Description of Hydrogen Fuel-Cell Car - Toyota Mirai

The Toyota Mirai is an electric car, boasting a unique engine that distinguishes itself from its market rivals. The Mirai uses a Hydrogen fuel-cell stack to power itself, unlike conventional batteries. How does it work? According to Hunting (2023), external oxygen mixes with the hydrogen stored to generate electrical energy, which powers the electric motors. Water is the only waste product due to the mixture, causing zero emissions. Based on the Mirai webpage by Toyota itself, (2023 Toyota Mirai…, Toyota, n.d.), the Mirai’s hydrogen engine allows a rapid refueling time of five minutes. Some additional performance figures and features of the Mirai include a 645- kilometer range on one tank, and three different driving modes depending on the driver’s utilization of the vehicle, (Eco, Normal and Sport). Since the Mirai’s introduction in 2014, the second generation Mirai boasts many improvements compared to the model before. For starters, the ride is quieter and smoother. Its new engine also provides more power and is lighter, allowing the Mirai to hit 100km/h with much ease. To add on, Toyota, remarkably, achieved these improvements to the engine with parts that cost two thirds of the engine before (Leow, 2022).

According to Leow (2022), The Mirai, which means “future” in Japanese, is a hydrogen fuel-cell car. It not only produces zero emissions but is also able to filter out pollutants such as sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and ammonia. With its advanced technology, the Mirai is also able to benefit the environment which implies cleaner transportation in the future.

Works Cited

1. Hunting, Benjamin. “2023 Toyota Mirai Review: Are Hydrogen Cars the Future?” InsideHook,

    14 March 2023, https://www.insidehook.com/autos/review-2023-toyota-mirai-hydrogen-fuel-future/amp. 

2. Leow, Ju-Len. “Toyota's futuristic Mirai is still stuck in the future.” The Business Times,

    23 December 2022, https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/lifestyle/toyotas-futuristic-mirai-still-stuck-future. 

3. Toyota. “2023 Toyota Mirai.” Toyota, https://www.toyota.com/mirai/. 

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