Will hydrogen define the future of trucking? Toyota is currently researching this with a number of heavy trucks running on hydrogen fuel cells. After an initial reconnaissance, the zero-emission vehicles are now starting to drive goods around Los Angeles.
Toyota's project involves trucks with hydrogen fuel cells that are also used for the Toyota passenger car Mirai. With two fuel cells and a 12 kWh battery, the truck generates 670 hp (500 kW) and 1,800 Nm of torque.
The trucks now have thousands of development kilometres on them. According to Toyota, the trucks are now ready for testing under realistic conditions. That is, transporting goods from the port to nearby railways and warehouses. In doing so, the routes are specially designed to test the fuel cell as closely and realistically as possible. Every day, the trucks cover around 320 km. Longer routes are expected to be introduced later.
Toyota is playing an important role in the acceptance of hydrogen fuel cell technology. The introduction of the Mirai passenger car as well as the development of the fuel cell for the truck project are good examples of this and demonstrate the versatility and scalability of the zero-emission powertrain.
