TOYOTA FCV PLUS

The Toyota FCV Plus, making its European debut, is a fuel cell vehicle capable of contributing to society by serving as part of the electric power-generating infrastructure. It can play three different roles: l Converting clean hydrogen into electricity. l Generating electricity from hydrogen stored outside the vehicle while at home or away. l Providing its stored electricity to other vehicles and to local power grids.

The car’s fuel cell stack can be removed and re-used as an energy generator. Builtin wireless battery charging panels on the rear wheels and under the front floor allow for intelligent external charging of other vehicles or infrastructure.

Its drivetrain concept also helps opti- mise space and balance by concentrating functional parts at the front and rear to create an optimal weight balance and excellent all-round visibility. l Toyota’s Prius hybrid goes plug-in as a further step towards the company’s goal of reducing its whole-fleet CO2 emissions by 90 per cent by 2050. Its technologies include a dual motor EV drive, a battery warning system and two world firsts: an EV range-extending solar roof and gas injection heat pump automatic air conditioning. EV driving range of more than 48 kilometres, double the distance achieved by its predecessor, rests on improvements in battery development, driving efficiency (notably better aerodynamics) and faster charging. Its solar roof charges a solar battery able to deliver a pumping charge to the main hybrid battery. (The plug-in Prius is being considered for local introduction.)