At any typical NASCAR sanctioned race you can count on thousands of fans attending just to hear the roar of the massive V8 engines up close and personal rather than from the seat of their couch. However, this year at the Toyota Owens 400 held at the Richmond International Raceway, fans were a little shocked when the Toyota Mirai pace car first took the track. Instead of the usual roar of a race tuned engine, there was only silence.
The First Hydrogen Fuel Cell Pace Car
The reason for this silence, quite simply hinged on what was powering this very special and unique pace car. The 2016 Toyota Mirai was not only decked out in a special livery and light bar, under the hood lurked the first hydrogen fuel cell to ever power a NASCAR pace car. The Mirai led the field of race cars to the green flag for the night’s Sprint Cup round.
However, before the Mirai was allowed to pace the field of 43 cars on the track, it was subjected to rigorous testing to ensure it would be up to the task. Ed Laukes, company vice president of marketing, performance and guest experience had this to say, “Bringing the Mirai to Richmond to pace this important race is another way for Toyota to showcase our innovation and environmental leadership.”
Of course this is not the first green powered Toyota to be involved in racing. In 2009 a hybrid version of the Toyota Camry was chosen to be the pace car for the Coca Cola 600. This being said Toyota’s fuel cell technology has already been involved in motorsports. Late in 2014 the Toyota FCV Concept, the predecessor to the Mirai was used as the “zero car,” a vehicle used to check the condition of the roads prior to the Shinshiro Rally in Japan.
More about the Mirai
What exactly is the Toyota Mirai? The Mirai is a mid-size four door sedan that uses absolutely no gasoline whatsoever. Instead it uses a hydrogen fuel cell for power, this relatively new technology emits nothing more than harmless water vapor and may well be the future of automotive power. The incredibly new technology involves using an electric motor that is powered by a hydrogen fuel cell.
The vehicle can be refueled in approximately five minutes and can travel up to approximately 300 miles on one tank of hydrogen. Buyers in California can expect to see the hydrogen powered Toyota Mirai at their local dealerships later in 2015.
Toyota takes great pride at being at the forefront of developing groundbreaking technologies like the hydrogen powered Mirai and many other fuel efficient vehicles. The Mirai is simply Toyota’s latest way of showcasing their commitment to staying ahead of the curve with regard to fuel efficiency and cutting edge technology.
To date Toyota has over 2 million hybrid vehicles on the roads around the United States, a number that is continuing to increase exponentially as more drivers are looking for ways to cut the cost of their daily commute. This is significantly more than any other domestic or foreign manufacture in the world. Toyota continues to invest in new technology and ways to develop even more breakthrough technology including plug in cars, and hydrogen fuel cell and electric technologies.
Once the 2016 Toyota Mirai has launched in California, the rest of the U.S. can expect to see them once hydrogen fueling stations become more available. Until then visit us at Toyota of Denton to learn more about this new technology and all of the latest fuel saving technology available in the many incredible vehicles currently available from Toyota.
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