Hydrogen: the pros and cons at a glance
Hydrogen can be refueled easily and quickly. Hydrogen cars have a decent range, with the Toyota Mirai, for instance, being able to do around 500 kilometres (310 miles). Hydrogen-powered vehicles can also be refuelled in just a few minutes. Nevertheless, there are also considerable drawbacks – such as the high purchase price. Costing at least £60,000 to buy in the UK, a hydrogen car is a huge expense factor. And unless the high production costs go down, it is not likely that anything will change here. What is more, there are only 177 hydrogen filling stations in Europe. This engine is also extremely inefficient, which is sobering: Just 25 percent of the initial energy is used to move the vehicle, the rest is lost. By comparison, electric cars have an efficiency level of around 70 percent.