My Eco-Innovation Four

Why Hydrogen Cars Will Be Tesla’s Biggest Threat

While everyone will tell you that the future of cars lies in electric vehicles and that Tesla is at the forefront of this movement, let’s face it, hydrogen cars can be just as good as or even better than battery electric vehicles.

Hydrogen cars are more likely to disrupt the automobile industry than electric cars like Tesla. And even if Elon Musk calls it mind-bogglingly stupid and fool cells, the hydrogen fuel cells technology has seen great skepticism, but this technology has great promise. And major automakers like Toyota and Honda are still seeing promise in this hydrogen-powered car’s technology.

Battery electric vehicles-(BEV) like Tesla use a battery to store electricity and power the electric mortar. A fuel cell vehicle (FCEV), like Toyota’s Mirai, combines hydrogen with oxygen to produce electricity, which powers the electric mortar that drives the car.

Why Some People Don’t Buy Electric Cars

• They take too long to recharge.
• They have a limited range before they need to be recharged.
• They cost a lot more than the typical gas-powered car.

What about Hydrogen Cars; Comparison

Hydrogen cars have battery electrics-B. When it comes to recharging, a Tesla can charge between 15-30% in fifteen minutes and takes over an hour to recharge fully. Fuel cell vehicles don’t require recharging at all. The hydrogen tank is refilled at a hydrogen station in less than 5 minutes. That’s because fuel cell vehicles don’t store electricity like a battery; they create it on demand to power the mortar.

The three current hydrogen-powered cars available today have a range of Toyota Mirai-312 miles, Honda Clarity- 360 miles, and Hyundai Nexo-380 miles. Popular electric vehicles, Chevy Bolt, Kia Niro EV, and Nissan Leaf, have a range of 259, 239, and 226 miles, respectively. At the same time, some Tesla models have a higher degree, Tesla Model S- 373 MILES, AND Tesla Model 3- 322 miles.

78% of automobile executives believe that fuel cell vehicles will be the breakthrough for electric mobility.

Challenges with Fuel Cell Vehicles

• The average price of entry-level fuel cell vehicles is around $60, 000 which is about $20,000 more than an entry-level battery electric vehicle. And this is because production size is tiny, with only a few thousand made every year.
• Lack of adequate infrastructure, like hydrogen stations. There are about 44 hydrogen stations in the US alone, while there are over 1,600 plus electric charging stations. But automakers are slowly solving these problems.

If and when fuel cell vehicles scale, Tesla will have a tough challenge on their hands. They will have to increase the range and decrease the recharging time and price.

But battery electric vehicles are limited; increasing the range means increasing the battery size, which yields more weight to the car. After a certain point, the added weight will no longer produce additional content.

More hydrogen stations mean more cars with fuel cell vehicles, and more cars equal more affordable FCV vehicles.

As hydrogen stations become more abundant, Hydrogen-powered cars could lose the 60% zero-emissions US market share. So Elon should take notice!