After Toyota’s 2015 release of the first mass-market fuel cell car, the Japanese automaker is gearing up to release the second generation of its fuel cell vehicle in 2019.
The initial version of the Mirai, which was heralded by Toyota as the ultimate “green car,” could travel up to 300 miles on a single tank of hydrogen and refuel in less than five minutes. The starting price for the vehicle is currently $57,460.
Toyota’s new version of the Mirai promises to be more affordable than its predecessor, potentially making the clean energy vehicle well-received among consumers.
This from Hydrogen Fuel News:
According to Toyota, the cost of a mass-produced fuel cell vehicles could be as much as $56,000 by 2019. The cost of hydrogen fuel cells is dropping as new technology begins to be used. Toyota, as well as other companies, has been working to make fuel cells less expensive in order to promote clean transportation and the adoption of fuel cell vehicles. These efforts have begun to pay off, which may encourage the accelerate growth of the clean transportation market in the coming years.
The timing for the release of the next version of the Mirai is not coincidental. Toyota plans for the release of the car to coincide with the 2020 Olympic Games in Japan, which is poised to be the most environmentally friendly game to date.
PS: ECS and Toyota Research Institute of North America are teaming up to advance the green transportation market. Check out the ECS Toyota Young Investigator Fellowship and learn more about last year’s winners!
