November 2004

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Mazda Motor Corp. has won permission from Japan’s Ministry of Land Infrastructure and Transport to test its new dual-fuel version of its rotary-engined RX-8 sports car on public roads, just ahead of the Tokyo Motor Show that starts Nov. 3. Mazda says this makes the car the world’s first street legal dual-fuel hydrogen rotary engined car. The company is unveiling this new version at the Tokyo Motor Show, and it plans to start leasing it within two years, according to earlier reports last month in “Automotive News” and “Dow Jones” from Japan. The car publication said in addition to the current 15.9 gallon gasoline tank under the rear seat, the dual-fuel version will include a 19.2 gallon hydrogen tank in the trunk, good for another 43.5 miles. The driver has to choose the fuel before he starts the engine. Initial leases will go to government and corporate fleets to gather operating data, and the company plans to build a hydrogen fueling station at corporate headquarters in Hiroshima in February, the automotive publication reports. Mazda, which first introduced a hydrogen-powered rotary engine car 13 years ago (The Hydrogen Letter, Dec. 1991) unveiled its ninth, latest version at last year’s Tokyo Motor Show after a hiatus of several years (H&FCL Nov. 03).