Welcome to THE Home for ALL
Honda Turbo Owners!
I know there is not many
Turbo Honda's, but what about the Turbo CITY? Send me info now!!
Honda Announces First FCX Clarity Hydrogen
Vehicle Customers
TOCHIGI, Japan , June 16, 2008– American Honda
Motor Co., Inc., announced five of the first customers for its advanced new
FCX Clarity hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicle and
also provided details of the world’s first fuel cell vehicle dealership network
in the United States. The announcements were made during a ceremony for the
start of FCX Clarity production at the world’s first
dedicated fuel cell vehicle manufacturing facility in Japan.
Film producer Ron Yerxa will take delivery of the first
FCX Clarity in July. The remaining four early adopters for Honda’s
next-generation fuel cell vehicle are author and actress Jamie Lee Curtis and
her filmmaker husband Christopher Guest; business owner and car enthusiast Jim
Salomon; actress Laura Harris; and Jon Spallino, already the world’s first
retail fuel cell vehicle customer, who has been leasing the current generation
FCX since 2005. Yerxa, Harris and Spallino attended
the event in Japan.
To provide its customers with outstanding sales and service support and as a
critical step in advancing fuel cell vehicles in the real world, American Honda
announced the establishment of the first network of dealers to facilitate the
sales and service of fuel cell vehicles. The three Southern California Honda
dealers are Power Honda Costa Mesa (Costa Mesa), Honda of Santa Monica (Santa
Monica) and Scott Robinson Honda (Torrance).
“This is an important day in the history of fuel cell vehicle technology and
a monumental step closer to the day when fuel cell cars will be part of the
mainstream,” said John Mendel, executive vice president of American Honda. “Our
customers and dealers share in our vision for a cleaner and more sustainable
transportation future, and share in our challenge to embrace a new generation of
automotive technology that we think will carry the auto industry and its
customers into the future.”
FCX Clarity Customers
The five customers announced today were among the very first people to share
with Honda their passion for the environment and interest in the
FCX Clarity, dating back to its debut as a concept
model at the 2005 Tokyo Motor Show. The initial criteria for fuel cell vehicle
ownership, including proximity to hydrogen refueling stations, driving patterns
and vehicle needs, all played a part in Honda’s customer selection process.
“Auto companies can’t explore the potential for fuel cell technology as the
ultimate solution to our world’s energy and environmental challenges by
ourselves. Our customers are true pioneers and leaders in the effort to bring
fuel cell technology to the marketplace,” said Mendel.
Ron Yerxa, a film producer and partner at Bona Fide Productions, is a
long-time car enthusiast and advocate for the environment. He lives with his
wife, Annette Ballester, in Santa Monica, California. Yerxa first learned of the
FCX Concept vehicle from a car magazine and contacted
American Honda to share his interest and enthusiasm.
Jon Spallino, partner and Chief Financial Officer of an Irvine,
California-based engineering and construction firm and the world’s first retail
customer of a hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicle, is excited to trade in his
first-generation FCX for the all-new
FCX Clarity. Having lived with fuel cell technology
for three years now, Spallino and his family, residents of Redondo Beach,
California, are looking forward to the all-new vehicle’s vastly improved
performance, enhanced features, improved fuel efficiency, and advanced
four-door, four-passenger sedan design.
Actress and children’s book author Jamie Lee Curtis and her husband,
filmmaker Christopher Guest, also live with their family in Santa Monica. Curtis
and Guest have owned other alternative fuel and hybrid vehicles, and they
continue to seek out ways to live and advocate a greener lifestyle.
Jim Salomon, a business owner and car enthusiast, resides in Newport Beach,
California with his family and will be American Honda’s first retail customer to
regularly refuel at the recently renovated Irvine hydrogen refueling station.
Salomon and his family live in a home he designed and built with an emphasis on
energy efficiency as well as recycled and sustainable materials.
Actress and green advocate Laura Harris learned about the
FCX Clarity from a friend and test drove a prototype car at the Los
Angeles auto show in November 2007. Canadian-born Harris lives in Silverlake,
California, and will refuel primarily in Burbank. Lessons learned from her usage
patterns and experiences can help pave the way for eventual market expansion
outside of the Irvine, Torrance, and Santa Monica areas.
Honda previously announced plans to deliver about 200 FCX
Clarity hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicles in the U.S. and Japan to customers
in the first three years of production, with leases beginning in July. The lease
program marks the world’s first large-scale retail initiative for fuel cell
vehicle technology.
First-ever Fuel Cell Vehicle Dealership Network
Reinforcing its commitment to further advance Honda fuel cell technology,
American Honda announced that three Southern California dealerships will
comprise the world’s first fuel cell automobile dealership network. Power Honda
Costa Mesa, Honda of Santa Monica and Scott Robinson Honda are each located in
close proximity to hydrogen refueling stations and will be well-positioned to
support Honda’s growing base of FCX Clarity customers.
American Honda is working with its dealer partners to implement processes for
fuel cell vehicle lease, delivery and service support for the duration of their
leases. Establishing a dedicated sales network and service infrastructure
provides customers with the best balance of convenience and the highest quality
of service. When the FCX Clarity requires periodic
maintenance, customers will simply schedule a visit with their local
FCX Clarity dealer.
American Honda will perform all required work at its specialized fuel cell
service facility in the greater Los Angeles area. Upon completion of the work,
the dealer will return the vehicle to the customer.
About the FCX Clarity
The FCX Clarity is a next-generation, hydrogen
powered fuel cell-powered vehicle.
Propelled by an electric motor that runs on electricity generated in the fuel
cell, the vehicle’s only emission is water, and its fuel efficiency is three
times that of a modern gasoline-powered automobile.
Based on the entirely-new Honda V Flow fuel cell platform, and powered by a
highly compact, efficient and powerful new Honda V Flow fuel cell stack, the
FCX Clarity marks the significant progress Honda
continues to make in advancing the real-world performance and appeal of the fuel
cell car.
Significant advances over Honda’s previous generation FCX
include:
- an advanced new four passenger sedan design
- a greater than 30 percent increase in driving range up to 280 miles1
- a 25 percent increase in combined fuel economy to 72 miles/kg-H21 (74
mpg GGE
)
- a 50 percent improvement in fuel stack power output density by volume
- a 40 percent smaller and 50 percent lighter new lithium ion battery pack
Honda is responsible for the development of the world’s first fuel cell car
(Honda FCX) to be certified for regular commercial use
by the U.S. EPA and California Air Resources Board;
the first deployment of a fuel cell car with a fleet customer; and the first
individual retail customer for a fuel cell vehicle.
1 Based on official 2008 EPA estimated range and
fuel efficiency values
|