As electric cars try to forge more than a just niche in the
market, the auto industry is already looking to another form of
clean technology that could overtake today's battery-powered
vehicles. Commitments by automobile manufactures to develop
hydrogen fuel-cell cars have surged in recent months. Toyota,
Hyundai, Daimler and Honda announced plans to build vehicles
that run on the most abundant element in the universe and emit
only water vapor as a byproduct. "A lot of auto makers believe
the fuel-cell vehicle is just a better performing vehicle and
just makes more sense," said Kevin See, a senior analyst of
electric vehicles at Lux Research in Boston. A fuel-cell-powered
car can travel much longer distances than battery-powered ones
before needing to be refueled, and fuel cells can be more
readily used in large vehicles like trucks and SUVs. Hyundai has
announced that it will offer a fuel-cell version of its ix35
sport utility vehicle (known as the Tucson in the U.S.) on lease
by the end of this year. It pla