It’s a Corolla Cross with the heart of a GR Yaris, but this prototype emits nothing but water vapour from its tailpipe.
A Toyota Corolla Cross prototype has been unveiled with a turbocharged hydrogen internal-combustion engine developed from a hot hatch.
Unlike hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles like the Mirai and just-announced HiLux – which are more akin to electric cars, but instead use hydrogen to generate electricity – Toyota has been experimenting with converting traditional petrol engines to run on hydrogen fuel.
The cars run just like normal and can be filled in a similar way to a petrol or diesel vehicle, but the only tailpipe emission is water vapour.
Alongside computer simulations, Toyota says it is conducting real-world evaluation of this hydrogen-fuelled Corolla Cross prototype in northern Japan throughout its winter months.
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The Corolla Cross is the latest to be tested with the technology, following the development of a GR Corolla hatchback racing car in early 2021 which is powered by a hydrogen-powered 1.6-litre turbocharged three-cylinder engine – the petrol version of which is found in the GR Yaris and GR Corolla.
Toyota President Akio Toyoda drove the hydrogen-fuelled GR Corolla at all Super Taikyu endurance races in Japan this year, competing under his pseudonym ‘Morizo’.
Through its development of the racing car, the company says it was able to increase power from the hydrogen engine by 24 per cent and torque by 33 per cent over the course of the season, while driving range has seen a 30 per cent improvement.
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Mr Toyoda also spent time behind the wheel of a hydrogen-fuelled GR Yaris rally car at the Belgium round of the World Rally Championship in August, sharing the driving duties with four-time rally champion Juha Kankkunen.
Toyota’s development of the technology through its involvement in motorsports has also resulted in refuelling times reducing from roughly five minutes to just 90 seconds.
Toyota is also working with long-time Japanese engineering partner Yamaha to develop a 5.0-litre V8 engine fuelled with hydrogen, with unsubstantiated media reports from February suggesting the engine could eventually be fitted to a LandCruiser 300 Series.
The post Toyota Corolla Cross prototype gains hydrogen-fuelled GR Yaris engine appeared first on Drive.
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