Although electric cars have become more popular over the last few years, there are some automakers that still don’t believe that electric cars are the long-term answer to reducing our reliance on fossil fuels. Toyota is clearly one of those automakers, focusing instead on hydrogen fuel-cell cars as a more viable solution. This fall Toyota’s first fuel-cell vehicle, the Mirai is scheduled to arrive, but Toyota is already thinking about the future with the new FCV Plus fuel-cell concept that is going to debut later this month at the Tokyo Motor Show.
According to Toyota, the FCV Plus concept embodies Toyota’s vision of a hydrogen-based society. Its futuristic shape is a major departure from the Mirai, although some of the Mirai’s DNA has translated to the concept – look at those large air intakes. Unlike the Mirai, the FCV Plus is powered by four in-wheel electric motors and a fuel cell stack that sits between the front wheels. Since the fuel-cell stack sits out front, there’s more room in the interior.
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Inside the FCV Plus’s interior is even more futuristic. The FCV Plus does without a conventional dashboard and instead a head-up display projects all of the vehicle’s vital information on the windshield. Toyota hasn’t announced any production plans for the FCV Plus concept, but hopefully its technology, like the in-wheel electric motors will one day show up on one of its production vehicles.
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All images @ Toyota
