While several car makers are beginning to look at replacing gasoline powered cars with cars powered by hydrogen, one Alexandria (web|news) man gets a taste of the future now.

General Motors asked Alexandria's Tom Albert to try out their gas-free, zero-emissions, hydrogen fuel cell powered SUV for a few months. 

"There's just a couple subtle differences, the way it accelerates, there's no transmission so you don't notice any gear changes, there are no gear changes," Albert said.

Mark LaNeve with General Motors explained how the vehicle's concept came about, "With this vehicle you not only have to solve the technical challenges and get it to an affordable cost, you have to get a hydrogen infrastructure."

Currently it costs several hundred dollars to build a hydrogen vehicle, yet you'll see more on the roads now. This summer Honda will start a heavily subsidized lease program for its hydrogen powered "Clarity" sedan. There are only a handful of hydrogen fueling stations in the U.S. with more planned. There is only one in the D.C. area. 

"The range on a full tank is only 200 miles, so i'm tied to a 100 mile radius of Benning Road, but that could be alleviated if there were more fueling stations," said Albert. "Its not a road trip car, without more fueling stations you can't."
 
The price-per-gallon is about twice that of gasoline, but the fuel is much more efficient. The SUV carries four gallons and Tom Albert is averaging "almost 53 miles per gallon".
 
The GM Model is actually electric. It's battery is powered by the energy released when hydrogen combines with oxygen. The only emission? Water Vapor.

Critics say emissions are produced during the creation of the fuel. Car makers still have high hopes this technology could one day help America solve the gas crisis we are all feeling at the pump. 

Car makers acknowledge the technology is still at least a few years away from the market place. It depends heavily on hydrogen fuel being readily available and the technology coming down in price to a point where its comparable to traditional cars. 

»How the Hydrogen Fuel Cell works

» More on General Motor's Project Driveway ,See if you can qualify for the Project Driveway Test Program

» More on the Honda Clarity

» How the Honda Clarity works

Email To A Friend