Honda FCX Clarity hits UK roads for the first time

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By Brett Davis | September 16th, 2010

The Honda FCX Clarity has hit UK roads for the first time this week as a part of a trial for the hydrogen-powered car. Honda hopes to educate politicians and other industry decision-makers about the technology with the trial.

Honda will give the car to many politicians and media figures throughout the week to promote hydrogen as a means of environmentally-friendly power. The car will also test London’s infrastructure to see what kind of demands the technology places upon it.

Vince Cable, Secretary of State, was one of the first drivers to test the car and said he was happy to find out more about technology. He also said in a recent report,

“The Government is keen to encourage all forms of low carbon vehicle technology such as hydrogen fuel cells, hybrids or significantly more efficient conventional vehicle. This is part of our push to stimulate the market for green motoring and give consumers greater choice.”

Although there have been no plans to develop a more substantial infrastructure including multiple filling stations in the UK, this trial is hoping to provoke such development. In Japan and parts of America, the Honda FCX Clarity is a normal production model in Honda’s lineup available for lease. These countries do offer plenty of hydrogen filling stations though.

Managing director of Honda UK, Dave Hodgetts, says hydrogen power is the way to go for zero-emission technology, saying,

“Petrol-electric hybrids – like our Civic, Insight and CR-Z models – are currently an effective way to reduce emissions from cars, but fuel cell electric cars are the ultimate environmental technology.

“The FCX Clarity is a real world production vehicle that emits no harmful exhaust gasses, offers a range of around 270 miles (435km), a short refuelling time and the practicality and performance of a conventional saloon (sedan). It could revolutionise the future of motoring.”

Hydrogen fuel cell cars emit nothing but H2O (water) from the exhaust pipe, making it a very-nearly zero-emissions package.

Shak

Wish i were in politics downunder. I really want one of these cars, and i actually get how it works. Not like some stupid Prius driver who thinks anything that dont have batteries and look like a s lug is killing the environment.
ABMPSV

I love fuel cells cars and new technology. When petrol hits $3 everybody will rush the get this car. “The FCX Clarity is a real world production vehicle that emits no harmful exhaust gasses, offers a range of around 270 miles (435km), a short refuelling time ….politicians should lissen and make a change.
http://www.facebook.com/leong.jon Jon Leong

For all those who think Battery, hybrid, LPG or Diesel is the way of the future should look at this.

I personally think the future is Hydrogen.

Kimi

A hydrogen car requires as many battery to run as a petrol hybrid.

The only difference is that it uses hydrogen fuel cell to generate that electricity, instead of petrol.

Until there is a clean and efficient way to generate all the hydrogen needed, its not better than petrol for now.

Having said that, I do prefer hydrogen over petrol as the fuel of choice in the future.

Shak

Hydrogen cars dont have batteries which power the wheels. Like in any EV, the batteries feed an electric motor, which then turns the wheels. In the FCX, the Fuel cell is fed H2 in liquid form and turns it into Electricity. This is then fed to an electric motor which then turns the wheels.

Kimi

Your theory is good.

But in practice, say the Honda FCX for example, it does use a lithium battery pack to supplement its power when needed, and to maximize efficiency by storing any surplus energy.

So in that sense, the Honda FCX behaves like a hydrogen version of the Toyota Prius or hybrid Camry.

Richard

All fine until you look into cost of H2 infrastructure and how much energy is required to split H20 into Hydrogen (and where that energy comes from)

Shak

Well it may all be very dirty and costly right now, but thats why we need mass investment into the technology so that when it needs to go mass market it is economically viable. Its not like we cant just adapt current servo’s to fit in an extra hydrogen pump. Slowly over time, we will see EV stations and Hydrogen stations cropping up in exiting Fossil Fuel servo’s, much like in the US. Someone needs to go Hydrogen, and judging by how good the FCX is, the future looks bright.
ABMPSV

It was same 100 years ago when petrol pumps need to be be installed everywhere.

MW

The key to hydrogen is that you don’t have to wait for a couple of hours for your car to recharge. So you can use it like a normal car.

As with the cost of producing H2 compared to electricity – see the last sentence of the article.

Lazybones

Except the devil is in the detail:-

“Hydrogen fuel cell cars emit nothing but H2O (water)”
the exhaust pipe, making it a very-nearly zero-emissions package.”

They emit water vapour, which is still considered a green house gas.

“The production of hydrogen is also said to be less damaging to the environment than that of electricity.”

Said by who? Honda perhaps, if you use electrolysis to produce hydrogen you need electricity. Producing Hydrogen from electricity will always consume more energy that it give you.

Shak

I doubt humankind will ever find such an energy rich source as Petroleum, so anything we compare to it is going to look weak. The whole point of hydrogen is that it is renewable even though it takes shedloads of energy to extract. it is clean burning and does not damage the environment when used in ICE engines, or Fuel cells. It may have downsides, but they are nowhere near as bad as the downsides that Fossil fuels present.
MW

‘water vapour is still a green house gas’
but seriously is that as damaging co2? the prob with co2 is the are lots of it stored and us burning it wrecks the carbon balace. i doubt water vapour has that effect.

commercial extraction of h2 is a lot more complex than the electrolysis that we once performed in chemistry classes in school labs. with advances in technology and use of catalysts, production of hydrogen will become less expensive and energy intensive.
Lazybones

Shak your right. The problem with fossil fuel, is that its a lot like being left a huge sum of money from a rich uncle. And now the dosh is running out, you find yourself having to find a way a creating a new income. Its a big call. How do we replace are daily world consumption of 80million barrels per day. Thats a shed load of oil.

Currently 80% of Hydrogen comes from reforming natural gas. So for all that effort you might as well drive an NG car. Not to mention its cheaper than the 2 Million Dollar Honda.

I agree the Water Vapour greenhouse gas point, is not as earth shattering as Co2. Infact you should be able to capture it and turn it into drinking water.

We’re talking about a very complex and expensive technology. It will always be more expensive than a simple battery car. And less energy efficient, you can’t change the law of thermal dynamics. The only thing a H2 car gives you over a battery car. Is quick refill, thats it. Everything else is a minus!

Schuss

“The production of hydrogen is also said to be less damaging to the environment than that of electricity”

A silly statement. You need to produce electricity to produce hydrogen.

As stated in an article in the past, overall the energy efficiency of a battery car is around 80%. The efficiency of a hydrogen car totaled around 60% and IC was like 20%

Nevertheless a good move from Honda
Kieran

I believe James May summed it up perfectly in his review of the FCX Clarity.

“The reason it’s the car of the future, is because it’s just like the car of today”

The only difference is the fluid you put in the tank. I sincerely hope they bring it here.
Hung Low

I think to sum it up it all depends how the Hydrogen is produced. Currently most hydrogen is made from non-renewable sources such as natural gas or by gasifying coal. In the future CO2 emissions from hydrogen could be lowered by using biomass or renewable electricity to electrolyse water and break it down.
For now you are still putting in more than you are receiving so the actual CO2 output of this technology is still behind petrol!
ohsotorque

The wheels look a bit small for the wheel arches, hmm
Dazzer01

Regardless, I think it’s a very smart, stylish looking car. But to the detractors, I reckon it should form part of the mix of fuel technologies being experimented with and debated about. Only by bringing these technologies to the fore will the market decide which is most the most appropriate (Whoa, you’d be proud of that one Mr. Rabbit