Honda: FCX and Hybrid Sports Car are Go!

FCX Photos

Honda's FCX is sooner to production than you might think, with a debut only months away. (Photo: Honda)

you can fill it up at home. (Photo: Honda)

CR-Z, Honda's star of this year's Tokyo show is also going to be produced. (Photo: Honda)

Honda has just confirmed that it will be producing not one but two alternative fuel vehicles in the coming years. The Japanese automaker has been mulling over the idea of producing a hydrogen car since its FCX was first seen in 2006. The vehicle possessed a large number of advancements that made mainstream hydrogen fuel cell vehicles conceivable for production. During Honda’s press conference at this year’s Tokyo Motor Show, the company’s CEO announced that the FCX sedan would enter production, and be on sale during 2008.

The FCX will include a fuel cell, battery pack and electric motor that produces a horsepower equivalent of about 135 hp. Honda’s advancements in the area of fuel cell technology have allowed it to claim a total range of 354 miles per fill up, which should be more than ample for most peoples’ day-to-day driving needs. The car will look more or less identical to the concept shown here, and size-wise it will occupy the same approximate footprint as the Acura TSX or BMW 3-Series.


While hydrogen is only available at very select refueling stations, the car can be filled up at home thanks to a wall-mounted fuel station. In principle this is similar to what Honda is currently offering with its natural gas-powered Civic, although it differs in that the CNG is merely piped through an existing network already feeding the home’s heating and appliances, where the FCX’s wall-mount actually creates hydrogen by breaking down water into its
elements (hydrogen and oxygen) through a process called electrolysis.
It is 100-percent green in that the system can be powered (and often is
powered) by solar energy.

The production FCX will be unveiled sooner than expected, with a debut at this year’s LA Auto Show in November.

The next powertrain was one that many thought would be fading out of Honda’s current portfolio, the gasoline-electric hybrid. During the unveiling of the CR-Z, CEO Takeo Fukui announced that a production version would be “highly likely”. One of the main goals of the project is to make hybrid vehicles more appealing, and according to Fukui Honda would do so by making them affordable and fun.


There are two additional interesting points about the CR-Z. Firstly, the car would follow the same path as original CRX in that it would be based off of a conventional production car. In this case it wouldn’t be based off the Civic, but another forthcoming vehicle described by insiders as a low-cost hybrid family-sized hatchback. Secondly, there’s a chance that Honda might build a non-hybrid version of the car as well, further linking the CR-Z to the heritage of the CRX. A diesel engine, as well as a performance version could also be produced.

Being that it has more or less been signed off for production, it won’t be long before we see the CR-Z on our streets. It’s predicted that the car will arrive soon – not as soon as the FCX – but a production version should be unveiled in the next twelve months. Honda isn’t talking about what sort of powerplant the road-ready CR-Z might feature, but we’re taking a guess it will be a 1.3-liter 100-horsepower engine boosted by Honda’s IMA system.