Toyota will build a hydrogen version of its pickup, Hilux, which will be co-developed with engineers from its Technical Center in Zaventem near Brussels. Using a fuel cell from the hydrogen pinnacle model Mirai, it will be the first model in its genre.

Most competitors, like Rivian, Ford, and Tesla, opt for battery power to make zero-emission versions of their pickups, but Toyota stubbornly carves out its own mold with hydrogen propulsion.

Well, maybe it’s more a case of determination since the carmaker is an accomplished advocate for the technology and has a sedan running on hydrogen – the Mirai mentioned above – supplies trains with fuel cells through its FCH2RAIL project. At the same time, her CEO Akio Toyoda leisurely drove some stints of the Ypres Rally this year in a Yaris GR Rally with a hydrogen combustion engine.

Expert technical support

A prototype version of the zero-emission Hilux will be developed in the UK, with project funding from the local government. The Belgian Technical Center will provide expert technical support, which is the company’s European nerve center for assembling and further developing fuel cells.

Specific details on the Hilux aren’t released yet, but the mentioned fuel cell is a second-generation module like it’s currently used in the Mirai. This offers 30% more range than the original system and is more compact with lighter modules.

It also managed to reduce costs. Assembly of the second generation fuel cell started beginning in 2022. For the Hilux FCEV project, Toyota is partnering with Ricardo, ETL, D2H, and Thatcham Research in the UK.

Honda CR-V on hydrogen

Japanese carmakers keep strong faith in FCEVs. On Thursday, also Honda announced that it would develop a small-scale series production of a CR-V with a fuel cell. It will be upgraded with an externally rechargeable battery and come off the assembly line of Honda’s Performance Manufacturing Center in Ohio.

Honda hasn’t released any further details on the model, nor if it will make its way to Europe with the new CR-V model planned for next year. But it might stand a chance now that a hydrogen network is slowly being put into place and will be rolled out more extensively (one hydrogen station every 100 kilometers) as part of Europes’s Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR).

The CR-V is a bimodal concept, apparently running a much bigger battery pack as an assistant to the fuel cell than usual. As such, customers should be able to drive on the battery in urban areas and benefit from faster hydrogen refills on highways.

Honda didn’t reveal the exact numbers of its water vapor-emitting CR-V it intends to build. However, the Japanese brand stopped production of its previous hydrogen car, the FCX Clarity, already in 2014.