2015 Tokyo Motor Show — Honda Clarity Walkaround

The naming structure is a bit confusing, considering the predecessor’s FCX Clarity name is so close to the new car’s moniker, but what is clear is that Honda has a well-developed history of hydrogen fuel cell vehicle testing, so the production auto shouldn’t have many early development issues when it hits the market.

Japanese vehicle manufactures have set their sights on being the lead exporter of hydrogen powered cars. When the vehicle isn’t being driven, Toyota envisions that the FCV Plus can connect to an external hydrogen source to create electricity for homes or businesses.

Under its partnership with Toyota, BMW is developing a way to compress hydrogen at ultra-low temperatures to increase its storage volume, using as a base a fuel cell stack developed by Japan’s largest automaker. With a fuel stack that is one third smaller than previously, all its circuitry fits under the hood leaving more room for the hydrogen tanks.

The FCV Plus, which debuted at this week’s Tokyo Motor Show, is still just a concept, but it reflects Toyota’s ever-increasing discourse on how hydrogen will be the future of both propulsion and power. “It will be sometime after 2020”.

Jung at BMW said it was unlikely that BMW and Toyota would produce a fuel cell vehicle together, as the world’s biggest luxury auto maker and the world’s best selling vehicle maker largely targeted different markets. But research and development and manufacturing these cars are costly due to the expensive materials used.

Using a cooling technique to ensure the hydrogen is as contracted as possible is one of the methods under investigation, as “thinner” fuel means more can be crammed into the tank with each fill.

The other fuel cell cars the Toyota Mirai and the new Honda Clarity Fuel Cell.

Honda will be releasing a comfortable four-door vehicle for mass consumption by springtime 2016 known as the Clarity.

Oddly, the Honda Clarity makes a distinctive sound when driving it around as its exhaust system whooshes away the fuel cells in addition to the whining from its direct-drive motors, which could be somewhat unpleasant to the ears.