Hydrogen-powered Toyota Hilux launches in England for commercial vehicle use

Toyota is doing something interesting for the European market as the Japanese brand has just launched a hydrogen-powered version of the Toyota Hilux in England.

The new model was launched at the brand’s Burnaston Plant in Durby and will only see use as a commercial vehicle as it will serve as a test unit to see if hydrogen fuel may have a future versus electric cars. 

The hydrogen Hilux is also part of the government’s support for developing zero-emission vehicles suitable for use in remote areas of the United Kingdom. 

The same technology as the Mirai

Under the hood, the hydrogen Hilux loses its turbo diesel and gains the brand’s second-generation fuel cell engine technology, which produces no tailpipe emissions other than pure water. 

It also has three high-pressure fuel tanks that store the hydrogen fuel that is expected to give the vehicle around 587 kilometers worth of driving range.

For those who don’t know about Toyota’s hydrogen fuel cell technology, it utilizes the electrochemical reaction of hydrogen and oxygen to generate electricity. The electricity generated is stored in a battery pack located in the rear of the Hilux, giving it the means to move.

Private and government support

The hydrogen Hilux is currently the project of Toyota Manufacturing UK and is in collaboration with engineering firms Ricardo, ETL, D2H, and Thatcham Research.

Toyota's European research and development team will also help make the project self-sustaining by helping with hydrogen fuel production needs.

The UK government has also pitched in by helping fund the project, enabling the Japanese brand to develop more new models promptly. Overall, the project has received  £11.3m from the government, which will fund it for the next three years and support over 250 jobs across the UK over the next decade.

The hydrogen Hilux project also joins in with other projects, such as waste-to-energy tractors and hydrogen-powered truck tractor units

While nothing is confirmed, Toyota has stated that it is stress-testing the new hydrogen Hilux worldwide to see if its system will work for other countries. It's a waiting game to see what the brand will have in store.