Toyota is calling its latest Fuel Cell Vehicle (FCV) the car that will one day kill off the love-it-or-hate-it Toyota Prius hybrid. Toyota has launched the FCV Concept at the Tokyo Motor Show and believes if it is as popular as the Prius – it will trigger a new growth in fuel cell vehicles that will continue for 100 years.
In terms of physical dimensions and aesthetics, the car is 4870 mm long, 1810 mm wide and 1535 mm tall, with a 2780 mm wheelbase and is modelled on a Toyota Corolla-like exterior but just more-futuristic.
Toyota’s Deputy Chief Engineer, Yoshikazu Tanaka, who’s the man in charge of the ambitious FCV Concept and at the Tokyo unveiling he said Toyota plans to have the FCV on sale as a genuine series production vehicle by 2015 with the goal of selling ten thousands units a year by the end of the decade.
But will it work? What genuine eco-worthiness does the Toyota FCV Concept have to offer? The Toyota FCV Concept has two 70 MPa high-pressure fuel stacks which has a minimum output of 100 kW. A 500 km range off a single tank, complete zero emissions, and it takes just three minutes to charge the FCV to full capacity, which is a big advantage over electric vehicles that take a long time to recharge.
What does the fuel cell run off? Tanaka explained at the FCV’s debut that it mixes hydrogen with oxygen to create a reaction and that creates the necessary power with any form of combustion or emissions whatsoever. This still doesn’t solve the infrastructure dilemma that all FCVs face, which is why when it does go on sale, it will only do so in Japan, and selected European and American areas.
