FP TrendingJun 04, 2021 18:59:28 IST
The second-gen Toyota Mirai fuel cell electric vehicle has set a new world record by driving over 1,000 km on a single fill of hydrogen. The new Mirai covered 1,003 kilometres on public roads, south of Paris, France, in the Loir-et-Cher and Indre-et-Loire regions. The journey started on 26 May, at 5:43 am from the HYSETCO hydrogen filling station in Orly, and ended once the 1,000 kilometre mark had been breached, with the Mirai still left with nine kilometres worth of range at the end of the run.
At the end of its record run, the Toyota Mirai still had nine kilometres worth of range left. Image: Toyota
During this successful world record attempt, a total of four drivers took to the wheel including Victorien Erussard, the founder and captain of Energy Observer, which is the world’s first hydrogen-powered boat. James Olden, an engineer at Toyota Motor Europe, Maxime le Hir, Mirai product manager, and Marie Gadd, PR manager of Toyota France, were the other drivers.
The Mirai is equipped with an electric motor powered by a fuel cell that converts hydrogen into electricity. For the whole trip, the average hydrogen consumption was only 0.55 grams per kilometre, and the Mirai’s three tanks can hold up to 5.6 kg of hydrogen. After breaking the record, Mirai was fully refuelled at a 700-bar hydrogen fuel stop and was ready to go again in just five minutes.
During the event, the Eiffel Tower was illuminated for the first time by green hydrogen to mark the day and moment of the new record being set. Launched overseas in 2020, the new Toyota Mirai currently has a range of up to 850 kilometres, a significant jump over the 550-kilometre range of the previous-gen model, on the Japanese driving cycle.
