2020 Toyota Mirai FCV

Toyota has confirmed that it will launch a second-generation version of the Toyota Mirai despite the slow sales of the fuel-cell vehicle. Chairman Takeshi Uchiyamada confirmed that the second-generation Mirai will launch in 2020 while speaking at an international ministerial meeting on hydrogen energy in Tokyo earlier this week, Reuters reports.

CNET spoke with Toyota directly and received confirmation that a new Mirai is indeed in the works, but the automaker failed to specify an exact date. It is reasonable to assume that the new vehicle would first be sold in Japan before being launching in other markets early next decade.

The Mirai has only ever sold low numbers in the United States. This is primarily due to the fact that it is only available in California and Hawaii and to those who live or work close enough to a hydrogen refueling station. CNET reports that there are only a couple dozen hydrogen stations in California and just one where the FCV can be topped up in Hawaii. The automaker says it wants to launch the Mirai in other areas of the United States including the Northeast, where it’s building adequate hydrogen infrastructure.

A promising new rival to Toyota’s advanced fuel-cell vehicle landed on U.S. shores late last year in the form of the Hyundai Nexo. It has a base price of US$ 58,300, undercutting the Mirai by a mere US$ 65, and owners are provided with up to US$ 13,000 worth of hydrogen refuelling cards that can be used within the first three years of ownership.

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