Hydrogen gasoline cells nonetheless signify a small slice of the electric-vehicle market share, since they depend on distinctive infrastructure, however Honda just isn’t letting that decelerate its aspirations. In 2024, the automaker intends to shake up the market a bit with a brand new fuel-cell automobile primarily based on an immensely fashionable automotive, with some distinctive options that might assist it acquire traction with patrons.
Honda this week introduced that it’s going to construct a hydrogen fuel-cell electrical automobile at its Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville, Ohio, in 2024. While the automobile doesn’t but have a public identify, Honda did say that this new FCEV can be primarily based on the CR-V SUV, one of many automaker’s hottest choices.
There’s an attention-grabbing twist in right here, too. While each different fuel-cell automobile turns compressed hydrogen fuel into electrical energy, which is used to propel the electrical motors powering the automobile, Honda’s FCEV will ease the transition to hydrogen by providing a charging plug. This will, in Honda’s phrases, “[enable] the driver to charge the onboard battery to deliver EV driving around town with the flexibility of fast hydrogen refueling for longer trips.” So, in a way, it is like a plug-in hybrid, however as a substitute of gasoline, it makes use of compressed hydrogen.
2023 Honda CR-V Hybrid Sport Touring Is a Solid Compact Crossover
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The Performance Manufacturing Center often offers with small-batch automobiles just like the Acura NSX and limited-volume PMC variants of its commonplace highway vehicles. Since the hydrogen CR-V requires some distinctive meeting processes, it is sensible that Honda would begin manufacturing there.
Details concerning the new CR-V FCEV are mild, and issues will probably keep that means for some time. However, Honda did promise that extra details about this automotive can be made obtainable as we draw nearer to the beginning of manufacturing in 2024.
