Honda Hydrogen Fuel Cell Clarity: First Customers Announced

American Honda Motor Company, Inc. has announced the first five lucky folks who will be taking delivery of and driving the FCX Clarity hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicle later this year: Ron Yerxa, Jon Spallino, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jim Salomon and Laura Harris. This comes in addition to Honda's establishment of the first network of Southern California dealers that will be able to provide sales and service to these fuel cell vehicles. And it all started in Japan, at the world's first dedicated fuel cell vehicle manufacturing facility. The FCX Clarity vehicles will be leased and periodic maintenance and service will be provided by the local dealers--all of which are located conveniently close to hydrogen refueling stations. When Basem Wasef of our About.com test drive team drove the FCX Clarity, he said, "The car propels itself easily to highway speeds, accelerating with a smooth buildup of power. Insulation from road noise is exceptional, and though some odd noises and valve release sounds are produced by the hydrogen system, none are loud enough to distract from the impressively quiet ride." Of course, for the full scoop, read his review and drive of the world’s first production fuel cell vehicle and check out the photo gallery of the FCX Clarity too.

We like Honda's innovative design of the vertical fuel cell stack. The up-and-down flow of hydrogen and oxygen represents a 50 percent increase in efficiency over previous horizontal flow packages. But then again, what's not to love about a vehicle whose only exhuast emission is water? And while it's still gonna be a long time before the average person can count on driving a hydrogen-powered car--or even living within the range of a hydrogen station--we say kudos to Honda for writing another chapter in fuel cell history.

And if you wanna bone up on some hydrogen and fuel cell basics in the meantime, be sure to check out:

• How Fuel Cells Work
  
• Fuel Cell Working Diagrams
• A Quick History on Fuel Cells
• How Safe is Hydrogen?
  
  

2009 Honda FCX Clarity Fuel Cell Vehicle - photo © Basem Wasef