California Pioneers Hydrogen Fuel Cell Movement Part 1

Hyundai roll out hydrogen powered passenger car for under £300 per month - including maintenance and fuel

We have been writing - and talking - a lot about green cars recently. 

Personally, I have been working with Nissan Retail UK and taking part in an extended Nissan Leaf demo. I have also been involved with an ongoing electric vehicle debate on www.simonscarspots.com and my friend John W Curtis has recently given us an exclusive blog detailing his thoughts on the future of "green" car technology (click here to read it).

In this feature, John (who was previously Head of Low Carbon Vehicles for the Scottish Government) pointed out that the "next big thing is hydrogen fuelled cars". This is not something that too many of us may be familiar with right now; but that is set to change in the not too distant future.

Because now it is possible to generate pure hydrogen from waste matter - we are talking sewage, leftover food and human waste. One of the pioneers of this technology, Jack Brouwer, knows that - despite the smell that is generated whilst the hydrogen is being produced - he is on to a good thing. He has, in fact, been quoted as saying that "it smells like money".

The whiff of waste is certainly not putting manufacturers off, either; there are already a few hundred fuel cell vehicles running around locally thanks to a hydrogen dispenser at the Southern California development site. 

Hyundai are going to start leasing a fuel-cell Tuscan - it is worth noting that this vehicle has a range of around 300 miles on just one tank of hydrogen. Over in the US, the lease costs will be more than reasonable - $2999 down followed by $499 per month including maintenance and free fuel from participating dispensers. 

Currently, there are only just under 12 pumps around the state but this will be set to increase if the fuel-cell car proves to be a success. 

To me, it seems that the fuel-cell car is a very sensible solution - recycling waste to make energy that will power a car for a decent range can only be a good thing. 

And leasing a car with no fuel or maintenance overheads for the equivalent of £1795 down and £298 per month? Yes, please.

It's not too long ago that hydrogen power was written off by many as being too expensive; now that Hyundai are joining Toyota, Honda, Mercedes-Benz and General Motors over in California, things are looking good.

But is this all due to government support? There will be another feature coming up later in the week but all I will say for now is that the Californian government have played a very big part in making fuel-cell cars a reality rather than just a pipe-dream.


Written by @MotorMistress
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