Toyota Mirai Breaks World Record: 1,000 Km On Hydrogen

Does this change anything for battery electric cars?

2021 Mirai World Record Distance Driving (1,003 km)

Mark Kane

By: Mark Kane

May 31, 2021 at 5:00pm ET

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Toyota announced today that its flagship hydrogen fuel cell car, the second-generation Toyota Mirai, has increased the world record distance for FCVs to over 1000 km on a single fill.

According to the Japanese manufacturer, the car (driven by four drivers total) was able to cover a total of 1,003 km (623 miles) and still had 9 km of range remaining (as indicated by the on-board information system). The hydrogen consumption averaged 0.55 kg/100 km (the full tank is 5.6 kg).

That's a significantly higher result than the previous record, set by Hyundai NEXO - 778 km (484 miles).

"The journey started on Wednesday 26th of May at 5:43 am from the HYSETCO hydrogen station in Orly and finished after driving 1003 km on one single fill.

The 1003 zero-emission kilometres were driven on public roads, south of Paris and in the Loir-et-Cher and Indre-et-Loire areas, and the distance & consumption were certified by an independent authority."

"To achieve this 1003 km driving distance record, the drivers adopted an “eco-driving” style but no special techniques that could not be used by everyday drivers."

2021 Mirai World Record Distance Driving (1,003 km)

The result is impressive indeed, especially since the car was ready for more driving after just 5 minutes of refueling.

Our main question here is whether it changes anything for battery-electric cars, which we believe are the ultimate zero-emissions solution.

Well, not necessarily, because EV range also increases and even today we reported about 1,000 km covered (with a few charging stops) in less than 10 hours. Drivers will be able to go wherever they want also in BEVs.

What do you think?

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With very limited hydrogen refueling infrastructure, there is no advantage in range of hydrogen cars. Our major concerns are however not in the infrastructure (stations can be simply installed), but the economical viability of the less efficient solution.

Toyota Mirai starts at about €63,900 (about $78,125) with 19% VAT in Germany and you have to pay under €50 (about $61) for refueling every time (BEVs can use home charging most of the time).