The Toyota Mirai is Disappointing

I couldn't pass up the opportunity to try out a hydrogen fuel cell powered car! The problem with this car and the technology that powers it is there aren't enough benefits to outweigh the downsides (for most people). Regardless, I'm still excited about the technology and hopeful it makes its way into more appropriate and useful scenarios. I also hope the price of hydrogen comes down because dang.

[beewald]

With the way that grill is designed, it almost looks like it was supposed to be a Lexus and then they changed their minds

[TheQuestionableGarage]

You had the peak of automotive design and engineering in the video already, we could have just stopped at the Reliant Robin

[bazilwreckerloughead]

I find it so refreshing that when you got to how a hydrogen fuel system works, instead of 'bluffing' your way through it, you simply said you weren't sure. A wise man knows what he does not know!

[rcjbvermilion]

I think the badge on the back of the Mirai sums up the car pretty well: Limited.

[andrerenault]

This feels to me like a real-world or publicly available concept car, a glimpse into an alternative present. I’m curious as to how it fares in winter

[yvan]

..."to cope with those incredible pressures, the tanks are cylindrical [...] it'd be more space efficient if they were rectangular, but then they'd explode and that's not ideal."

I love that kind of narration, please stay with that style!

[pintsofcremedementh]

I suppose one advantage of the Mirai is you could hook a hose up to the exhaust and use it as a steam cleaner

[Bbeaucha]

I just realized that your channels have the same advantage and appeal as the original Top Gear. You are clearly a car guy, very knowledgable about cars, very insightful, and very thorough but because you also have a sense of humor and comedy to your content, when something is goofy or funny, you can call it how it is. I really like that about both your channels.

[theowinters]

Oh, and hydrogen leaks. It's pretty much impossible to stop hydrogen from leaking (due to it being at the top of the periodic table) from any sort of joint.

[Bryan]

As someone who has been actually paying attention to Hydrogen, I have to say that you know more about the reality of hydrogen than 99% of everyone else on YouTube.

[FightingForceSoulless]

My father has been asking me for quite some time, why we haven't seen hydrogen cars pop up.
This video might actually help me explain it to him the next time we have a deeper conversation.
Thanks a lot for the educational content!

[mxc]

I love how you're basically the car geek version of Alec from Technology Connections. Love your channel.

- a Polestar 2 owner

[brandondelgado]

From what I understand there is a magic power threshold that when crossed degrades the life of the Fuel Cell. above or below that line is fine but every time you cross it it dies a little bit inside. Hence the battery and probably the weird torque maps you mentioned. Also, WA state wants to be Hydrogenerific some day.

[lawyer_]

Very refreshing to see such a detailed summary of a hydrogen car ownership. Only thing I would like to add is that the lifetime of the fuel cell is to short (aprox. 10.000 hours) and the cost to replace it is to high for it to be a feasible option for larger vehicles.

[coredumperror]

Another disadvantage of H2 cars that you missed is that, yes, it takes 5 minutes to fill up... *if* the fueling station has already re-pressurized since the last car filled up. To push that 10, 000psi of hydrogen into your car, the station has to pressurize its own hydrogen at an even higher pressure, and that takes about 10 minutes to do after it's pushed hydrogen into another car (and thus lost pressure in its own tanks).
This means that if there's a line at the hydrogen station, it takes more like 15 minutes to fill up, rather than 5.

[brentboswell]

I was at a gas plant in Southern California recently...they were excited about expanding their hydrogen business. They already produce hydrogen for industrial use (it's pretty common for use in power generation, where it's used to cool turbine combustion temperatures).

[masish]

Hydrogen has been available for around 20 years now. It is pretty sad to see that it hasn't really advanced that much in those years. Having said that, I think hydrogen is great for large vehicles like busses and could be a real option for passenger jets as batteries are just too heavy still for that industry.

[aaronwilliams]

Every Mirai has a built-in expiration date printed inside the filler door, after which you cannot fill the car and junk it. That may be one reason the resale value of the Mirai is very low. Also, those trucks hauling around hydrogen typically carry 300kg, enough to fill 60 cars. The average gasoline tanker can fill hundreds of cars.

[johnknight]

I wish people would stop referring to fuel stations as "convenient". I *hate* going to petrol stations to fill up. It's that one extra thing during the week that pushes me over the edge to exhaustion. Charging things at home is convenient. Stopping by the charger and juicing up while you do some shopping is convenient.

[DeviantOllam]

Me and all my friends: "Dear god, we want a plug-in all-electric 4Runner!"

The auto industry: "How about an underperforming car that you can't fuel up basically anywhere?"