Honda produces FCX Clarity that emits only water vapour

Honda Motor Co., Ltd. has announced having begun production of the new FCX Clarity  hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicle. The vehicle runs on a combination of hydrogen and electricity, and emits only water vapour.

FCX ClarityHonda said the first four-seater, called FCX Clarity,  built to US specification, had come off the off the line at the world's first dedicated production line for fuel-cell vehicles at Honda's New Model Centre at Tochigi Prefecture in Japan, from where it will make 200 cars over the next three years, starting with a "few dozen" cars this year.

These cars will initially be available only on lease for the next three years for $600 per month. Honda will make these cars available in California from July, and later this year in Japan. The first five customers, which include Hollywood actor Jamie Lee Curtiss, are all based in southern California because of the availability of hydrogen fuelling stations in.

The lack of hydrogen fuelling facilities has been a cited as a major impediment to faster acceptance of fuel-cell vehicles. 

Honda delivered around 34 of these cars, mainly in the US, of which 10 remain in use.

The FCX Clarity is based on its previous-generation hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle, the FCX concept car, which marked the development of the world's first fuel cell car (Honda FCX) to be certified for regular commercial use by the US EPA and California Air Resources Board; the first deployment of a fuel cell car with a fleet customer; and the first individual retail customer for a fuel cell vehicle.