One of the things that most people don't realize about hydrogen fuel cell vehicles is that they are first and foremost electric vehicles.

While FCVs don't use a battery as their primary energy storage medium, they are propelled by electric motors and produce zero emissions. Plug-in vehicles like the +chevrolet Volt, +Nissan Leaf and +Honda Fit EV rely on lithium ion batteries that are recharged from the grid to store energy.

FCVs use compressed hydrogen to generate electricity on the fly in a chemical process in the fuel cell that has water as a byproduct. That means that aside from the choice of battery or fuel cell and hydrogen storage, the rest of the drive system is common to both types of electric vehicles.

Honda has leveraged the enormous amount of development it has done on fuel cell vehicles over the past decade http://green.autoblog.com/2007/11/18/first-drive-2009-honda-fcx-clarity-worlds-first-series-produc/ to implement more efficient drive motors and power electronics for the new plug-in Fit. The result is the most energy efficient car yet tested by the EPA.

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One reason electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles have hit the market with a thud is that there are strings attached. Models such as the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf are tethered. Drivers need to plug…

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