In a step towards clean burning technology, Honda has started the production of their Honda FCX Clarity. The automaker revealed as well that they are planning to produce just 200 of these futuristic vehicles and just this week the company has announced their first five customers. And Jamie Lee Curtis is part of that list.
The start of the production of the FCX was celebrated in a ceremony at a factory somewhere in Tokyo. The automaker reveals that the FCX Clarity can be easily filled up at the pump and can be driven 280 miles in a full tank, comparable to a gasoline car. This car will get a high fuel efficiency as well. Tough it may look good, this same technology got some issues as well. One problem that is encountered by the manufacturer is the prohibitive cost of the of the fuel cells. But Honda assured people that it has found ways in order to drive cost down, and that can allow them to mass produce the said car. Just this week, the company showed visitors and reporters its fuel cell production line that looks like a semi conductor factory.
The move of Honda right now is part strategic and part safety on its part so that it won’t pale in comparison with its competitor, Toyota. When it comes to hybrids, the Toyota thru its Prius is known as the leader and the promoter of the technology. But it isn’t Toyota’s Prius as the first car of its kind in the market. It was Honda thru its Insight that was first introduced in the US market. But with its move rigth now, Honda can right whatever missteps it made by revealing A-lister customers. Aside from Jamie Lee Curtis, other personalities on the waiting list are Christopher Guest, Canadian actress Laura Harris and Oscar winning Little Miss Sunshine Producer Ron Yerza.
Filed under: Honda FCX Clarity, Hybrid , fuel cell technology, Honda Clarity FCX, Jamie Lee Curtis
A Toyota executive said that he is pushing his company’s engineers to develop a plug-in hybrid-vehicle that is powered by a lithium-ion battery before 2010. This statement from Katsuaki Watanabe is sure to push the race between Toyota and General Motors in a higher level. It can be remembered that GM also plans to introduce its own version of a lithium-ion hybrid, which is known as the Chevrolet Volt and is expected to be delivered anywhere around 2010. Mr. Watanabe of Toyota welcomed the competition with General Motors and believed that the competition between the two companies would help reduce the negative aspects of automobiles and in the long run will help the environment. In a statement, Mr Watanabe thru an interpreter said that;
To compete against each other in such a battle is something to be congratulated. We don’t want to be the loser in that competition of course.
The best-selling hybrid of Toyota runs on nickel-metal hydride batteries. It is believed that the lithium-ion batteries that are used on a number of consumer electronics can potentially hold a longer charge than the nickel-metal hydride versions, but the draw back is that these batteries are expensive. The Volt from GM that is set to be introduced in 2010 is expected to run on lithium-ion batteries. And last fall, the company announced that it plans to build the Volt in an assembly plant in Detroit in 2010, although executives believe that production will start after that time. Plug-in vehicles are different from the current hybrid vehicles right now since they can be recharged externally from an ordinary power outlet. For the conventional hybrid like the current Prius, battery is charged from power generated by the wheels.
Filed under: Chevrolet Volt, Hybrid, Toyota, Toyota Prius , Chevrolet Volt, GM, hybrid vehicles, plug-in vehicle, Toyota, Toyota Prius
For a moment, lets think and imagine a hybrid car cruising our highways. You can almost feel the quality and the smoothness of the ride. Its efficiency is undeniable, and you can almost see fuel economy at its finest. Another thing that makes a hydbrid car unique is the amount of noise or rather, the less noise that it creates once it starts cruising the highways. Sweet sounds, almost light and so sensitive. Contrast that to the sounds of high-performance and muscle cars out there. Noise and growls dominates the air. That is one reason why a number of people tend to like hybrid cars. But painting these hybrid cars and pushing it on a pedestal can be quite harmful. In fact silent cars that prowl the highways right now can put some people at risk. Yes that’s right; there is always a trade-off. In search for efficient cars and ’silent’ cars, some aspects need to be sacrificed and can even pose threats to some people. The sponsor of a new bill in Congress Democratic Rep. Edolphus Towns says it best:
The beneficial trend toward more environmentally friendly vehicles has had the unintended effect of placing the blind and other pedestrians in danger.
That’s correct. The less-noisier hybrids that we see on the roads right now may revolutionize automotive technology and can be sweet to the ears, but we have to accept the fact as well that these hybrids can pose significant threats to our blind people as well. Though it was noted that there are still no news that reported injuries that are caused by these almost-silent cars on the road, the bill’s supporters thinks that its only a matter of time that something will happen along this line. There was this study that was conducted by the University of California-Riverside that stated that these cars do pose some significant threats. It mentioned that hybrids that operate at slow speeds must be 40 percent closer to the pedestrians than combustion-engine vehicles before they make enough noises for their location to be detected.
The bill that will be filed will require the Transporation Department to conduct a two-year study before issuing safety standards, and in turn the automakers will have two years to comply. The introduction of this bill is helpful, and I guess a considerable study and research should be done as well to check and to validate furthermore that a slow and a noise-free hybrid can be a threat on the road.
Filed under: Hybrid, News, Technology, Uncategorized , bill, Hybrid, safety
March 15, 2008 • 12:35 am
In a time where oil prices seems to be rising every week, the need to have a fuel-efficient car becomes more and more imperative. Enter hybrid vehicles. These vehicles seem to offer decent to above average fuel efficiency that can make everyone smile. There are a number of hybrids out there in the market right now. Leading the pack is Toyota Prius. Prius is the number one selling hybrid car in the market right now, and because of the popularity of this model, its name is almost synonymous with the name ‘hybrid’. The Honda Civic hybrid is another one, joined by the Nissan Altima hybrid, the Toyota Camry hybrid, Ford Escape hybrid and a whole lot more. Since the performance of the hybrid can be measured in terms of fuel efficiency, lets take a look at some of the vehicle’s mpg figures.
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Toyota Prius 46 MPG
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Honda Civic Hybrid 42 MPG
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Nissan Altima Hybrid 34 MPG
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Toyota Camry Hybrid 33 MPG
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Ford Escape Hybrid 32 MPG
If this measure is the sole basis in selecting cars, then these are the cars that should be used by people. But then the use of this measure may mislead consumers for a number of reasons, and one reason is that this measure may vary depending on unique individual situations, and driving environments.
Filed under: Ford Escape, Honda Civic, Hybrid, Nissan Altima, Toyota Camry, Toyota Prius , Ford Escape, Honda Civic, Hybrid, Nissan Altima, Toyota Camry, Toyota Prius
