Honda FCX Clarity vs. Hybrids

Is the Honda Clarity the cure to the oil that ails us? Move over, hybrids and make room for the The Honda Hydrogen Car, the new Honda FCX Clarity.

The Honda FCX Clarity provides a welcome repast from more glaring news of oil price increases and hybrid auto inventory depletions in the news today. The first hydrogen car to make its way off the Japanese production line this year is also the first hydrogen car with the potential to make its way into the hearts and garages of oil price-stressed drivers around the world.

According to the Associated Press, the Honda Clarity will be making its first United States appearance in Southern California, where actors, film makers and film producers, and businessmen are waiting to drive the newest entree in the green movement.

Equipped to survive on the L.A. Freeway, the 3,600 pound Honda FCX Clarity is capable of speeds up to 100 miles per hour and gets 74 miles per gallon in its hydrogen equivalent to gasoline. However, it is capable of going only 270 miles before it needs a "refill." Plus, did I say the words yet - zero emission. The Honda Clarity runs totally on hydrogen and electricity, emits only water, and releases no environmentally dangerous fumes. When you mention that it is three times more energy efficient than the average gasoline powered car, you are sure to get someone's attention.

This new Honda hydrogen car is an improvement over the company's 2002 attempt, mainly due to a breakthrough in the fuel cell stack design. The 2008 fuel cell improvements allow for a less weighty body, increased size in the interior, and better efficiency. Plus, if you haven't seen a picture of this car, take a look. It's definitely a vehicle anyone would be willing to be seen in.

The Honda FCX Clarity - A Comparison to Current Hybrids

With hybrids few and far between on the car lots these days and SUV salesmen weeping over their calculators, this new Honda hydrogen car is the best news at the gas pump an American citizen has heard in awhile. Whose frustration level with the Middle East and big oil companies is not at its height right now? A hydrogen car could be just what any good 'ol red-blooded American would order as soon as he had the chance.

But not so fast. Just as we have found out with hybrids, the cost of a hydrogen car may not justify the cost of purchasing one. Even with the unheard of cost of gas these days, it would take years to see a real money savings in driving a hybrid car now versus sticking with your current (and possibly paid for) gas guzzler. Hydrogen cars will probably cost more than hybrids due to the need for retooling production lines and building new components.

Plus, if you want to drive one of these Honda hydrogen cars, you'll need to stick close to your home and live in California. You don't see hydrogen fuel stations going up every day in Georgia, do you? And there won't be, for a good long while. To bring us all back down to earth, Honda was only able to consider applications for the Clarity from people living near hydrogen stations in Torrence, Santa Monica, and Irvine, California. Japanese drivers will get a crack at the Honda FCX Clarity when it is introduced there in the fall.

While the potential for a hydrogen car is looking better and better, in the near term, the Toyota Prius hybrid will continue to rule the roost. With more than 1 million Prius' hybrids sold and many more on order, Americans have opened their imaginations and pocketbooks to the alternatives. This is a positive move for the environment and will spur the rapid development of more hybrid and hydrogen designs in the future.

While it continues development on the Honda Clarity, Honda is introducing hybrid versions of the CR-Z and the Civic. Toyota and General Motors are also looking at more hybrids and at hydrogen fuel cell designs similar to the Honda FCX Clarity.

So, in the next couple of years stick to your dreams of adding a gas-saving hybrid to your fleet of vehicles if you don't already own one. Save your dreams of a Honda hydrogen car for say, the year 2018.

Sources:
Tomoko A. Hosaka, Associated Press, "Honda Introduces Car Running on Hydrogen with no Emission," Atlanta Journal Constitution, ajc.com