Lexus is fully committed to offering fuel cell vehicles, according to a Motoring Australia interview with the brand’s executive vice-president Mark Templin:
“I can’t tell you when it will happen, but it’s not a matter of if, it’s when,” [Templin] declared.
“What’s better than taking the most abundant element on Earth, sticking it in a tank, converting it to electricity on board and have water vapour come out the tailpipe?”
Considering the fuel-cell push by parent company Toyota and the reveal of their new LF-FC concept, it’s no real surprise that Lexus is bullish on the technology. But what happens in the short term, during the 5-10 years it could take to build up the hydrogen fuel station infrastructure?
Zero-emissions or not, Templin says the path to hydrogen-powered cars “will go from hybrid, to plug-in [hybrid], to battery-electric cars to [hydrogen] fuel cells.”
However, he wouldn’t say if Lexus will take all four of those steps — in particular the third step — into the EV future.
“We’ll tell you about that as the stages come along. I’m pushing my team hard to think about the future. I don’t want to talk about next week or next year or even the next three years. Let’s talk about the next 10 years, 20 years, or 30 years. What is the marketplace going to be then?”
A plug-in hybrid or full-electric vehicle would fit well into the Lexus brand, but there seems to be a reluctance to offer either technology — do you think that Lexus will eventually offer an electric vehicle, or will they jump directly to fuel cells?
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