1. They’re not much better environmentally since we tend to either make hydrogen from natural gas (thus emissions), or water, which uses more electricity than the hydrogen produced will ever give us.

2. They’re not practical, as we’d need to build a huge number of expensive new filling stations (the inherent chicken & egg problem) and use more energy shipping the hydrogen to them.

3. At every stage of getting the energy originally in the form of natural gas or electricity to actually move a vehicle forward, we lose even more energy, and there are a number of steps.

4. Finally, both the hydrogen itself, as well as the vehicles, are very expensive. I’ll leave you with the words of Takeo Fukui, the president of Honda, who are arguably the leaders in hydrogen fuel cell vehicles:

“Mr. Fukui said the cars cost several hundred thousand dollars each to produce, though he said that should drop below $100,000 in less than a decade as production volumes increase.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/17/business/worldbusiness/17fuelcell.html

Again, GM with the fuel cell vaporware. It’s been years now. How about the real pure-electric cars they recalled and crushed?

@MAF

Although I certainly didn’t like what they did with the EV1, I really think the Chevy Volt (not a concept car) is probably the most exciting vehicle I’ve seen in recent years since it goes around 40 miles using nothing but electricity (enough for the vast majority of trips).

What really sets it apart from ordinary electric vehicles is that for longer journeys it has a small, highly efficient internal-combustion engine to recharge the battery and extend the range by another 320 miles (at around 50MPG). If you need to go further than 360 miles, just fill it up.

Anyway, he did acknowledge very clearly that he was compensated, which is more than many journalists do, so that’s commendable.

For some perspective, check out this Wired article on hydrogen power: http://www.wired.com/cars/energy/news/2008/05/hydrogen

Or read this wikipedia quote:
“Hydrogen has been called the least efficient and most expensive possible replacement for gasoline (petrol).”

Fuel cell technology is proving far too difficult and expensive for and short or medium term solution. It’s more of a delay tool for big oil and big US auto than it is a real strategy.

Electric plugin are definitely coming within the next two years. In fact we have all electric cars available in Canada right now (ZENN)! But alas our wise and MINORITY government has declared these vehicles dangerous because of their slow speeds. Apparently driving at a speed of 40kmh is dangerous!

GM and US automakers are going to continue to blow as much smoke up everyone’s ass for as long as it takes them to evacuate the US to set up shop in poorer third world countries in a last ditch effort to innovate themselves back into competitiveness!

Anonymous @15: I’m with you on Hondas — great engineering, thoroughly debugged, and they’ve noticed which planet they’re on.

Julian @16, the infrastructure wasn’t there for the gasoline-powered internal combustion engine, either. I expect that existing gas stations will be retrofitted for new fuels. It’s the easiest way to do it.

Error404, Takuan: Algae? If it works, I like it better than using terrestrial vegetation. Besides, it would suck up carbon dioxide.

Zikzak @23, Mark was not paid to represent Boing Boing in a PR campaign. There was no such sponsorship. I’d know if there were. He was, as he says, compensated for his video appearance.

When crushed properly, they’re fantastic tossed in an arugula and endive salad.

Really, I don’t believe that they are serious, no more than their customers who bought all those gas guzzlers for more than two decades even after the warning we’ve got in the seventies and who will be back at it if the price of gas ever go down or just stabilize long enough for them to regain the illusion.

GM changing the planet: I’m burning in the shade right now so haven’t they done that enough already?

Accounts are undeletable. I might be able to change your display name, but it wouldn’t be retroactive. If you have more questions, you can click the eyeball for this comment and leave a note for Teresa.

Did you really accuse Mark of taking a pay-off to blog about some technology?

They seemed to be claiming that GM is betting the farm on the Chevy Volt, which will be a “mostly” electric car that they’re planning to ship by 2010.

As was mentioned in the comments before. I think that the real solution to this problem is going to come from algae or some other GMO. Or at least it will provide a bridge technology until we figure something better out…

I have to say, seeing all these new alt-energy startups crop up has been beautiful.

So, while I’m poo-pooing GM and their belatedness, I have to say congrats to them for at least coming around to change. But they better not act like they freaking invented it.

I would imagine that Toyota or Honda would out-do any of GM’s technologies, should they do it beyond the prius and fit.

look at every car company for the last 30+ years, there has been little in the way of cutting edge designs that hit market. why? out of the 10 big auto makers how is it possible that not one of them decides to go in a totally different direction. the EV-1 was the exception, and was scrapped for obvious reasons. its a fact that these companies don’t want electric cars and will destroy the planet before it gives up profits. not to mention helping their big oil buddies.

its not totally their fault though, consumers are buying the crap they are selling. americans went nuts over SUVs, still are, kinda. they have all been tainted by the talking points. ‘SUVs are safer.’ ‘I like to sit higher in traffic.’ ‘I need all this room’

we really need to start demanding alternatives to the standard ‘car’ from these auto makers. and if they cant pull it off then they deserve to go out of business. GM can manufacture what they want, but its up to us to shape the market. its sad that cars average MPG has staggered int he 20′s for so long.