Faced with the challenges of the energy transition, the renowned Japanese brand Honda has chosen its path and presents an unknown and new fuel that will give much to talk about. Here we describe the changes it has made to its new model and the basis of its bet.
The new fuel that Honda is betting on is not known to anyone
Although until recently the Japanese manufacturer seemed to opt for electric motors as a solution to energy demand, now seems to have thought better and has given him to place in their new models another very little known fuel.
The chosen path is not new for the Japanese brand as they have been testing for 25 years with prototypes of new technology with a zero emissions fuel, but it is now that they have decided to up the ante.
It’s no longer electricity, now it’s the power of gas.
In partnership with General Motor, the renowned Japanese brand sets a milestone in ecological mobility and presents new models of cars powered by a hydrogen-powered engine.
Lightweight vehicles that will travel the streets of the United States with a hydrogen fuel cell is the bet with which Honda faces the future with a view to reducing global warming.
Searching for an H2 station to keep on rolling
One of the challenges Honda will face will be the limited availability of hydrogen fueling stations. Perhaps that is why it has decided to make its new e:FCEV model available exclusively in California as a lease.
Compounding the shortage situation, due to Shell’s closure of operations, there was a recent 9% decrease in the number of refueling stations, leaving only 7 refueling stations in all of California.
To remedy this lack of hydrogen stations, Honda arranged for its e:FCEV model to be plug-in, featuring a 17.7 kWh rechargeable battery. The characteristics of this electric recharge are as follows:
- Range: 46 km
- Recharging time: 10 hours at 120 volts.
While the advantages of filling its two tanks with hydrogen as fuel are as follows:
- Added autonomy of 388 kilometers
- Recharges in less than 2 hours.
It moves away from the electric path and enters a gaseous environment.
Despite the disadvantage of a poor hydrogen refueling station infrastructure, Honda insists on moving away from its electric cars and promises to move forward with hydrogen-powered models.
It is not the first time this car manufacturer has tried it, as in 2002 it managed to commercialize the Honda FCX, surprising everyone with a drive system based on the generation of electricity through the reaction of hydrogen with atmospheric oxygen and only water vapor emission.
Then several years would pass before trying again in 2013 with the launch in Spain of the FCX Clarity, and later in 2017 with an improved version known as Honda Clarity Fuel Cell.
But it is now that for the first time in partnership with GM and taking as an anchor point its best-selling model, the CR-V, which tries it in the United States and with an alternative plan in the absence of hydrogen stations.
Now it remains to be seen how the public receives this new model whose design was based on the CR-V and is assembled by hand in the High Performance Manufacturing Center located in Michigan, and that among the most notable changes is the strategic placement of the two hydrogen tanks under and behind the rear seats, without affecting the load capacity.
In short, Honda’s new bet in favor of hydrogen as fuel in its models in replacement of batteries raises the question of whether the limited supply of cars powered by this gas is the reason for the deficient number of refueling stations for this new fuel, or vice versa; in the absence of a solid infrastructure for refueling gas manufacturers do not dare to contribute as did the legendary Japanese manufacturer.