The Toyota FCV-R is one of the three concept cars the Japanese company is launching at the Tokyo Motor Show next week.
It’s joining Toyota debuts like the Toyota GT 86 and Fun-Vii concept.
However, unlike the multitude of electric and hybrid concepts on display, the FCV-R is currently the only hydrogen-fuelled concept at the show. And it is a matter for debate as to whether hydrogen fuel-cell technology will ever transition to the mainstream.
The Toyota FCV-R
The car’s full name is Fuel Cell Vehicle – Reality and Revolution, which is apt for Toyota‘s brave decision to invest in the current underdog of sustainable motoring technology.
This boldness extends into the design, a low-slung body with a dramatic nose. It is both arresting and yet completely possible to imagine on the street.
Freed from the design constraints of a bulky internal combustion engine, the spacious cabin comfortably fits five people and has a roomy boot. This reflects Toyota’s desire for the FCV-R to be a practical, family-oriented car, bringing technological innovation to the school-run and weekly shop.
The FCV-R runs for an impressive 430 miles on a single top-up of the 70 MPa high-pressure hydrogen tank.
Toyota see the FCV-R as a stepping-stone in the development of a mass production hydrogen fuel-cell car by 2015.
How do hydrogen-powered cars work?
Hydrogen fuel-cells work by combining oxygen from the air with hydrogen stored in the tank.
This creates electricity, powering the car’s electric motors and turning the wheels.
What are the benefits?
The most obvious is the environmental impact: fuel-cell technology has the potential to hugely reduce the amount of CO2 pollution.
Unlike electric cars, hydrogen fuel-cells allow for long journeys without needing to recharge. The Honda FCX Clarity, Honda’s pioneering fuel-cell car, has a driving range of up to 240 miles on one tank.
As evident from both the Toyota and Honda vehicles, not being bound by the limits of the traditional fossil fuel powertrains, allows for a more spacious design.
With all these plus points, why aren’t there more hydrogen fuelled concept cars?
There is one huge drawback to hydrogen fuel-cell technology: cost.
Developing hydrogen cars is considerably more expensive than electric cars. In 2009, the CEO of General Motors estimated that it cost ten times as much to produce a hydrogen vehicle than an electric one.
Both Ford and Renault-Nissan have dropped hydrogen development programmes owing to the prohibitive expense.
Plus, while electric cars can be charged from domestic supplies and the existing electric infrastructure, few people have a hydrogen station nearby. At the moment, the biggest network of hydrogen stations is in southern California, with the first hydrogen station in the UK being located at Honda’s Swindon HQ.
However, the need to build expensive petrol stations has not exactly hindered the popularity of cars driven by the internal combustion engine.
It is not clear whether the Toyota FCV-R will be released for lease only, as the Honda FCX Clarity is, which could be off-putting for some.
So, what do you think?
Will hydrogen fuel-cell cars be a common sight in ten years? Would you drive one?
Or is this pioneering vision just that, a vision not grounded in contemporary economic and practical limits?
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