Toyota sets a new world record with its hydrogen-powered Mirai. During a record attempt in the United States, a Mirai covered a distance of a whopping 1,360 kilometres on one tank of hydrogen. The record has been entered into the Guinness World Records.
The Mirai is a hydrogen-powered vehicle from Toyota. The vehicle features a fuel cell instead of a combustion engine. The fuel cell generates electrical energy from a chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen. The Mirai's tank contains only hydrogen, which is refuelled in a similar way to using an internal combustion engine. The hydrogen is stored under high pressure.
Chemical reaction
In the fuel cell, hydrogen reacts with oxygen from the air, creating electricity thanks to a chemical reaction. Like in a hybrid vehicle with a petrol and electric motor, the voltage of the electricity is boosted to drive the electric motor. Energy is also generated and stored during braking to further increase efficiency.
The engine offers an output of 182HP and maximum torque of 300 Nm. The fuel tank capacity is 5.6kg. The combined fuel consumption comes to 0.79kg per 100km, according to the factory specification.
World record
With this vehicle, Toyota now sets the world record for the longest distance covered by a hydrogen fuel cell electric car without refuelling. The record was set in the southern US state of California. Here, the Mirai covered a distance of converted 1,360 kilometres.
The journey began at the Toyota Technical Center in Gardena, California, which is also home to Toyota's fuel cell development group. Professional 'hypermiler' Wayne Gerdes and Bob Winger made the journey together. The trip was divided into two parts. The first day covered a distance of 761 kilometres. In doing so, they drove south to San Ysidro, and then north to Santa Barbara via the Pacific Coast Highway. That evening, they returned to the Toyota Technical Centre in Gardena.
On the second day, the duo travelled mostly locally. In doing so, they covered a total of 599 kilometres during the morning and evening rush hour on the highway between Los Angeles and Orange County. During the two days, the Mirai covered a total distance of 1,360 kilometres.
No CO2 emissions
A total of 5.65 kilograms of hydrogen was consumed during the journey. Toyota reports that 12 hydrogen refuelling stations were passed during the journey, although the vehicle did not refuel. The carmaker points out that an internal combustion engine vehicle would have emitted around 301 kilograms of CO2 during the same journey. Thanks to the use of hydrogen, the Mirai emits no CO2. It should be noted, however, that this comparison does not take into account the vehicle's production process.
Toyota also made a record attempt with the Mirai in France in May. The vehicle then managed to cover a distance of 1,003 kilometres on one tank of hydrogen, considerably more than the official range of about 650 kilometres.
Hypermiling
That the range during the US record attempt was a whopping 300 kilometres higher Toyota attributes to hypermiling: a form of highly energy-efficient driving. This involves maximising fuel efficiency by using various techniques.
"The breakthrough results were achieved by trackers skilled in hypermiling techniques that optimise the Mirai's vehicle performance under specific weather and driving conditions. They also applied some basic fuel efficiency tips that any driver can learn," Toyota wrote in a press release.
Specifically, the following tips:
- Keep up with maintenance as a poorly tuned engine consumes more fuel
- Ensure correct wheel alignment
- Check tyre pressure
- Remove unnecessary luggage and luggage racks to reduce weight
- Avoid rapid acceleration or hard braking
- Avoid higher speeds
- Minimise the use of mechanical and electrical accessories such as air conditioning
Author: Wouter Hoeffnagel
