The Dual Fuel Car That Solves the Puzzle of Hydrogen

While we were in Barga, we watched three movies, all of which stood out. The last movie was 'Who Killed the Electric Car?' that skewered the power companies and GM for giving up on a little car that hundreds, if not thousands, once loved. But they were all squashed and sold as scrap--not one was ever sold, they were leased. This brought me much disappointment.

Then I came across a mind-bending short article in the WSJ a few weeks ago. It was about Mazda's new breakthrough--a dual fuel car. Think about it. Hydrogen could be a viable power source for autos, BUT there is no hydro station network. So even though it's clean, it's never going to be practical to get to the fueling stations. But a car that has a tiny gas engine could motor its way to the hydrogen pumps, no problem.

Mazda has plans to market the Mazda5 minivan, with an electric motor powered by a generator. The rotary engine can switch between hydrogen and gasoline drives.

The idea is catching on. BMW is also working on a hydrogen-gasoline car.