Research and Development of Fuel Cell Vehicles at Honda

Rapid responses are demanded from the automotive industry towards global warming and the depletion of fossil fuel resources. Honda considers fuel cell vehicles, which produce no pollutants, including CO2, during operation to be the ultimate clean vehicles enabling resolution of these environmental and energy issues. The development of the FCX Clarity brought together outstanding environmental performance and the drive performance. The Clarity achieves a fuel efficiency approximately twice that of a small gasoline vehicle and approximately 1.5 times that of a small hybrid vehicle. The size of the vehicle's hydrogen tank has been increased, realizing a driving range of 280 miles in EPA combined mode, a figure which is comparable to the driving range of a gasoline vehicle. This paper will provide a technological introduction to the FCX Clarity, Honda's next-generation fuel cell vehicle, and will further touch on issues relevant to the future market diffusion of the vehicles.