Honda planning to focus electric vehicles instead of fuel cells
By Andrew C., 30 Aug, 2010. 0 Comments
Honda‚ not unlike the rest of us; it also has gotten tired of waiting for a hydrogen refueling infrastructure. Reportedly, Honda is considering the development of battery electric vehicles instead of fuel cells. When somebody mentions ‚Äúhydrogen-powered vehicles,‚Äù it‚ Honda that comes to mind.
It has been one of the automakers to lease fuel cell vehicles to consumers. However, it is a reality that creating an infrastructure for the compressed hydrogen gas takes a long time and is exceedingly costly. Honda‚ not saying that building a charging network for electric vehicles is easy but it is relatively more manageable than a hydrogen structure. Aside from that, Honda also thinks that this move would help improve sales of ZEVs in California . Continued after the jump!
In an interview with Reuters, Honda CEO Takanobu Ito said that he continues to regard fuel cell vehicles as the “ultimate green car” but since the infrastructure for hydrogen is moving slowly, it is possible that it won’t be able to get sufficient sales volumes in California in time.
Honda does have to meet California ‚ regulations for automakers to offer a certain ratio of zero-emissions cars and so it will have to go for electric vehicles. However, Ito didn‚Äôt disclose the details of Honda‚ plans for launching an electric vehicle. He predicts that in 20 to 30 years, all the cars on the roads will be hybrids. Currently, Honda‚ approach is a bit similar to Mazda. It plans to focus on improving the internal combustion engine within the next 5-10 years.
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