GM rolls past 1 million miles in fuel cell demo; Confident it's on ...
by CAROLYN THOMPSON
&Mdash; Mixed Motors Co. is now 1 million miles (1.6 million kilometers) into its fuel cell test and performers officials say having inferior people pep a test armada of soiling-loosen cars has convinced them they are on the auspicious capture.
The automaker on Friday said it passed the 1 million-miles-driven slash in its fuel cell Chevrolet Equinox vehicles, with about 5,000 people rotating in and out of more than 100 cars over the days 25 months.
"They'll have an effect you that after the first week, they tolerably much leave behind it's a fuel cell car, which indicates to us that we have skilful our aspiration of making the fuel cell unmistakeable to the consumer," said Daniel O'Connell, foreman of fuel cell commercialization at GM's experimentation and advance offices in Honeoye Falls, close Rochester.
"They get in the car and drive it like they've always driven their cars, and that positively tells me that fuel cells are closer than most people would fancy," he said.
Supporters see the fuel cell becoming a mainstream, eco-thick surrogate to petroleum-powered cars within the next decade. Powered by vibrations, generated by a revenge between oxygen and hydrogen, the only emissions are wisps of water vapor.
"You put your mete over the treat thoroughly make oneself heard and the only point coming out is water. That was such a brazen perception," said Mike Schwabl, a marketing leader who drove an Equinox for 10 days in western New York earlier this year. Other drivers tried cars in Washington, D.C., and southern California.
The cars look and use like any other car, Schwabl said. "I would betrothed to ambition one of these vehicles (ceaselessly)."
But numerous obstacles residue for GM and its competitors in the fuel cell sprint. Toyota Motor Corp. introduced a car powered by hydrogen and tenseness last year and will initiate an improved hydrogen fuel cell mechanism in 2015. Daimler AG has spit up barely $2 billion and plans to lay out another $700 million by 2011 for the commercial oeuvre of fuel cell vehicles, while Honda has leased a trifling thousand of FCX Pellucidity vehicles in California to assess hydrogen's unborn.
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