Hello ladies and gentlemen, I am VizX and your here for another edition of the Automotive Corner. Today im covering the newest concept recently released to California only(weird) for testing, its the new Hydrogen-Electric combo Hybrid from Honda called the Clarity.
In the world today with all the different alternative fuel’s coming about being Ethanol, E85, Electric/Gas, All Electric, Hydrogen/Electric you would have to imagine that we are going to actually find something to give us zero emission’s or at least close to it. We are already tinkering with Ethanol, Chevrolet has released vehicles that are actually badged “Flex Fuel” to indicate they can be filled with a tankful of E85. Problem? There are next to no E85 fuel stations so far! As a matter of fact not only are there barely any Ethanol stations, but automakers are looking at hydrogen now because it is the ultimate clean fuel(the clarity doesn’t even have an exhaust pipe as it only emits water vapor!) but there are even less hydrogen equipped stations then Ethanol. To Be Honest, I dont know of a single one nor heard of any!
The Honda Clarity was first seen at the 2005 Tokyo Autoshow and is released to your everyday individual for lease for 600.00/Month. Im sorry but a monthly payment like that, get yourself a combustion engine right, not even a hybrd like a toyota yaris, or a nissan versa and you can have the car payment and gas bill and not spend 600/month! But If you want to go completely green, you’ve gotta fork over the green!
“The FCX Clarity is a shining symbol of the progress we’ve made with fuel cell vehicles and of our belief in the promise of this technology,” proclaims American Honda president and CEO Tetsuo Iwamura. “Step by step, with continuous effort, commitment and focus, we are working to overcome obstacles to the mass-market potential of zero-emissions hydrogen fuel-cell automobiles.”
The FCX is extremely well-equipped as far as I can tell, with goodies such as dual-zone digital climate control, adaptive radar cruise control, voice-activated navigation, and an AM/FM/CD/XM audio system with a jack for your iPod or MP3 player, the only thing thats manual controlled in this car as far as I know are the seats which in the grand scheme of things is no big deal. In terms of safety, the FCX Clarity comes with six airbags, anti-lock brakes, stability and traction control, active headrests, and a radar-guided collision mitigation system.
Honda officials expect as many as 30 hydrogen pumps to be available next year. The fuel should cost about $5 a kilogram, meanwhile, so on a per-mile basis, the FCX will actually prove more affordable than comparably-sized sedans (except, perhaps, the Prius). Refueling times, of about five minutes are similar to what it takes to fill up an empty gasoline tank.
To make sure your protected with a solid body, the FCX uses a conventional steel body, with a steel chassis and aluminum subframe, rather than the costly ultralight materials that could have been used which might have compromised safety. Even so, the numbers are impressive. The FCX delivers an estimated range of 270 miles on a tank full of hydrogen. Since it’s tank holds four kilograms, that works out to be around 68 miles per gallon. (The EPA considers a kilogram of hydrogen to equal a gallon of gas.)
Getting started in the Clarity is simple: just press the start button lol. It takes a few seconds for the system to come alive, but once it does, you simply shift into gear, and off you go, you’ll likely to be surprised by the Clarity’s launching ability just as a heads up as the system produces 100 kilowatts of power with a modest additional assist from the onboard batteries. That works out to an estimated mid 130’s horsepower range. It seems to be alot more, but thats the torque speaking, where you get maximum torque the moment the motor starts to turn as its electric.
One of the best features of any fuel-cell vehicle is the lack of traditional powertrain noises(motor,transmission,exhaust..well if your modded lol). Instead, you may hear all sounds normally muffled beneath the louder noises, like controls,suspension and pumps, and especially the compressor driving air into the fuel-cell stack which I imagine is a bit weird but im sure its something that one can easily get used to.
While the first Clarity sedans will be leased in the L.A. area, Honda officials would like to extend the experiment to other parts of the country. Hopefully they send out this plan to the more northern states with a heavy city atmosphere like New York or Detriot to see how this will react during the winter.
Well this is another Automotive Corner coming to an end. I hope they bring this to the general public and less for 600/month! If so at that monthly price tag only upper exec’s and people whom are… comfortable will be able to get their hands on this.
I hope you all have a great rest of your monday! Check us on out myspace at www.myspace.com/beintheknowatflytoyz
See you all on Thursday in The Mod Shop!
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