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REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION Automobiles SUNDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2007 GREENTECH Hydrogen Car Is Here, A Bit Ahead of Its Time TIME TRAVEL Honda says its FCX Clarity fuel-cell car is production-ready... By NORMAN MAYERSOHN tled toward production. Seeing nothing un- ed, in part, for their ready access to hydro- familiar beyond a dazzling 3D dashboard gen stations. Honda is realistic about the SANTA MONICA, Calif. display — a large power meter where my slow growth of a hydrogen infrastructure FTEN, it is the smallest of gestures eye expected a tachometer, with a glowing as well as the viewpoint that fuel cells may O that deliver the most powerful mes- ball in its center to track hydrogen con- not seem to make much sense using cur- sages. I was reminded of this last sumption — I noted essentials like the rent methods of hydrogen production. month when I settled into the driver’s seat parking brake and seat adjustment, all fa- But there are practical matters to con- of the FCX Clarity, a sedan powered by fuel miliar operations. There really wasn’t go- sider as well: compared with alternatives cells that Honda will begin leasing to a ing to be much out of the ordinary about the like plug-in hybrids, the onboard energy handful of private customers next sum- way this car drove, at least. supply is quicker to replenish and has a bet- mer. Fresh from a briefing that detailed That theme was repeated by another, ter travel range, 270 miles. Moreover, in the car’s NASA-grade complexity, I won- less apparent gesture: no engineer or tech- Honda’s full-cycle calculation, a fuel-cell dered what procedures might be required nician from Honda came along on my test vehicle can reduce carbon dioxide output to start the reaction of hydrogen and oxy- drive, both a sign of confidence in the car’s by half compared with a gasoline vehicle. gen and bring the power supply to life. road-readiness and an indication of how In the United States, where much electrici- In fact, it took nothing more than insert- normal it is. ty is produced from coal, it is even better ing an entirely conventional metal key into Normalcy is a recurring, and intentional, than a battery-electric car, Honda says. a normal-looking switch and pushing a theme of the FCX Clarity. It is refueled us- It will be a while before drivers selected power button much like the one that starts ing a high-pressure connector tucked be- for the three-year, $600-a-month Clarity the Honda S2000 sports car. The familiarity hind a typical gas-cap door on the rear lease program (it includes insurance and of the steps — deliberate gestures, I think, fender. It has a handsome exterior, a nice maintenance) will think about such top- to convince drivers that the cars of our fu- audio system and plenty of knee room in ics. Instead, they will revel in its extraor- ture aren’t so frightening after all — rein- the back. Anyone who has driven a Toyota dinary silence. It drives away from a stop forced the message of the meeting I had Prius will feel at home with the dash- so quietly that it seems to be holding its just left: the FCX Clarity is ready now. mounted gear selector and the park button. breath, much as a hybrid does before the Scanning the dashboard for unmarked Honda has not announced who will get gas engine starts. Accelerating onto In- switches, mysterious buttons and puzzling the FCX Claritys or how many will be terstate 10, though, incites a turbinelike controls, I looked for the inevitable loose available in Southern California, where the zing — quite pleasant, really, if not as sat- ends of an engineering prototype being hus- program begins. Households will be select- isfying as the guttural bark of a V-8 — and the Clarity blends effortlessly into traffic. The sound of a pump at work breaks the silence occasionally, but it has none of the clicking and whirring evident in the previ- ous-generation FCX. Honda says the performance is on par with a similar-size car powered by a 2.4- liter engine, and it should know, as the 2008 Accord LX has just such an engine. The comparison is apt. The FCX motor COOL CAR Seats in the FCX produces 134 horsepower and 189 pound- Clarity include fans to heat and feet of torque; the Accord’s in-line four warm occupants, reducing the makes 177 horsepower and 161 pound- energy drain of the climate- feet. The Clarity weighs nearly 3,600 control system. Concave inte- pounds, and while that is 400 pounds rior surfaces add to a sense lighter than its predecessor, the Accord is of spaciousness. some 300 pounds lighter yet. The wheel- bases of the Clarity and Accord are iden- tical at 110.2 inches. On a drive up the Pacific Coast Highway to Malibu, the Clarity lacked nothing ex- cept engine noise, and it easily kept pace with traffic when I turned off and headed up into the canyons. It wouldn’t be smart (or useful) to look for the edge when dri- ving what is probably a million-dollar handbuilt car, but the FCX handled curves admirably and effortlessly. The electric power steering was a bit quick for my taste, but more than making up for that were the marvelous brakes showing none of the coarseness of the Prius’s re- generative braking. In fact, the degree of refinement was impressive throughout, from the polished look under the hood to the absence of rat- tles and squeaks one might excuse in a car that is still far from an assembly-line product. The FCX is no lab rat. While the FCX seems fully qualified for local duties, its practicality for longer trips will have to wait on the availability of hydrogen. In this latest version, the range is a reasonable 270 miles on a single refill of the 5,000 p.s.i. tank behind the rear seat. Most fuel-cell vehicles using com- pressed hydrogen are now built around 10,000 p.s.i. tanks for greater range. Honda chose to take a different route, emphasizing efficiency over capacity. For instance, the 100-kilowatt fuel-cell stack is a Honda-built vertical-flow de- sign, more powerful than the previous de- sign, yet smaller — about the size of a carry-on suitcase — and lighter. The engi- neers reduced the load on the air-condi- tioning system by bringing climate control directly to the occupants, using fans in the seats to blow air cooled or warmed by thermoelectric elements. check looming, no looking back when the tentially addressed by a grow-your-own Honda calculates its hydrogen con- cars arrived in showrooms to see whether solution called the Home Energy Station sumption as the equivalent of 68 miles a one had been embarrassingly optimistic. — remain unsolved, as does the matter of gallon, all the more impressive consider- Way back in the 1990s, a physicist assured cost. The FCX Clarity still costs several ing the car’s excellent performance and me that fuel-cell cars were 20 years away orders of magnitude more than it will accommodations for four — and the fact — and always would be. have to when true retail sales, without a that it is fitted with the same tires as an Honda has a different timeline; it con- Honda-subsidized lease, begin. Accord V-6, rather than special high- siders this version of the FCX a produc- Maybe it’s not yet time to call back the mileage rubber. tion car, ready to roll into showrooms pessimistic physicist — it’s my cousin Until now, writing about fuel cells has from a manufacturing and operational Howard, actually — but the day is draw- been a no-risk proposition, with no reality standpoint. Issues like fuel supply — po- ing closer. Design Note book: Honda FCX Clari ty After b reaking g round with the unabashedly futuristic Insight, Honda installed hybrid powe rtrains only in conventional models like the Civic and Acco rd. The FCX Clarity fuel-cell car signals a shift in Honda D’s edessiggnnstrNateog y.te book: Honda FCX Clari ty The new di rection takes some cues f rom the Toyota Prius, which is o ffe red only as a hybrid. That After b reaking g round with the unabashedly futuristic Insight, Honda installed hybrid powe rtrains car ’s separate nameplate and signatu re shape clearly identified its buyers as being envi ronmentally only in conventional models like the Civic and Acco rd. The FCX Clarity fuel-cell car signals a shift in conscHioounsd. a T’shedeFsCigXnCstlraartietyg y.takes a similar tack – t rying to make the technology appealing, not invisibleT–heanndewevdei rnecittsioonvteakraelsl shoampeeciusersefmroimnisthce nTot yoofttahPerciuusr,rwenhticPhriusso .ffYe eretdit oisnlaylsaos a hcylebvriedr. dTheastign in mancyaro’sf istespdaeratateilsn. ameplate and signatu re shape clearly identified its buyers as being envi ronmentally conscious. The FCX Clarity takes a similar tack – t rying to make the technology appealing, not A-PILLAinR visTibheles–hapned oefvtehne iftrsonotvreoroafllssuhpappo ert,is reminiscent of thDeOcOuRr rWenINt PDrOiuWs. LYeikteitmisanaylsroecaecnltemveorddeelss,ign which tiynpmicanllyyeonfditss adtetthaeilsb. ase of the windshield the FCX has a small fixed window at the base, extends into the fender with a distinct bulge forwa rd end of the doo r. Rather than sur round – think Ao-fPaILt LreAeR roTohtepsohkaipnegothf trhoeugf rhontthreoog frsouupnpdo –rt, it wDiOthOtRhiWckINmDOolWdinLgik,edmesaingynerercseunstemdoadetlhsi,n to suggwehsict hst tryepnicgathlly. ends at the base of the windshield frathmeeFfCoXr ahabseattesrmvaile l w.fixed window at the base, extends into the fender with a distinct bulge forwa rd end of the doo r.

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