Toyota Fuel Cell Hybrid Ready To Clean Up

First UK appearance for Toyota's zero emissions vehicle on Future Vehicle Challenge

EPSOM, UNITED KINGDOM – November 3, 2010: Zero emissions performance is one of the long-established goals of the motor industry and it’s an ambition that’s nearing reality for Toyota, as it demonstrates this weekend with the UK debut of its hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, the FCHV-adv. The car – based on the American Highlander SUV – has been entered in the Brighton to London Future Car Challenge, running alongside Toyota’s Prius and Auris petrol-electric hybrids.

FCHV-adv represents Toyota’s latest development of hybrid fuel cell technology, which delivers emissions-free running and the kind of performance that measures up to standard petrol or diesel powered vehicles. Its four high-pressure tanks have a combined capacity of 156 litres, giving a potential cruising range of more than 500 miles. It also shows the strength of hybrid as a core technology for engineering different low or zero-emissions powertrains.

Toyota’s real-world testing of FCHV-adv in California has shown the system to be robust and practical, paving the way for the vehicle to be brought to market from 2015. Here in Europe, five FCHV-adv will be running in Germany next year as part of the Clean Energy Partnership’s project to promote sustainable transport. The initiative, supported by Toyota as an international auto partner, will also see hydrogen filling stations opened and a fuel supply network put in place.

FCHV-adv’s maiden UK drive will be alongside three generations of Prius, the British-built Auris Hybrid and Prius Plug-in Hybrid on a 60-mile route from Brighton to London. Organised by the Royal Automobile Club, the event will showcase the motor industry’s achievements in developing engines that are cleaner and more fuel efficient, with awards for those that use the least energy over the course distance. In addition, Toyota is hosting its own Nations Challenge within the event, pitting the skills of English, Welsh, Scots and Northern Irish teams at the wheel of identical Auris Hybrid cars.