Automotive

Toyota and Hino team up on hydrogen fuel cell truck for North America

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Toyota's fuel cell technology will be paired with Hino's XL Series chassis to create a Class 8 fuel cell electric truck
Toyota
Toyota's fuel cell technology will be paired with Hino's XL Series chassis to create a Class 8 fuel cell electric truck
Toyota
Toyota and Hino are already working on a 25-ton FCET for the Japanese market
Toyota

Having put hydrogen-fuel-cell-powered trucks to the test around ports in Los Angeles over the past few years, Toyota has now announced plans to take the technology further afield. The Japanese auto giant has teamed up with truck subsidiary Hino to develop a Class 8 fuel cell electric truck (FCET) for the North American market.

Breaking new ground with the introduction of the Prius gasoline-electric hybrid in 1997, Toyota began testing a hybrid hydrogen fuel cell vehicle just three years later. That technology hasn't yet taken off like hybrid of battery electric vehicles have, but Toyota is one of a number of major players betting big on hydrogen, which it sees as the answer to the electrification of big rigs.

The Toyota and Hino collaboration will see the former's fuel cell technology paired with the latter's newly developed Hino XL Series chassis, which is a conventional cab truck usually powered by an 8.9-liter A09C six-cylinder diesel engine, capable of outputting up to 360 hp and 1,150 lb-ft (1,559 Nm) of torque.

This follows on from a similar collaboration earlier this year in which Toyota and Hino announced plans to build a 25-ton FCET for the Japanese market. The first demonstration vehicle from that initiative is set to be on the road in the first half of 2021. Although there's no indication of when we can expect to see a demonstration vehicle from the latest collaboration, we shouldn't have to wait too long.

Toyota and Hino are already working on a 25-ton FCET for the Japanese market
Toyota

"Expanding upon our proud heritage of the Hino powertrain, Toyota Fuel Cell Technology offers our customers a commercially viable, extended range, zero emissions vehicle in the near term," says Glenn Ellis, Hino's Senior Vice President Customer Experience.

"A fuel cell powered version of the Hino XL Series is a win-win for both customers and the community," adds Tak Yokoo, Senior Executive Engineer, Toyota Research and Development. "It will be quiet, smooth and powerful while emitting nothing but water. Toyota's twenty plus years of fuel cell technology combined with Hino's heavy-duty truck experience will create an innovative and capable product."

Source: Toyota

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7 comments
martinwinlow
More H2 fuel cell silliness. "Toyota's twenty plus years of fuel cell technology ..." ... (and no doubt hundreds of millions-worth of R&D) and what have they got to show for it? The simply hideous-looking Mirai which costs the best part of US$100k to build and 500 times more to run than a simple ol' equivalent EV (based on H2 costing US$14/litre and electricity at 15c per kWh) and which has managed to sell a whopping 6k units in the last 6 years. Whoop-whoop.
FB36
Our world already always have countless people keep burning to death alive (after traffic accidents), because of using gasoline (which easily starts fires) as fuel! (Diesel, for example, does NOT easily starts fires!)

Hydrogen, on the other hand, does NOT start fires but EXPLODES like a bomb!!!

If there are hydrogen vehicles around, do you seriously think their tanks would never leak or rapture, because of a traffic accident, for example???

IMHO, any vehicle which battery does not provide enough power/range should/must use bio-diesel as (range extender) fuel!!!
(Bio-diesel can be produced from many kinds of crops/biomass & can be used by any regular diesel vehicles too!!!)
Troublesh00ter
In the long term, I STILL prefer hydrogen- and fuel-cell-based electric propulsion to batteries, and I think the issues of hydrogen storage and volatility can be solved, if they haven't been already. In addition, the competition between hydrogen and batteries is nothing but healthy and will drive both to improve. Ultimately, all of us will be the beneficiaries of that competition.
michael_dowling
Fuel cells are NOT the answer for powering automobiles (batteries have one that battle hands down),but will find a niche powering semis,ocean going ships,and especially aircraft,which will never travel far on batteries. Powering semis is an ideal solution for long haul trucking. Refueling stations can be situated at truck stops along trucking routes,and allow fast refueling.
vince
A fossil fuel like hydrogen has no logic being used in the same sentence as renewables. Hydrogen is made from natural gas and thus it total efficiency from ground to miles is under 30% whereas BEVs are over 75%
vince
Toyota just won't give up the hydrogen fuel cell folly.
The deerhunter
Sorry Vince, but hydrogen does not have to be made only from natural gas. The successful future of hydrogen is definitely not natural gas based.