Honda is Releasing a Hydrogen Fuel Cell Plug-In Hybrid CR-V for 2025

Chris Teague
by Chris Teague

Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles offer a unique EV experience, and their ability to completely refuel in just a few minutes makes them more convenient than their battery-powered counterparts. That said, they’re only sold in California, and there are only two models available. Honda was a player in the hydrogen game but stopped selling the Clarity in 2022. That’s about to change, however, as the automaker recently announced the CR-V e:FCEV, the first plug-in hydrogen vehicle in the United States.


The concept behind the CR-V is similar to that of a traditional PHEV, replacing gas with hydrogen. Honda worked with General Motors to design the fuel cell module. The owner can plug in at home or a public charger and get 29 miles of range or fill with hydrogen to get up to 270 miles of range. A single motor delivers 174 horsepower and 229 pound-feet of torque to the front wheels. Honda said it designed the suspension to “deliver the same sporty driving experience and class-leading refinement as other CR-V models,” though the sporty part is debatable.

HondaLink navigation comes standard, offering guidance to one of the 55 hydrogen fueling stations in California. The CR-V also gets a full suite of driver aids, wireless smartphone mirroring, a nine-inch touchscreen, and a 10.2-inch digital gauge cluster. It has a 110-volt outlet on board that can power appliances, power tools, air conditioners, and other equipment.

[Images: Honda]


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Chris Teague
Chris Teague

Chris grew up in, under, and around cars, but took the long way around to becoming an automotive writer. After a career in technology consulting and a trip through business school, Chris began writing about the automotive industry as a way to reconnect with his passion and get behind the wheel of a new car every week. He focuses on taking complex industry stories and making them digestible by any reader. Just don’t expect him to stay away from high-mileage Porsches.

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  • Jkross22 Jkross22 on Feb 27, 2024

    this is how difficult it can get....

    • SCE to AUX SCE to AUX on Feb 28, 2024

      This is why Tesla built the Supercharger network themselves, instead of relying on others in in the public or private sector.

      As for hydrogen, this map is what I'd expect, and it comports with an Edmunds article a few years ago about their long-term Mirai. Refilling was a nightmare, even in California.

      The technical challenges of handling hydrogen are way harder than EVs, and EV filling isn't super reliable.

  • ToolGuy ToolGuy on Feb 28, 2024

    Honda is dreaming. And resting on its 'laurels' (French for 'posterior').

  • Probert They already have hybrids, but these won't ever be them as they are built on the modular E-GMP skateboard.
  • Justin You guys still looking for that sportbak? I just saw one on the Facebook marketplace in Arizona
  • 28-Cars-Later I cannot remember what happens now, but there are whiteblocks in this period which develop a "tick" like sound which indicates they are toast (maybe head gasket?). Ten or so years ago I looked at an '03 or '04 S60 (I forget why) and I brought my Volvo indy along to tell me if it was worth my time - it ticked and that's when I learned this. This XC90 is probably worth about $300 as it sits, not kidding, and it will cost you conservatively $2500 for an engine swap (all the ones I see on car-part.com have north of 130K miles starting at $1,100 and that's not including freight to a shop, shop labor, other internals to do such as timing belt while engine out etc).
  • 28-Cars-Later Ford reported it lost $132,000 for each of its 10,000 electric vehicles sold in the first quarter of 2024, according to CNN. The sales were down 20 percent from the first quarter of 2023 and would “drag down earnings for the company overall.”The losses include “hundreds of millions being spent on research and development of the next generation of EVs for Ford. Those investments are years away from paying off.” [if they ever are recouped] Ford is the only major carmaker breaking out EV numbers by themselves. But other marques likely suffer similar losses. https://www.zerohedge.com/political/fords-120000-loss-vehicle-shows-california-ev-goals-are-impossible Given these facts, how did Tesla ever produce anything in volume let alone profit?
  • AZFelix Let's forego all of this dilly-dallying with autonomous cars and cut right to the chase and the only real solution.
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