Honda makes first commercial hydrogen cars

Honda has begun the first commercial production ever of a hydrogen fuel cell-powered car. The Japanese auto manufacturer ceremoniously launched production of its first hydrogen-powered vehicles on Sunday in Tochigi, Japan, and announced its first customers.

The four-door sedan, called the FCX Clarity, runs on electricity from a fuel cell battery that is powered by hydrogen fuel. Steam is the car's only byproduct. It can get a combined (city and highway driving) fuel efficiency of about 72 miles per kilogram of H2 which, according to Honda's own estimates, is the equivalent of getting about 74mpg on a petrol-powered car. The car can be driven for about 280 miles before needing to be refuelled.

While many automakers and researchers have prototypes (like the Volkswagen HYmotion, for example) and pilot projects using hydrogen fuel to power fuel cells on electric hybrids, or as a direct fuel source for vehicles with converted engines, there are no hydrogen-powered cars yet available for lease or purchase to the average consumer.

Honda claims it is the first company to have a hydrogen car certified for regular commercial use by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The car was first introduced as a concept vehicle in 2005 at the Tokyo Motor Show.

Starting in July 2008, Honda plans to offer the hydrogen-powered FCX Clarity through a lease program at three dealerships in California and also in Japan. The cars will be leased on a three-year basis for about $600 (£300) per month, according to Honda.

Among the first owners will be actor/author Jamie-Lee Curtis and her husband, film-maker Christopher Guest of This is Spinal Tap fame.

Of course, hydrogen cars are not going to be widely driven anytime soon. Honda estimates it will lease only about 200 FCX Clarity vehicles over the next three years. In order to qualify for the lease program, would-be owners will have to meet a set of criteria that includes living within range of a hydrogen filling station. As part of the lease, Honda will provide any necessary service or maintenance on the vehicle.

The biggest obstacle in mass market appeal of hydrogen-powered vehicles versus petrol-electric hybrids is where owners could fill up their cars. There are currently few hydrogen-fuel filling stations in existence, and the only hydrogen 'car' commercially available is a toy -- the Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies H-Racer.

There's also an ongoing debate as to whether hydrogen, a fuel that requires large amounts of electricity to be produced, is truly energy efficient when its entire food chain is taken into consideration. For a hydrogen vehicle to be really green, the fuel would have to be produced somewhere that's on a green electricity tariff or powered by alternative energy like wind or solar.

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