Hyundai Motor overtakes Toyota in hydrogen cars sales; regains top position

Hyundai Motor has surpassed Toyota Motor in the global sales of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and has regained its number one position in the segment. While the former sold 4,700 units of hydrogen electric vehicles worldwide in the first half of this year, the latter managed to sell 3,700 units of the fuel-cell vehicles in the same period, as per data from SNE Research.

Hyundai reclaimed its top position that was bagged by Toyota in the first quarter boosted by the launch of the Mirai Gen 2 model in late 2020. In the second quarter, Hyundai's 2021 Nexo fuel-cell vehicle did for it what Mirai Gen 2 had done for Toyota. 2021 Nexo was released by Hyundai in January this year and the fuel-cell vehicle contributed to increase in segment sales of 91.1% year-on-year in the second quarter.

Though Toyota fell to the second position, its sales of fuel-cell vehicles increased more than 8.3 times year-on-year thanks to the new Toyota Mirai Gen 2 model.

The third contender in the segment, Honda Clarity fuel-cell hydrogen vehicle has declined in the market share as its growth rate fell below the market average. This comes as a consequence of Honda declaring the end of production for the hydrogen electric vehicle by this month. Leaving Honda out, Hyundai and Toyota will be the only remaining contenders in the space.

The second generation Toyota Mirai is built on the car maker's modular GA-L platform, enabling improved system packaging and a more spacious, five-seat cabin. The new platform also accommodates a third hydrogen fuel tank, contributing to a 30% increase in the car’s driving range to around 650 km.

The 2021 Hyundai Nexo gets a 95-kW fuel-cell stack and 40-kWh battery pack power an electric motor. Its base Nexo Blue has an estimated range of over 610 km while the heavier Nexo Limited has a lower range estimate of around 570 km.

(with inputs from ANI)