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Honda used the first morning of the 2007 Los Angeles Auto Show to unveil a production version of its FCX fuel cell vehicle. Dubbed the "FCX Clarity," the four-door sedan is powered by the same V Flow fuel cell platform found in Honda's FCX Concept, which is connected to a lithium-ion battery pack that, in turn, powers an electric motor. This drive train enables the car to run solely on compressed gaseous hydrogen with zero emissions. As in the Concept, the Clarity's fuel cell powertrain, which is 45 percent smaller than Honda's current-generation FCX, is mounted longitudinally between the car's front seats, enabling the designers to make the car look more like a car and less like a toaster.

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According to Honda, the FCX Clarity, which will be made available to a limited number of retail customers in summer 2008, has a range of 270 miles on one tank of hydrogen and a top speed of 100 mph. Stylistically, the FCX Clarity draws on many of the design cues of the FCX Concept with a swooping roofline and a short front overhang, made possible by the absence of an internal combustion engine. Inside, the FCX Clairy features a range of advanced cabin tech, including a navigation system programmed with hydrogen-station locations, climate-controlled seats, and Bluetooth hands-free calling. The Clarity also marks the production debut of Honda's Bio-Fabric, a plant-based material used for the car's seat coverings.

Honda is upping its production of gas-electric hybrid cars, but has no immediate plans to develop the kind of hybrid that would recharge from an electrical outlet, the company announced Tuesday.

Honda CEO Takeo Fukui also publicly criticized General Motors for its pursuit of the Chevy Volt at a press conference on Tuesday in Japan.

If that kind of high-performance battery power is possible then carmakers would be better served making a completely electric vehicle from an environmental standpoint, said Fukui, according to the The Wall Street Journal (subscription required).

Honda is scheduled to release several environmentally friendly vehicles at the 2007 Tokyo auto show this week. Among them may be a hybrid sports car and a diesel-engine car that gets 60 mpg.

GM has been touring its Chevy Volt, a plug-in hybrid electric car that it plans to make available to consumers by 2010, across the U.S. since its debut at the Detroit auto show. The Volt could possibly run off lithium-ion battery power alone for about 40 miles, according to GM.

Many critics have raised questions as to whether that battery type, more commonly used in laptops, could be cost effective and energy efficient for car use. GM has said it's developing the necessary technology to make a lithium-ion battery hybrid successful and plans to test out the Volt as soon as spring 2008.

The news follows statements made Monday by Toyota that it's taking its time to develop a plug-in hybrid to address questions of cost, efficiency and consumer interest.

Honda, which has stumbled in hybrids compared with rival Toyota, will try to regain its footing later this month when it shows off a hybrid sports car at the Tokyo Auto Show.

The CR-Z

(Credit: Honda)

The CR-Z, which stands for Concept Renaissance Zero, is a lightweight sports car based on a hybrid system developed by Honda. The company will also display the Puyo, a fuel cell car designed as an economy car. Economy car and hydrogen are now kind of a misnomer. Hydrogen cars cost about $1 million to make at the moment. Still, in a decade or two, hydrogen proponents say the cars will be realistic and much cheaper.

Both of these are concepts. In the near term, Honda will also start to sell a new version of the Fit in Japan and a car called the Inspire, which sports variable cylinder management for better gas mileage. Rumors have been flying about a hybrid version of the Fit so this might be it. Honda may also display a clean diesel that gets over 60 miles a gallon. It plans to bring the car to the U.S. in 2010.

Honda's theme for the show is "for the endless joy of mobility on our earth." I love translations of marketing materials.

The Tokyo Auto Show, which actually takes place in nearby Chiba, kicks off October 27 and is one of the big shows in the car world. At the show, Nissan will also show off the Pivo 2, a car with a pivoting cockpit. Nissan will also discuss some of the safety features and its plans for electric cars. (At Ceatec last week, we conducted some interviews with Nissan execs about the safety features and Nissan's plans to mass produce an electric car in about four years.).

2007 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon

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Cargo space and performance are the most important car traits among those who post to CarGurus.com, a site that rates cars like TripAdvisor rates hotels.

The No. 1 rated car is the 2007 Jeep Wrangler, according to CarGurus.com's community ratings of the top 10 2007 models, with the 2007 Ford Mustang coming in at No. 2.

The 2007 Toyota Camry, which is known for its gas mileage of 31 mpg on the highway, was No. 3 followed by the also sensible 2007 Honda Accord. The 2007 Ford Focus was also on the list. Except for those three, all the other cars in the top 10 are either sports cars or trucks with relatively poor gas mileage.

None of the top 10 cars for fuel efficiency as rated by the EPA made it to CarGurus.com's top 10. The Toyota Prius came in at No. 15.

The Ford F-series pick-up, which was the best-selling car in 2006 according to a Forbes list, was No. 8 among CarGurus.com posts for 2007 models. The Ford F-150 gets about 15 mpg combined, according to its rating by the U.S. Department of Energy's fuel economy site.

Other cars in the top 10 for 2007 models were the Toyota Tundra, Honda CR-V, Dodge Charger, Chevrolet Corvette and Ford Focus.

CarGurus.com's analysis is based on the ratings posted by 1.5 million unique visitors between January and June.

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Give up? They are all among the largest producers of solar modules. And recently Honda and Applied Materials have entered the solar business as well.

If you are a renewable energy fan, you have to get excited when large semiconductor equipment experts like Applied Materials get in the game.

But the most recent prospective entrant (which I have blogged about) is IBM. Big Blue's program is still under wraps, but it has worked on solar technology in its research arm since the 1970s and has massive expertise in semiconductors, material science and other related technologies to bring to bear.

As more and more major companies from the semiconductor sector enter the business, you can bet that costs will come down fast, and the currently sky high price for solar power will fall--and that's good for all of us.

Feast your eyes on this, car technology and high-mileage nuts. It's a Honda Accord that runs on diesel.

Honda expects to bring the clean-diesel car to the U.S. by 2010. It gets 62.8 miles a gallon on the highway, but otherwise looks and feels like a regular Accord. At that mileage level, the car is about as "clean" as a new Toyota Prius. But if you run it on biodiesel, a form of diesel made from vegetable oil or animal fat, it would be even cleaner than a Prius (Priuses get 60 in the city).

The advantage of diesel cars, however, is that they pack a lot of power.

(Credit: Courtesy Diesel Technology Forum)

The car was shown off with a number of other cars in Sacramento, Calif., earlier this month as a way to promote clean diesel cars and technology. In the '90s, California passed strict emission controls that restricted the amount of sulfur a car could emit. As a result, diesel manufacturers curbed sales to California and the U.S. in general.

Since then, petroleum manufacturers have devised cleaner diesels that only emit about 15 parts per million of diesel, down from hundreds of parts per million. That satisfies the California law. Manufacturers, meanwhile, have come out with more efficient and powerful diesel engines that get 20 to 40 percent better mileage than their older cars.

"A lot of changes have taken place in the engine, all thanks to electronics," said Allen Schaeffer, executive director of the Diesel Technology Forum, which helped organize the Clean Diesel Technology Tour. (Cars from Audi and a tractor trailer rig from Caterpillar were also shown). "Half the cars in Europe are diesel."

Thus, diesels, usually thought of as smelly, are now environmentally somewhat sound.