As in Japan, the Toyota Mirai fuel cell car is off to a great start in the United States.
The automaker has announced that it has nearly 1,900 orders for the Mirai in the US, more than the expected initial production run of the hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle.
However, Toyota estimates that it will be able to allocate only 1,000 model year 2016 Mirai fuel cell cars to the United States. The company is currently reviewing the existing order requests and will begin delivering cars to customers this month.
The website used for placing orders, which went live just two months ago, is now directing customers to a wait list, as production catches up to the high demand. Customers who are on the wait list will be contacted when production is available.
In January 2015, Toyota announced it will increase global production capacity for the Mirai to cope with “overwhelming demand in all markets.”
The Toyota Mirai’s fuel cell stack system combines hydrogen gas from tanks with oxygen to produce electricity that powers a 113kW (152hp) electric motor driving the front wheels. The tanks can be refueled in about five minutes.
The 2016 Toyota Mirai offers an EPA-estimated 67 miles per gallon equivalent (MPGe) city/highway/combined (or 3.5 l/100 km), corresponding to a driving range of 312 miles (502 km) on a full tank of hydrogen.
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