Hyundai is also now moving towards the green future and it seems that the cars are racing towards a clean road ahead. Just earlier today we have seen that Mercedes are racing forward with their Li-Ion battery technology and also their fleet of electric cars which are scheduled to take the road by 2010. Now Hyundai has promised to bring out Fuel cell powered cars by 2012 and that is the most exciting news I have heard in the Auto world in a long, long time.
Hyundai plans to go up against the Prius and Civic Hybrid with a “liquefied petroleum injection hybrid” version of the Elantra. In other words, a propane-electric hybrid and a fuel cell powered demon will be on the road by 2012. Propane is widely available in South Korean and Hyundai says it is cleaner and more efficient than gasoline. That said, the global market for propane-electric hybrids undoubtedly is small, so Hyundai plans to offer conventional gas-electric hybrid versions of the Elantra and possibly the Sonata in 2010.
Hyundai also has been experimenting with hydrogen fuel cell vehicles for more than five years, and it has test fleets running in Korea and California. Its Tuscon FCEV, which has a claimed range of about 217 miles and a top speed of 93 mph, placed first among fuel cell vehicles in last year’s Michelin Challenge Bibendum green-car competition. Fuel cell technology is something that is really exciting and a future prospect that I have always maintained is the long term solution to the world’s fuel crisis. Hope Hyundai and others make it a wonderfully green path ahead in to the future.
