In late June, the United States Department of Energy (DOE), Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) collaborated with the Toyota Technical Center to conduct range testing on the Fuel Cell Hybrid Vehicle-advanced (FCHV-adv). The testing consisted of a 331.5-mile-round trip excursion from Los Angeles County, California, to San Diego, spanning a variety of traffic conditions, including rush-hour highway and mid-day surface-street traffic.

The testing determined that the FCHV-adv, based on the Highlander Hybrid platform, achieved an estimated range of 431 miles on a single fueling of compressed hydrogen gas and an estimated average fuel economy of 68.3 miles per kilogram. Miles per kilogram is roughly equivalent to miles per gallon.

During the testing, the two test vehicles were outfitted with data-collection systems that captured vehicle speed, distance traveled, hydrogen consumed, hydrogen tank pressure, temperature and internal tank volume. The range data was calculated by SRNL and NREL engineers to determine the estimated fuel range.

For comparison, the 2009 Toyota Highlander Hybrid achieves an EPA-estimated rating of 26 mpg combined fuel economy and has a full-tank range of approximately 450 miles.¹ With premium-grade gasoline currently priced at about $3.25, the gasoline-powered V6 Highlander Hybrid is estimated to travel approximately 26 miles at a cost of about $3.25. Currently, hydrogen gas pricing is not fixed, but DOE targets future pricing at $2 to $3 per kilogram. Therefore, the FCHV-adv is estimated to travel approximately 68 miles at a projected cost of about $2.50 -- more than double the range of the Highlander Hybrid, at equal or lesser cost, while producing zero emissions.

Photo credit: Toyota Technical Center

¹2009 EPA-estimated mileage. Actual mileage will vary.

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