http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/art...207975,00.html



they've also developed a home energy station to recharge the fuel cells using natural gas

 

I think they have that now for natural gas internal combustion cars. It is a good idea. No need to stop at the station for most people.

Didn't GM say they would have a hydrogen car out by 2010? is that still on track? Beating Honda to market would be huge. GM could be to hydrogen what Toyota is to hybrids.

 

I might wait a couple years for the early production kinks to be worked out of the hydrogen fuel cell design - I don't feel like be subjected to a recall that involves the person's car taking out half a city block when they get rear ended.

j/k ... I know it wouldn't be that severe but that's a LOT of potential energy stored in a very small space.

 

It could be a good thing. Pretty much everybody on the road would avoid getting in your way/anywhere near you to avoid an accident.

Think of like driving a nuclear warhead down the freeway @ 75Mph.

 

makes nissan's engine fire problem seem petty, eh?

"honda today announced a recall of their hydrogen vehicles due to an engine defect which could lead to an explosion that takes out a city block"

 

I read an article a while back in the NY times, where honda had given some customers in California some FCX's. They had the home charging stations and had nothing but good things to say. So in effect those early problems and kinks are already being worked out. The article made the point that the customers were driving the most expensive cars in the world, kinda funny.

 

GM has been researching Hydrogen cells for years...and years....and years....

I give it a 98% chance Honda swoops in and gets one of these cars to the market first...and once again, GM is left wondering why everyone views an Asian make as the leader in alternate fuels.

 

this is going to **** gm in the ***!

 

I'd have to see some numbers, to decide if that's a very "smart" use of natural gas.

 

I still dont understand where we are going to get all of this hydrogen...

 

I'm no expert but isn't it one of the most abundant elements on Earth?

 

Hydrogen gas in tanks doesn't grow on trees . You need to separate it from the other component of water, namely Oxygen. Which typically involves electricty -> electrolysis.

However a home refueling station that extracts Hydrogen from water could certainly be *aided* by renewable solar energy captured via of solar cells (and storage batteries) or wind power. I say aided because a lot of power is needed to do the splitting, more than the formentioned devices will provide.

 

I had read in a caranddriver article that after creating the hydrogen, compressing it and storing it, you are left with 15% of the energy you used to make\store the hydrogen....

Like paying 100$ in change to get 15$ in more convinient bills.

 

The home refueling station theyre developing will extract the hydrogen from the natural gas.

 

IIRC the natural gas market is not nearly as stable as the oil market ... and that says quite a bit.