DETROIT – GM and Honda have started production of hydrogen fuel cells that will power commercial trucks, heavy equipment, generators, and to a lesser extent, passenger vehicles, Motortrend reported.
The fuel-cell modules being built by the joint venture in a Brownstown, Michigan, plant will be used in a hydrogen-powered Honda CR-V that will debut in March 2024 and eventually be available for sale in California in limited quantities.
FILE PHOTO: A man looks at the inside of a Honda Clarity, Honda Motor’s first mass-market fuel-cell vehicle after its presentation at the company’s headquarters in Tokyo, Japan.
Hydrogen will likely remain a niche technology among cars, pickups, and SUVs, but like diesel has been an alternative to gas, Hydrogen still stands a decent chance of becoming the fuel of choice for long-distance trucking, heavy-duty work, and power generation in a zero-carbon-emissions future.
Fuel cells offer longer range and quicker refueling than battery-electric vehicles, giving them an advantage in industries where every minute of downtime has an impact on the bottom line. Advocates believe a relatively small, strategically spaced network of hydrogen filling stations could make fuel cells a viable alternative to the diesel engines that drive so much of the modern economy.
The GM-Honda joint venture, which is just named Fuel Cell Systems Manufacturing LLC, builds just a single product for now: a hydrogen fuel-cell module that’s about the size of a four-cylinder engine and capable of generating 77 kilowatts, equal to 103 horsepower. Multiple modules can be combined for higher power needs such as powering semi trucks or generators. Critically, the two companies claim the new fuel-cell module is one-third the cost of the system used in the 2019 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell.
To read more, click on Motortrend
