Honda Motor Co. announced at the Los Angeles Auto Show on Wednesday that it will release alternative fuel technology vehicles to some Californian drivers in the coming months.
Honda has developed FCX Clarity hydrogen-fuel-cell-powered car for limited test use, L.A. Times reports.
The company wouldn’t say how many cars will be released, but it will offer a plan of three-year lease with $600 monthly payment. The lease includes insurance and mechanical service from Honda.
This car will have zero emissions and luxury features like Bluetooth connectivity and heated seats. Consume will be the equivalent of 68 miles per gallon.
The company also develops a home fueling station which will
use home’s existing natural gas supply in order to produce hydrogen. A fueling
station like this is found in the research and design campus of the automaker
in
The four-door sedans will be released to a limited number of people that live near hydrogen refueling centers, like Irvine, Santa Monica and Torrance.
They will be able to take them home and drive them wherever they like, almost 270 miles before refill. The lease term will be used for the company to get information regarding the vehicle.
Dan Bonawitz, vice president of corporate planning and logistics for Honda said: “At the end of the lease, we definitely want them back.”
According to Tetsuo Iwamura, president of Honda North America the FCX Clarity uses the lithium-ion battery in limited amounts, thus the battery is safe, the Associated Press reports.
The hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle’s power is generated when hydrogen combines with oxygen in the fuel-cell stack, and energy from the reaction changes into electricity. The cars’ only emission is water.
Also General Motors Corp. announced that next year will distribute 100 hydrogen fuel cell-powered Chevrolet Equinox. These too, like the Honda FCX, will be used for research.
The two companies are to release the cars in