Toyota's 2nd-Gen FCHV Said Vastly Better Than First
By Scott Doggett June 6, 2008Toyota has developed a follow-up to its Fuel Cell Hybrid Vehicle, featuring a newly designed high-performance fuel cell stack that provides a travel range of 516 miles on a single fueling and the ability to start and drive the vehicle at temperatures well below freezing.
In a statement released today, Toyota said that its Fuel Cell Hybrid Vehicle-Advanced, or FCHV-adv, can start and run at temperatures down to minus-22 degrees Fahrenheit.
Getting fuel cells to work properly in frigid weather had been a huge technological hurdle.
The new fuel-cell hybrid system, which is powered by hydrogen and electricity, also allows the FCHV-adv to travel more than twice the distance than its predecessor, which was limited to 205 miles on a single tank of fuel...
The FCHV-adv has already received government approval and will be available for leasing in Japan later in 2008, Toyota reported. Pricing and overseas plans for the vehicle had not been decided, a company spokesman said.
Toyota attributed the technological improvements to studies sponsored by the Japanese government, tests conducted by the California Fuel Cell Partnership and cold-weather testing in Timmins, Canada.
Scott Doggett, Contributor
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