Toyota, Honda, Nissan and other Japanese automakers are serious about rolling out battery electric vehicles to catch up with the world’s frontrunners like Tesla and BYD

“We love battery EVs.”

Takero Kato, the executive in charge of electric vehicles at Toyota, said that not once, but twice, to emphasize what he considers the message at this year’s Tokyo auto show.

It’s a message ringing clear at the Tokyo Mobility Show, which will run through Nov. 5 at Tokyo Big Sight hall and where battery-powered electric vehicles are the star at practically every booth.

  • Hypx
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    -11 year ago

    Then how do you travel long distances? You still need some kind of public charging station, which basically recreates the gas station experience.

    The solution just to power everything with hydrogen. It solves all use cases with a single solution. And it also replaces the need to have giant mining and manufacturing industries for the batteries. It is the fundamentally better solution.

    • @AA5B
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      1 year ago

      replaces the need to have giant mining and manufacturing industries for the batteries.

      Dude, really? Yes, batteries add mining costs to the environment and human rights … to the tune of tens of pounds per vehicle to last the life of the car, and already 90%+ recyclable into the next car. Compared to the continuous flow of hydrogen needed to power a car throughout its lifetime? You’ll find it just the opposite

      • Hypx
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        1 year ago

        Green hydrogen is made from water. The resources needed are tiny compared to the battery equivalent. You’ve pretty much inverted reality here.

    • @AA5B
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      1 year ago

      Of course we’ll need superchargers at rest areas along major roads, just like we’re already building out. It is not your neighborhood gas station. Just park and plugin, stretch your legs, use the restroom, grab some fast food, and you’re back on the road

      Here’s a map of Tesla’s superchargers. You can see they already cover major highways and population centers enough to make most trips with confidence. They’re also continuing to expand faster than all other charger networks combined (in the US)

      https://www.finder.com/tesla-superchargers-map

      • Hypx
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        -21 year ago

        A hydrogen station is not a gas station either. The only difference is that you don’t need an entire separate set of charging points in parking lots, garages, etc. In reality, this is the cheaper and more practical solution. It solves the problem for everyone and not just a minority of drivers.

        • @RubberElectrons
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          31 year ago

          To anyone out there reading these comments: in spite of other people laying out clear evidence to the contrary, this person still insists on bigging up hydrogen.

          When you buy or lease a Mirai from Toyota, they include 5 free rentals so that you can leave my state of California. Don’t forget: hydrogen gas escapes a lot more easily than gasoline fumes or electrons. Consider how expensive doing something like that safely and reliably actually must be, vs plugging your car right into a wall outlet (for admittedly slow charging).

          • @baru
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            11 year ago

            Seems like the person is being paid. Because some comments are so far from the truth it’s suspicious why they’re being made.

          • Hypx
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            01 year ago

            You’re just being duped by the battery industry. BEVs are the real dead-end. A hydrogen car is a vastly smarter idea. A car isn’t a smartphone and you don’t want it to work the same way. In reality, you want something that replicates the usage scenario of conventional cars. Trying to “reinvent the wheel” with BEVs is just making this worse.

            Not to mention how much of the argument against FCEVs are either temporary or not real at all. BEV companies want you think that there’s only one solution. In reality, their solution is going obsolete.

        • @baru
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          21 year ago

          In reality, this is the cheaper and more practical solution

          Hydrogen is inefficient. Meaning, it’ll cost more to fill up a car. It isn’t the cheaper solution by any means.

          • Hypx
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            01 year ago

            You repeated the exact argument people used against solar panels. In reality, it’s nonsense and it’s trapped in a fossil fuel powered world. BEVs only make sense if fossil fuels powered everything. Once renewables catch on, it is the battery that stops making sense.