I love my cute, zippy little Mini Cooper, but lately I've been cursing it each time I spend more than US$50 to fill it up.
So, when GM offered me the chance
to test-drive a car that runs on hydrogen, I thought it would be a good way
not only to save
on gas but also to try a technology that some tout as the long-term answer
to the emissions contributing to climate change.
And, I thought: "Just think of the bragging rights."
Before I could get behind the
wheel, I had to go through an orientation. There, I saw a slide demonstrating
the difference
between what happens when there is a fuel leak in a hydrogen car versus a
gasoline-powered car.
Because hydrogen is lighter than
air, the hydrogen car had a thin flame shooting upwards at the rear of the
car.
The gas car, meanwhile, was completely engulfed in flames.
With that, I was ready to take
a look at my car. There are just 100 hydrogen-powered Chevy Equinox cars in
the country,
and for four days, one of them would be mine.
(Other car makers are also developing
hydrogen-powered vehicles. Honda said this week it had begun production of
the
FCX Clarity, planning to release 200 of them in Japan and the United States
over the next three years.)
At first glance, the Equinox
looked like a regular SUV, except for the words "GM Fuel Cell" on the side
next to a design
showing dozens of water molecules -- not exactly subtle.
On closer inspection, I noticed
it had no tailpipe. Instead, water vapor is emitted from four thin outlets
in the back of the
vehicle. It felt like hot air.
Inside, the instrument panel
has a gauge that measures how much power is being used, in kilowatts, and
the fuel gauge
icon looks like a gas pump with an "H" on it for hydrogen.
But it wasn't until I turned
the car on that I noticed the big difference -- no noise. Without the hum
of a combustion engine,
it just didn't feel right.
From the outside, you can hear
airy, swooshing sounds as it powered up and down, which several people I drove
with
likened to the sound of a very quiet jet engine.
WHISTLING ENGINE
On the road, it felt normal
except for the high-pitched whistle of compressing gas, a near-constant reminder
that I was in
a different kind of car.
Another difference was its acceleration.
Because the engine doesn't have to shift gears, it speeds up with remarkable
smoothness.
But here's the big drawback to
hydrogen-powered cars. The Equinox has a range of only 160 to 200 miles on
a full tank
of hydrogen, and mine only lasted about two days. There are only four places
in the Los Angeles area where you can refuel.
I took the car to a station near
GM's training center, about a 20-minute drive from where I work. A GM engineer
refueled for me,
a process that took about 15 minutes for half a tank.
My fuel was paid for by GM, but
in the real world the cost of making and distributing hydrogen is another
drawback of the fuel
cell vehicle. Common methods of making hydrogen also require energy and produce
greenhouse gases.
The most fun I had was seeing
other people's reactions. When I took the car to my husband's office to show
it off,
his co-workers crowded around to check it out.
"This is the future, with $5 gas," one said.
On the road, I got a few shouts
from onlookers. "Nice car!" one man yelled as I drove by.
"Can I drive that car?" asked a driver as he sped past.
Sorry guys. For all its appeal, this car is still many many years away from going to market.
