Honda's Hydrogen Fuel Cell Car: FCX Clarity

Mary C.

Thursday, June 19, 2008

After many years of waiting for a vehicle that could help relief the world of rising gas prices, pollution, and dependency on foreign oil, that day is finally here.

Honda's newest project car is the FCX Clarity. Using hydrogen fuel cell technology, this car is intended to revolutionize the way we commute in our daily lives. From its debut as a concept vehicle in 2005 at the Tokyo Motor Show, it has come a long way now that it's technically "in production". Honda's newly built production line, dedicated to the FCX, will only produce a few dozen units this year but they expect to crank out 200 next year, all to be leased for 3 years at $600 per month in order to test them out and gather data.

The biggest obstacles standing in the way of wider adoption of fuel cell vehicles are cost and the dearth of hydrogen fuel stations. For the Clarity's release in California, Honda said it received 50,000 applications through its web site but considered only buyers living near hydrogen fuel stations in Torrance, Santa Monica and Irvine.

Among the first customers are actress Jamie Lee Curtis and filmmaker husband Christopher Guest, actress Laura Harris, film producer Ron Yerxa, as well as businessmen Jon Spallino and Jim Salomon.

"It's so smooth," said Harris, who played villainess Marie Warner on the hit TV show "24." ''It's like a future machine, but it's not."

Harris, Spallino and Yerxa were flown to the ceremony, courtesy of Honda. Yerxa says he's excited to show off the car and believes there's "a lot of interest."

The FCX Clarity uses Honda's V Flow Fuel cell stack to attain a maximum range of 280 miles per tank, running at the equivalent of 74 mpg. They've also managed to improve their lithium-ion batteries to be 50% lighter, 40% smaller, and have a 50% improvement in fuel stack power output. To fuel the vehicles, Honda has created a fuel cell dealership network in California which should expand over the coming years. Until then, the leases will be confined to those areas with existing hydrogen fill stations.

Honda's Hydrogen Fuel Cell Car: FCX Clarity

Honda's Hydrogen Fuel Cell Car: FCX Clarity

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