For $600 (U.S.) a month, a handful of people are leasing the Honda FCX Clarity fuel-cell car, but the Clarity is likely worth $200,000 or $2-million or Lord knows what.
Someone knows, but the Honda people are not telling. They eventually plan to let 200 people lease a Clarity between now and two years hence. The idea is to put a dedicated fuel-cell automobile into the hands of folks like you and I.
I'm not one of the chosen few, though at least I've been given chance to take a Clarity for a spin around downtown Vancouver and through Stanley Park. Frankly, the whole experience is thoroughly unremarkable.
That's Honda's plan.
In a nutshell, Honda remains publicly wedded to the idea of fuel cells eventually replacing internal combustion engines. Honda types from the CEO on down have long been skeptical about battery-powered cars and almost disdainful of full-on parallel gasoline-electric hybrid cars like the Toyota Prius and the new Ford Fusion Hybrid.
They believe two drivetrains are not a very sensible or cost-efficient replacement for one. So a parallel hybrid, which runs on either the gas engine, the electric one or some combination of both, doesn't make sense to them.
They also believe battery technology is not about to advance so much and so fast that either a pure battery-powered car or an extended-range electric car (like the Chevrolet Volt) has a chance to be practical and affordable in the near or medium term.
Honda, then, likes fuel cells and has done plenty of research in this area. The FCX Clarity is a hydrogen fuel-cell car about the size of a conventional Honda Accord and it works - it works just like any other car you've driven with an electric motor powering the front wheels.
And it looks terrific - just the right blend of futuristic swoopiness in an otherwise run-of-the-mill sedan.
Honda believes that if it could ramp up production of fuel-cell cars, if it could get real-world volumes like the Accord gets (400,000 sold a year), a fuel-cell car could be very cost-efficient and it would most assuredly be the cleanest form of personal transportation available.
This assumes, of course, you can find hydrogen fuel for a fill-up. Big assumption.
There are a few refilling stations here in Vancouver and a few in Metro Toronto, too. Others are dotted about Los Angeles and a handful more are scattered about North America. Unfortunately, without a ready refuelling infrastructure, the fuel-cell car remains a dream.
Less than a year ago, Honda began handing over Clarity models to customers living near public hydrogen filling stations in the Los Angeles area. Honda isn't alone here. General Motors also has fuel-cell vehicles being tested by everyday folks - Equinox crossover wagons assembled in Oshawa, Ont.
I simply cannot imagine anyone objecting to life with the Clarity. The sedan comes with heated and cooled seats, a voice-control navigation system, satellite radio, one-touch operation on all four windows, high-intensity headlights and a system that warns if a collision is likely and hits the brakes if you don't.
Sure, leather seat coverings are missing, as is a sunroof, power seats and automatic on-off headlights. You'd expect these on a $200,000 car, right? But including them would add extra weight and unnecessarily soak up precious electric power. Besides, Honda would rather equip its greenest car with bio-fabric upholstery, its greenest seat covering.
The Clarity is also a pure four-seater and the trunk is small. The beefy, robust hydrogen tank takes up some extra space normally available for luggage in back. And Honda decided to limit the car to four passengers in order to keep weight under control. At least there is generous head and leg room for the four.
