Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are slowly gaining traction in some parts of the world, but their road forward in America isn’t as clear. They are only on sale in California, and even there, “fueling” them can be a real pain. It’s such a pain that some Toyota Mirai owners are suing the automaker over issues with non-functional hydrogen fueling stations.
The owner group, which includes lessees, claims that Toyota’s marketing was misleading, making them believe that their cars are much more usable than they really are. They said that there are too few operating fueling stations and noted that hydrogen prices have climbed steeply in recent times. The group also said that the Mirai’s driving range fell way short of the advertised numbers and claimed that the problems make the cars unusable for regular driving.
Fueling stations are often offline, and owners frequently have trouble with their payment cards. Some said they had to drive great distances to find a fueling location, only to be met with extreme prices when they arrived, while others said the pumps often “froze,” leading to long waits while the systems reset. Drivers also consistently reported range numbers that fell more than 25 percent below the estimates provided by Toyota, drastically limiting their driving abilities between fuel-ups.
As if those issues weren’t bad enough, the suit said that owners have found significantly diminished resale values. The Mirai apparently lost more than 80 percent of its value after five years, and the owners are seeking damages to cover the damages.
We’ve been saying this for a long time, mainly relating to Tesla’s Autopilot and Full Self-Driving tech, but marketing matters. Leading car buyers to believe one thing, only for them to find the opposite is true, is a good way to get into hot water with owners and regulators. Even if the issues described in the lawsuit are overblown, the truth remains that hydrogen has a long way to go in the U.S. before it can be considered competitive with gas vehicles or even EVs.
[Images: Toyota]
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