Topic: Honda makes first hydrogen cars

[tdawnaz]

Japanese car manufacturer Honda has begun the first commercial production of a zero-emission, hydrogen fuel-cell powered vehicle.

The four-seater, called FCX Clarity, runs on electricity produced by hydrogen, and emits water vapour.

Honda claims the vehicle offers three times better fuel efficiency than a traditional, petrol-powered car.

Honda plans to produce 200 of the cars, which are initially available only to lease, over the next three years.

One of the biggest obstacles standing in the way of wider adoption of fuel-cell vehicles is the lack of hydrogen fuelling stations.

  "This is an important day in the history of fuel-cell vehicle technology"

John Mendel, executive vice president of American Honda

Critics also point out that hydrogen is costly to produce and the most common way to produce hydrogen is still from fossil fuels.

Analysis of the environmental impact of different fuel technologies has shown that the overall carbon dioxide emissions from hydrogen powered cars can be higher than that from petrol or diesel-powered vehicles.

'Monumental step'

The first five customers are all based in southern California because of the proximity of hydrogen fuelling stations, Honda said.

US actress Jamie Lee Curtis will be among the first to take delivery of the vehicle, the firm added.

The car will initially be available for lease in California starting in July, and then in Japan later this year.

It is being built on the world's first dedicated production line for fuel-cell vehicles in Japan.

"This is an important day in the history of fuel-cell vehicle technology and a monumental step closer to the day when fuel-cell cars will be part of the mainstream," said John Mendel, executive vice president of American Honda.


How the technology works


Honda says it expects to lease a few dozen units in the US and Japan in 2008, and about 200 units within three years.

It said the cost of the car, on a three-year lease, would be $600 (£300) a month.

The FCX Clarity is based on Honda's first-generation hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle, the FCX concept car. Honda delivered around 34 of these cars, mainly in the US, of which 10 remain in use.

Booming demand

Many car makers are developing cleaner, more economical vehicles because of high fuel prices and as consumers become more concerned with the environment.

Toyota said it was struggling to keep up with booming demand for its hybrid vehicles because it was unable to make enough batteries.

Hybrid vehicles, such as Toyota's top-selling Prius, switch between a petrol engine and electric motor.

Toyota Motor Corp's executive vice president, Takeshi Uchiyamada, told the Associated Press that new battery production lines could not be added until next year.

"Hybrids are selling so well we are doing all we can to increase production," he said. "We need new lines."

Volkswagen, Europe's biggest car maker said on Monday it wanted to produce a Golf which consumed three to four litres of petrol per 100 kilometres compared with 4.3 litres currently for the most fuel-efficient model.

"In the next few years, we are not going to do without petrol and diesel motors, but the future belongs to the electric car," VW chairman Martin Winterkorn told German newspaper Bild-Zeitung.

SOURCE

[Roco]

Great find Tdawnaz, 
I'ts kinda good news/bad news ,
"Analysis of the environmental impact of different fuel technologies has shown that the overall carbon dioxide emissions from hydrogen powered cars can be higher than that from petrol or diesel-powered vehicles."
good news
"Volkswagen, Europe's biggest car maker said on Monday it wanted to produce a Golf which consumed three to four litres of petrol per 100 kilometres compared with 4.3 litres currently for the most fuel-efficient model.
"In the next few years, we are not going to do without petrol and diesel motors, but the future belongs to the electric car," VW chairman Martin Winterkorn told German newspaper Bild-Zeitung."
BTW ,
4.3 litres =100 km works out around 54 miles per 1 American gallon,
3.5 Litres =100Km  "        "        "     67 miles per 1 American gallon

not that it will save the world , the world wide demand for cars and fuel will wipe out any gain ,and some, IMHO,
I guess for every 1 American /European that goes alternative fuel , 6 older design cars wil be sold in poorer countries ,
 

The future is bright for electric cars ? they have been saying that since 1900,
 



 

[numbernine]

now the tricky part is making hydrogen gas stations...

you can make a car run on orange juice for all it takes....but you will also have to come up with a way to dispense the fuel to consumers like us...

[tommie gorman]

The future is bright for electric cars ? they have been saying that since 1900,
 

Well it still is, 

[Roco]

now the tricky part is making hydrogen gas stations...

you can make a car run on orange juice for all it takes....but you will also have to come up with a way to dispense the fuel to consumers like us...

the real tricky part is generating the Hydrogen , if  it can be done cheap enough ,without using fossil fuel , the gas stations will follow easy enough,  IMHO

[tommie gorman]

the real tricky part is generating the Hydrogen , if  it can be done cheap enough ,without using fossil fuel , the gas stations will follow easy enough,  IMHO

You know they would, they do not want to miss a $ $ $ $

[dlewis23]

This is good news and all. But there are very few hydrogen fuel stations around to fill up. This will never catch on if there are no places to fill up.

Las Vegas has a few of places too fill up with hydrogen because there entire bus line uses ford's hydrogen busses. But everywhere else there are just about none. New York city only has 1 or 2. 

Other car companies are ready to go, but the fuel stations are still the drawl back. But hopefully if one does it, others will fallow.

the real tricky part is generating the Hydrogen , if  it can be done cheap enough ,without using fossil fuel , the gas stations will follow easy enough,  IMHO

Hydrogen is very cheap to make. You can get it from many places. You can get it directly from water, extract the hydrogen on board, and put it back into water. They can't really figure out how to make that small enough yet to fit into a car.

The really tricky part is getting enough power out of hydrogen. Right now its really hard to get the "get up and go" that people want. the Hyrodgen edge maxes out at about 75mph. IDK what this honda maxes out at, but I can't imagine its much more. And they are very slow getting too there top speed.

[tdawnaz]

well i think to save the worlds resources and the world economy i think folks can give up some speed...what's everyone in such a hurry for?? slow down...be ready to accept that future cars may not be nitro fuel burners...or someday we may all be riding bicycles...like the smart folks in holland do...my daughter went there this spring and she saidpeople everywhere on bikes...2 and 3 to a bike...bikes with side cars for the kids or groceries...and the only people with a weight issue were the tourists...personally i don't go over 70 or 75 anyway...no reason to...freaks me out if i look down and see i'm going over that

[tommie gorman]

well i think to save the worlds resources and the world economy i think folks can give up some speed...what's everyone in such a hurry for?? slow down...be ready to accept that future cars may not be nitro fuel burners...or someday we may all be riding bicycles...like the smart folks in holland do...my daughter went there this spring and she saidpeople everywhere on bikes...2 and 3 to a bike...bikes with side cars for the kids or groceries...and the only people with a weight issue were the tourists...personally i don't go over 70 or 75 anyway...no reason to...freaks me out if i look down and see i'm going over that

Actually  thats about what I drive at. About 72. For some farther travel is unavoidable though. But commuters I can see for sure. So how did they deliver building materials over in Holland? 

[tdawnaz]

shaddup tommie  they have cars and trucks but they chose to ride bikes...and have sex museums serious... i saw the funniest pictures when they got back...

[AlucardHS]

I drive at 96+mph. If they cant catch me then they wont catch me tomorrow !

[Roco]

Actually  thats about what I drive at. About 72. For some farther travel is unavoidable though. But commuters I can see for sure. So how did they deliver building materials over in Holland? 

Holland makes great use of it's waterways , for buses  and all sorts of transport ,
a very Eco friendly country, always has been ,

and LOL, Tdawnaz , on the main shopping centre ( MALL) sex museums , yeah,
 it 's there , I was going to volunteer as a exhibit , but while dashing accross the road
I had my one and only European accident , I got hit by a student on her bicycle ,
Duh, I lookled right and should have looked left, my fault entirely,lucklily no damage to
both of us and the bycycle , just my pride got dented , and she apologised to me, for my mistake ???????, realy great folk IMHO ,

Back on topic

This is good news and all. But there are very few hydrogen fuel stations around to fill up. This will never catch on if there are no places to fill up.

Sorry dlewis I don't follow the logic there , did they build gas stations before the petrol driven car was sold , ???? ,  supply will follow demand IMHO,

although I think most folk are still not convinced by Hydrogen power ,given the downside to the generation of hydrogen , at the moment it's just shifting the pollution elsewhere ,






 

[tommie gorman]

Once more, solar, wind and water derived electric is the answer.

Not the rest. And totally unlimited. And totally clean. Expensive at first. But if we all did it the in numbers, volumes always kicks in and makes it affordable. Gonna miss a dual exhausted four barrel big cubic inch motor sucking fuel though.