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Honda FCX Clarity  (Source: Honda)

  (Source: Honda)

  (Source: Honda)
Leases begin in summer 2008 at $600 per month

The gasoline-electric hybrid news has come in at a furious pace at DailyTech over the past few weeks. Honda announced its intention to bring a small, sporty hybrid to market; Fisker announced its gorgeous hybrid sports sedan and GM yesterday showed off new hybrid full-size pickups and full-size SUVs.

Honda has a new fuel efficient vehicle of its own to tout and the word "hybrid" is nowhere to be found. The company finally pulled the wraps off the production version of its FCX fuel cell prototype -- now called the FCX Clarity.

Exterior design-wise, the FCX Clarity closely mimics the earlier prototype, but now features government-spec bumpers front and back and smaller wheels. Inside, the FCX Clarity uses a gauge cluster and heads-up display similar in fashion to the current Honda Civic. Otherwise, the interior looks rather normal if you can get past the overabundance of silver-painted plastic.

When it comes to the powertrain, the FCX Clarity uses a 100 kW V Flow fuel cell stack which is 65 percent smaller than the one used on the first generation FCX. Other powertrain components include a 171-liter, 5,000-psi hydrogen fuel tank, a lithium-ion battery pack and a 95 kW (127 HP) electric motor.

According to Honda, the FCX Clarity is good for an equivalent of 68 MPG and has a range of 270 miles. Also, since the FCX Clarity is a fuel cell-powered vehicle, there are no CO2 emissions -- the vehicle's only emission is water.

"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," said 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 Clarity will see limited service in the Southern California area beginning in summer 2008. Customers will sign up for a three-year lease at price of roughly $600 per month. Honda also notes that the FCX Clarity qualifies for a $12,000 IRS tax credit.

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But....
By lobadobadingdong on 11/15/2007 9:55:04 AM , Rating: 3
Where do you get the hydrogen fuel to fuel it?




RE: But....
By Chris Peredun on 11/15/2007 9:58:36 AM , Rating: 5
I suspect at a hydrogen refueling depot, which is why they're being released in limited numbers in southern California only. Once the infrastructure extends beyond that point, hopefully we'll see more widespread offerings.

And as a side note, it's a relatively attractive vehicle - and compared to the first-generation FCX, it's downright striking.


RE: But....
By Zoomer on 11/16/2007 9:48:24 PM , Rating: 2
I think it really looks like their airwave. :)


RE: But....
By 16nm on 11/15/2007 10:02:36 AM , Rating: 2
Yeah, where to get it and how much energy is spent creating and storing the hydrogen versus how much it can create? The idea of a car that only emits water is exciting but is it feasable...


RE: But....
By Cygni on 11/15/2007 11:29:43 AM , Rating: 4
The lease includes a small hydrogen producing generator that you store in your garage. It connects to your normal natural gas line in your house, and converts it to hydrogen. It also has the added bonus of functioning as a generator for your house (through the use of its own internal fuel cell) in the event of emergency power failure.

It should also be noted that the $600 a month covers not only the car and the fuel producing base station (which produces your hydrogen fuel much cheaper than it would cost you to fill up on gasoline for 3 years), but also ALL maintenance and care on the car during the lease.

In the end: no, the cost does not balance out vs simply leasing a Civic, but as noted, early adopters always pay a cost premium to be on the edge of technology.


RE: But....
By daftrok on 11/17/2007 1:51:51 AM , Rating: 2
That and it would be great if the rich and famous actually purchase this vehicle. Not only will it be good PR but also compensate for the ridiculous amounts of energy wasted on their other vehicles and electric power for their houses. This would help bring down the price of the vehicle for the consumers and stimulate mass production.


RE: But....
By JumpingJack on 11/15/2007 2:03:34 PM , Rating: 3
Split water. High school chemistry.


By whydoibother on 11/15/2007 11:33:12 AM , Rating: 3
The car is fueled by natural gas. You get an adapter and fuel it from home. Since the natural gas you run through this car goes through a fuel cell rather than your furnace or stove, it doesn't get burned and doesn't produce CO2. It also takes care of a lot of infrastructure concerns, since natural gas is already widely available. Nifty, actually.

I read this in other tech articles. I wonder why they didn't mention it in the article above...




By whydoibother on 11/15/2007 11:39:45 AM , Rating: 2
Sorry, to clarify, the natural gas runs through a hydrogen generator you put in your garage and the hydrogen runs the car. The end result is the same, though.


By masher2 (blog) on 11/15/2007 11:40:41 AM , Rating: 4
> "Since the natural gas...doesn't get burned [it] doesn't produce CO2."

Err, no. Where do you think all that carbon in the natural gas goes? Natural gas is methane (CH4). It reacts with the steam (H20) used in the process to release H2 and CO2.


By walk2k on 11/15/2007 1:32:06 PM , Rating: 2
http://automobiles.honda.com/fcx-clarity/owning/ho...

quote:
CO2 emissions for a household using the Home Energy Station are 30% lower than those for an average household using a gasoline-engine car and commercial electricity.


The Home Energy Station also provides heat (replacing your natural-gas furnace) and electricity in the case of a blackout (or in the case you can generate your own electricity from natural gas cheaper than purchasing it from the grid, I suppose).


By masher2 (blog) on 11/15/2007 2:05:30 PM , Rating: 1
> "CO2 emissions for a household using the Home Energy Station are 30% lower "

Thanks. I tried to calculate it myself, but apparently the station isn't quite as efficient as I assumed, as my figure was substantially higher.

In any case,the point is the same. CO2 is still being generated, albeit at a lower rate. Hopefully there will soon be better means of hydrogen production than steam reformation.


By killerroach on 11/15/2007 1:34:18 PM , Rating: 2
Exactly... however, for comparable amounts of power, natural gas is a relatively clean fuel when compared to gasoline. Not as clean of a solution as biomass processed through AFEX, but still quite the improvement.


By walk2k on 11/15/2007 1:40:05 PM , Rating: 2
The energy station is really only a short term solution.

Once refuelling stations become more common you won't need it, necessarily (though it sounds neat, for homeowners, not so much for apartment dwellers).

Hydrogen can be generated from multiple sources (like, water) using electricity from any source (such as solar, wind, etc...)


By Calin on 11/16/2007 4:49:18 AM , Rating: 1
With an efficiency lower than steam reformation.
And as electricity costs will follow the overall energy costs (gas, coal, oil), electric generation will be less efficient than steam reformation (assuming you are a use for the excess heat)


Tax credit on a lease??
By ninjit on 11/15/2007 12:48:04 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
The FCX Clarity will see limited service in the Southern California area beginning in summer 2008. Customers will sign up for a three-year lease at price of roughly $600 per month. Honda also notes that the FCX Clarity qualifies for a $12,000 IRS tax credit .


That sounds very misleading to me.

I may be wrong, but I don't think you are eligible for Tax credits on a vehicle you don't own, unless Honda lets you purchase the vehicle at the end of the lease, and even then 3-years down the road that credit will have dropped substantially from $12k.

If it's true, then that's pretty sweet - it essentially lets you drive the vehicle for free for 20 months.




RE: Tax credit on a lease??
By masher2 (blog) on 11/15/2007 12:55:27 PM , Rating: 2
According to the IRS, to quality for the AMV credit, you have to actually purchase the vehicle.


RE: Tax credit on a lease??
By Lord 666 on 11/15/2007 1:13:31 PM , Rating: 1
That is incorrect; the credit applies if you purchase or lease it.

http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=157557,0...

The vehicle must be acquired for use or lease by the taxpayer claiming the credit.


RE: Tax credit on a lease??
By masher2 (blog) on 11/15/2007 1:15:38 PM , Rating: 2
You have misread the law. You must acquire (purchase) the car for either your own use or to lease to others.

So if you lease the vehicle, the leasing agency could potentially qualify for the credit, but not you personally.


RE: Tax credit on a lease??
By Lord 666 on 11/15/2007 1:26:46 PM , Rating: 1
After reading your post, just checked on Honda's site itself and again you are correct.

As you point out, there might be several leasing companies (American Honda Finance included) making a fortune off this tax credit, but not passing onto the consumer or disclosing it. I don't know what a Honda Hybrid lease looks like but could it be Class Action if they don't disclose it?