Hydrogen Fuel Cell Car Gets Test Run – Honda

Honda has been getting its new hydrogen fuel cell test car out on the track and letting the press take a spin. On November 14th they ran the car around Laguna Seca racetrack near Monterey, CA. Here is an excerpt from their release on these test runs:

Honda Demonstrates the FCX Concept Vehicle
– Fully functional Next-Generation Fuel Cell makes its driving debut –
Watch The Video

September 25, 2006–Honda Motor Co., Ltd. held a demonstration drive of the next-generation FCX Concept fuel cell vehicle. The FCX Concept features a newly developed compact, high-efficiency Honda FC Stack as well as a low-floor, low-riding, short-nose body. It offers a comfortably large cabin and futuristic styling along with significant improvements in power output and environmental performance. Limited marketing of a totally new fuel cell vehicle based on this concept model is to begin in 2008 in Japan and the U.S.

To meet Honda objectives for significant gains in both environmental and driving performance, the FCX Concept is equipped with a V Flow1 fuel cell platform consisting of a compact, high-efficiency fuel cell stack arranged in an innovative center-tunnel layout. This has allowed designers to create an elegant, low-riding, sedan form that would have been difficult to achieve in a conventional fuel cell vehicle. This new fuel cell stack is 20% smaller and 30% lighter than the current FCX FC Stack, yet its power output is 14kW greater. The drive motor has been positioned coaxially with the gearbox for a more compact design, with output increased by 15kW. Overall, the power plant is about 180kg lighter than that of the current FCX and about 40% smaller in volume. The result is improved energy efficiency and performance along with a more spacious interior.

The new fuel cell vehicle currently under development for release in 2008, will feature the principle technologies of the FCX Concept to achieve a new dimension in environmentally friendly driving pleasure not found with gasoline-engine vehicles.

The test car that ran at Laguna Seca was a dark red futuristic looking sedan. According to the reporters on scene the car, reported to be worth 2 million dollars, ran smoothly, had good accelration for a sedan, was quiet, roomy, and has a low center of gravity.

“This is the first purpose-built fuel cell vehicle to be put on the road in the hands of retail customers,” said Stephen Ellis, fuel cell marketing manager for American Honda Motor Co. “It’s not a car that is remade from some other platform.”

Read the rest of the report on this test drive