @ Sep 28th 2007 1:13PM]

I love my Camry hybrid. It's aesthetically pleasing and I get about 530 miles out of it. I fill up about once every week and a half. If you're in the market for a hybrid I highly recommend it.

I didn't even mention all the poop they throw in. Handsfree bluetooth, keyless entry, 8 speaker stereo system....I'll be back, I'm going for a dive.

[anonymous @ Sep 28th 2007 1:22PM]

Holy DAMN DAMN! only a week and half at 530 miles? I could go almost a month with that range.

[- @ Sep 28th 2007 1:44PM]

Heh, seriously. My 15mpg SUV gets by 2 or 3 months before I reach 530 miles. Sure, I own a gas guzzler, but I'm also green by not buying a new car (just because it takes up less gas). I made the decision to work from home, I walk or bike or take the bus/train when out for fun. I'm all for fuel alternatives, but being environmental starts with where you live and its proximity to where you need to be.

[johnph31 @ Sep 28th 2007 8:48PM]

No freakin kidding...530 miles would last at least a month. where the heck are driven everyday.

[NaeemTHM @ Sep 28th 2007 3:26PM]

I work ummm...far. I drive about 60 miles a day.

[tonymro... @ Sep 28th 2007 1:49PM]

Wow! A 480 mile range on a fuel that isn't readily available!

My 2004 VW Jetta TDI wagon has a 675 mile range and averages 45 miles per gallon on biodiesel (and with the air conditioning on too).

[germ @ Sep 28th 2007 2:14PM]

where is hydrogen not readily available?

[domerdel @ Sep 28th 2007 2:19PM]

Terrible photography

[Bard @ Sep 28th 2007 2:35PM]

My ride: Vespa GTS250ie

Top speed: Just under 80mph

Average fuel ecconomy per gallon: 79.65 MPG

Cost of bike: $5,990

Range per tank: a little over 200 miles

And that's the gaz guzzling, top of the line bike of their line. Most bikes get 80 to 100mpg. Honda, Yamaha, Kymco and other such major market scooters average 80 to 120 miles per gallon, and start well under 2 grand

And this is just for personal transport. There are Diesel cars on the road that average 45 to 70mpg on the market RIGHT NOW if you have to haul materials, and they often can run on either petrol based or bio diesel.

Show me a reason to REALLY get excited when 80 to 100mpg personal transport is already here. The only reason we have gas guzzling behemoths is that the average sheeple out there are lazy and ignorant to the technology that is already here and ready to be used.

[mhollinger @ Sep 28th 2007 3:01PM]

My ride: Klein Performance aluminum touring bicycle (1985)

Top speed: Just under 40mph, faster for some

Average fuel ecconomy per gallon(Gatorade): 100 MPG

Cost of bike: $2000

Range per tank: about 135 miles depending on how I feel

I prefer simple, human-powered motoring around on my bicycle - not a motorbike. In the Washington DC area, traffic is awful. It often takes 40 minutes to drive 13-15 miles which I can bicycle in 45-50 minutes (faster if I didn't have to carry so much to\from work). I realize the need for automobiles but also see many that waste easy opportunity to save gas, save money, stay in shape, feel good and be kind to the ecology.

[tonymro... @ Sep 28th 2007 2:43PM]

"where is hydrogen not readily available?"

Gee, I haven't run across any hydrogen filling stations here in the Pacific Northwest.

[germ @ Sep 28th 2007 4:18PM]

http://www.google.com/search?q=welding+supplies

[rgiskard @ Sep 28th 2007 2:49PM]

My car...

2006.5 Volkswagen Jetta TDI
33mpg city
45mpg highway
600+ miles per tank w/AC with little effort
running biodiesel nonetheless.

480 miles...wow.

[granny down east @ Sep 28th 2007 4:39PM]

Marginally off-topic... is anyone aware of incidents involving "weight watchers" (the guys who police trucking weight limits) pulling over motorists and testing their fuel?
Here in NC a person using biodiesel was allegedly fined for not paying fuel tax on home produced biodiesel.
I'm thinking snopes.com, but haven't seen anything pertaining to this story on that website.

[PC Tech Support Atlanta @ Sep 28th 2007 8:09PM]

Not paying road tax on home-produced fuel could make sense. If only for the portion of the taxes that goes to maintain roads.

It's akin to buying an item from a source in a different state. You are supposed to pay your portion of any applicable sales/use/consumer taxes.

But if anyone ever went to court they might be able to argue that since bicycle users don't pay road taxes even though their fuel is "home-produced" then neither should they.

What about solar or electric cars? If the government finds another way to hit people with taxes, they will.

[PC Tech Support Atlanta @ Sep 28th 2007 5:26PM]

Since there is no hydrogen infrastructure, here is my idea on how to create one.

My key seeding the market: fleet vehicles.

Fleet vehicles by definition don't need to leave a local/community working area. For example: taxi cabs; cable TV service vans; utility company cars; police cars; other government cars & light trucks; delivery vans such as UPS, FedEx, US Post Office; pizza delivery cars (which could be really tiny 1 person units); etc. I'm sure you get my point and can think of many more.

I saw on the 2005 "Scientific American Frontiers" episode "Hydrogen Hopes" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1046766/) which was hosted by Alan Alda where General Motors has a fairly advanced hydrogen vehicle program based on a modular design. GM could go to the above mentioned fleet owners and make a deal: GM will make hydrogen powered vehicles available at a loss-leader price. Once they have a deal then GM gets together with area fuel suppliers to get hydrogen refilling centers built while the vehicles are being assembled.

By working with one community at a time to get hydrogen fleet vehicles on the road and at the same time a refilling infrastructure built, over time the zones of coverage would naturally spead out and eventually overlap. During the growth time additional hydrogen refilling facilities would be built along the Interstate highways too.

Once my plan goes into effect then GM would be able to scale up production of consumer vehicles for sale with a reasonable profit margin which would more than make up for their seeding the market.

Because communities would now have a refueling infrastructure in place, individuals would not have to worry about where to get their hydrogen-powered vehicles refueled. Also because local fleet vehicles would have been in their neighborhoods, consumers would feel comfortable about them and local vehicle mechanics would have had the opportunity to learn how to service them.

My plan is a situation where fleet managers could get a deal on new vehicles, the refueling infrastructure would be built and GM would get a jump on foreign competition.

No government investment or involvement needed - let the free market work it's magic.

Terry Thomas
Commercial and Architectural Photographer
Atlanta, Georgia USA
http://TerryThomasPhotos.GooglePages.com

[Matt @ Sep 30th 2007 8:44PM]

FedEx Express DOES use fuel-cell vehicles, in Tokyo. The GM HydroGen3 Minivan, to be exact. It was the first vehicle using the technology to be certified for operation on normal roads in Japan.

The same van is used in Washington DC as a shuttle for members of Congress, and also by the USPS to deliver mail.

[jamesFF @ Sep 29th 2007 1:50AM]

Wow! that guy must be in realy good health to be able to pull that cart 350 miles!

[Greg B. @ Sep 30th 2007 8:10PM]

This is yet another example of the progress that is being made with fuel cells. Some will try to make you believe that fuel cells are decades away, but that is a myth.

For a discussion of that and other hydrogen myths, take a look at "The Hype Against Hydrogen":

http://hydrogendiscoveries.wordpress.com/2007/09/24/the-hype-against-hydrogen-setting-the-record-straight-on-six-hydrogen-myths-perpetuated-by-joseph-romm/

[Matt @ Sep 30th 2007 8:38PM]

The GM Sequel and Chevrolet Volt completely own this thing in every way. Not to mention that you'll actually be able to own one of them in a couple of years.

Fuel Cell vehicles are ready, thanks largely to GM, and we need to get down with that. Now all we need are highly efficient photo-voltaic panels (or, God forbid, nuclear power) for electrolyzing water into a ready supply of hydrogen for the infrastructure.

[Homer Simpson @ Oct 2nd 2007 2:32AM]

People getting their heads out of their collective butts when it comes to nuclear power would do more for the cause than burning extra coal to build electric cars, then burning even more to power these "clean" technologies. Disinformation and fear have crippled the best chance we have to take the country as a whole in a different direction.

If Moore has changed his mind there is hope for the most paranoid, misinformed, eco-religionist.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/14/AR2006041401209.html

[artz @ Apr 9th 2008 1:51PM]

http://watertogashybrid.com Hydrogen on demand/turn your car into a hybrid