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Honda Demonstrates the FCX Concept Vehicle
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Fully Functional Next-Generation Fuel Cell Makes Its Driving Debut
TOCHIGI, Japan, Sept. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Honda Motor Co., Ltd. today
held a demonstration drive of the next-generation FCX Concept fuel cell
vehicle. The FCX Concept features a newly developed compact,
high-efficiency Honda FC Stack as well as a low-floor, low-riding,
short-nose body. It offers a comfortably large cabin and futuristic styling
along with significant improvements in power output and environmental
performance. Limited marketing of a totally new fuel cell vehicle based on
this concept model is to begin in 2008 in Japan and the U.S.
To meet Honda objectives for significant gains in both environmental
and driving performance, the FCX Concept is equipped with a V Flow1 fuel
cell platform consisting of a compact, high-efficiency fuel cell stack
arranged in an innovative center-tunnel layout. This has allowed designers
to create an elegant, low-riding, sedan form that would have been difficult
to achieve in a conventional fuel cell vehicle. This new fuel cell stack is
20 percent smaller and 30 percent lighter than the current FCX FC Stack,
yet its power output is 14kW greater. The drive motor has been positioned
coaxially with the gearbox for a more compact design, with output increased
by 15kW. Overall, the power plant is about 180kg lighter than that of the
current FCX and about 40 percent smaller in volume. The result is improved
energy efficiency and performance along with a more spacious interior.
While with previous fuel cell stacks the hydrogen and the water formed
in electricity generation flowed horizontally, the new FCX Concept features
vertical-flow design. This allows gravity to assist in discharging the
water that is produced, resulting in a major improvement in water drainage,
key to high-efficiency fuel stack performance. The result is stable power
generation under a broad range of conditions, and higher output from a
smaller package. Low-temperature startup has also been significantly
improved, enabling cold-weather starts at temperatures 10 degrees C lower
than the current FCX -- as low as minus 30 degrees C.
As an auxiliary power source, the FCX Concept carries a compact,
high-efficiency lithium ion battery, contributing to increased power output
and a more compact power plant. These efficiency improvements to major
power plant components give the vehicle a travel range approximately 30
percent greater than the current FCX. The vehicle is also highly efficient,
with an energy efficiency of around 60 percent -- approximately three times
that of a gasoline-engine vehicle, twice that of a hybrid vehicle, and 10
percent better than the current FCX.
Other features include seat upholstery and door linings made from Honda
Bio Fabric, a plant-based material that offers outstanding durability and
resistance to sunlight damage. Other improvements such as Shift-by-Wire and
a newly designed instrument panel with easy-to-read display of hydrogen
fuel consumption facilitate improved ease of operation.
The new fuel cell vehicle currently under development for release in
2008, will feature the principle technologies of the FCX Concept to achieve
a new dimension in environmentally friendly driving pleasure not found with
gasoline-engine vehicles.
* Specifications
Number of passengers 4
Motor Max. Output 95kW (129PS)
Max. Torque 256N x m (26.1kg x m)
Type AC synchronous motor (Honda mfg.)
Fuel Cell Stack Type PEFC (proton exchange membrane
fuel cell, Honda mfg.)
Output 100kW
Fuel Type Compressed hydrogen
Storage High-pressure hydrogen tank (350atm)
Tank Capacity 171
Dimensions (L x W x H) 4,760 x 1,865 x 1,445mm
Max. Speed 160km/h
Energy Storage Lithium Ion Battery
Vehicle Range* 570km
* When driven in LA4 mode (Honda calculations) |
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