According to Edmunds Green Car Advisor, Honda announced that its Acura brand will add a hybrid model to its lineup soon and the fuel cell powered FCX Clarity "is ready now."
Green Car Advisor noted that the words above came from Honda Chief Executive Takanobu Ito, who spoke to a large audience at the 2010 NAIAS in Detroit. According to the report, Ito said, ""Now, I'm pleased to say that we will be adding hybrids to the Acura brand."
Due to the economic downturn last year, the company changed some of its future plans and reallocated funds. This change coincided with the company's goal to reduce CO2 emissions across their lineup of vehicles. Funds were allocated to speed development of fuel efficient vehicles and one of the products resulting is an Acura hybrid.
As for the FCX Clarity, Ito said, "But make no mistake. As a vehicle, the Honda FCX Clarity is ready now." Ito did note that their are issues surrounding the real world usage of fuel cell vehicles. He noted that costs associated with developing and producing such vehicles must come down for profitability to be seen. He also noted that this nation lacks the infrastructure need to support the vehicle. But the vehicle itself is ready.
Honda remains committed to fuel cell vehicles. The company firmly believes that they will provide the ultimate solution to eliminating emissions in the future. However, that future goal may be decades away and the company must also focus on near future with an expansion in the hybrid vehicle segment.
Source: Edmunds.com
