Update: ‘Vehicle-to-load’ section added.
Honda hasn’t given up on hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles. The company is working on a Honda CR-V Fuel Cell version, which it plans to manufacture at the Performance Manufacturing Center (PMC) in Marysville, Ohio, starting in 2024. The hydrogen-powered CR-V, unlike the Clarity Fuel Cell, will be a plug-in hybrid. It will have a battery pack that stores energy and allows driving as a battery-electric vehicle.
BEV-like usage
The Honda CR-V FCEV will be a hydrogen hybrid FCEV, not an ordinary FCEV. With its plug-in feature, it can double as a battery electric vehicle (BEV). In places where hydrogen is not available, customers can plug it into a charger and use it as a BEV.
Fuel cell system
Honda plans to use a new-generation fuel cell system co-developed with General Motors in the CR-V Fuel Cell. Compared to the 2019 Clarity Fuel Cell, the next-generation fuel cell system should offer more than double the durability and reduce the cost to one-third.
Honda and GM have taken various measures for cost reduction, increased durability, and improved low-temperature resistance, including the adoption of innovative materials for electrodes, the application of corrosion-resistant materials, and enhanced controls. Production of this fuel cell system will take place at the Honda-GM joint venture facility in Michigan, USA.
As for packaging based on the PHEV variant of Honda CR-V, hydrogen fuel tanks will be installed and the fuel cell system and the drive unit will be installed as one, which will enable this new FCV model to inherit the outstanding dynamic performance from the base model and realize excellent handling that provokes a sense of unity with the vehicle, as well as clear and sharp ride comfort.
Tetsuya Hasebe, General Manager of Hydrogen Business Development Division, Business Development Supervisory Unit, Business Development Operations, Honda
The hydrogen-powered system measures 835 mm (32.8 in.) x 605 mm (23.8 in.) x 660 mm (25.9 in.) and can be mounted under the hood of a passenger car, Nikkei xTECH reported on March 18, 2022. The system develops 80 kW (107 hp) as per the Japanese site.
Vehicle-to-load
Modern BEVs like the Ford F-150 Lightning, Hyundai Kona Electric, Hyundai Ioniq 5, and Kia EV6 are popularizing vehicle-to-load (V2L) functionality in the U.S. In 2022, Harper Motors, an auto dealership in Eureka, California, powered its facility using a Ford F-150 Lightning and a Kia Niro EV during a power outage when an earthquake hit the city, shedding light on the capability and reliability of EVs as emergency power sources.
In an interview with Jay Joseph, the vice president of the Sustainability & Business Development business unit at American Honda Motor, SAE asked if a Honda Clarity could power a house during an emergency. In response, Joseph indicated that the CR-V hydrogen plug-in hybrid FCEV will support V2L and also revealed a more timeline of the model’s arrival – early 2024 (January-April 2024). Even the new Hyundai Nexo, which is due in 2024, will support V2L.
We’re a little early to talk about it, but probably not a whole house yet. But theoretically, yes. We’ll share more detail about how we are approaching that as we get closer to the launch of the CR-V plug-in FCEV early in 2024.
Jay Joseph, vice president of the Sustainability & Business Development business unit, American Honda Motor (Interview with SAE, published on May 15, 2023)
Five-seater
In an internal interview, Tetsuya Hasebe, General Manager of the Hydrogen Business Development Division, Business Development Supervisory Unit, Business Development Operations, Honda, revealed that the hydrogen fuel cell variant would be a five-seater.
Sales
It’s evident from the type of powertrain that the Honda CR-V Hydrogen variant will be a special model. That fact is further reinforced by its planned production location, which is Acura NSX’s exclusive global home. Honda planned PMC from the outset for manufacturing specialty, hand-built vehicles. To us, there’s no doubt the Honda CR-V Fuel Cell will be a low-volume specialty vehicle, available only in select ZEV states and available only for lease.
Featured image: TopElectricSUV’s illustration of an electrified new Honda CR-V
An automobile engineer by training, I’ve analyzed the global car market since 2005, with a keen focus on EVs since 2008. My journey in online automotive publishing spans 16 years, during which I have reviewed cutting-edge automotive technologies and interviewed leading CEOs and vehicle developers from around the world.
