Fuel Cell Cars for Consumers to be Sold in 2050. At the Earliest

During our quest to find alternatives to gasoline we have heard an awful lot about hydrogen powered vehicles. Many say that it will be such technology that will ultimately drive us into the promise land away from dependence on foreign oil and help assure a cleaner environment. Thing is, not many of us have seen any hydrogen cars driving along the highways and byways of the U.S. Where are they?
Oh, they are there. But they are mostly there as concept or tests. For example, there is the Honda FCX Clarity which was introduced in 2008. The car is powered by fuel cells and has a range of 270 miles on a full tank of hydrogen. Its performance ain’t bad either. For example, it goes 0 to 60 in 9.2 seconds. But there aren’t many out there because it is tricky and expensive to make. The car is assembled by hand and Honda has been able to make only 200 of them during the last three years. People say that mass production can’t start until 2018. Then there is the chicken and the egg situation. There is no infrastructure for the distribution of hydrogen. So what comes first, the distribution or the car? Obviously, in this case the distribution is essential for the success of the car. And there’s the rub. Only the states or the federal government can build the infrastructure. And so far it is not there. Many say that we won’t see hydrogen vehicles in any significant numbers until 2050. That’s probably beyond our lifetimes and probably many of yours.