Toyota will launch a small series of fuel cell cars in 2015
- Electric cars equipped with fuel cells have the advantage of making their own electricity by converting the hydrogen stored in a tank into electricity to run an electric motor and operate the car. Traditional electric cars equipped with batteries don't produce their own electricity and need to be recharged.
- Fuel cell car’s autonomy is higher than electric battery car’s, since it depends only on the presence or absence of hydrogen in the tank. This type of car emits only water vapour.
- But the manufacture of hydrogen (off-vehicle or in-vehicle) and storage of fuel (hydrogen, methane, alcohol) in recharging stations remains a difficult issue of such vehicles.
- In spite of the difficulties to market such cars in significant volume, many prototypes have been developed by carmakers in recent years. General Motors and Toyota have in particular conducted tests (thanks to the Chevrolet Equinox and Toyota Highlander), as well as Hyundai-Kia and Renault-Nissan (on the Hyundai iX35 and Nissan X-Trail).
- Some carmakers want now to test the concept on the roads. Honda was the first to market a fuel cell car (Honda FCX Clarity), sixty copies were sold worldwide (mainly in California) since 2008 for $600 per month.
- Mercedes followed Honda by launching the B-Class equipped with a fuel cell (for 850 dollars a month). These models were destined to carry out full-scale tests. A production in small volume could be launched in 2015.
- But only Toyota has announced its plans to launch in 2015 a small series of cars equipped with fuel cells, unveiled under the form of a prototype named FCV.
