
Several challenges hinder the widespread adoption of hydrogen as a fuel source, but Toyota may have found the ideal solution. Ahead of the 2024 Japan Mobility Show, the company revealed its upcoming exhibits: a new energy storage system designed to maximize the potential of used batteries, its hydrogen-powered GR Corolla race car, and a portable hydrogen cartridge. Toyota recognizes that FCEV tanks are bulky and that refueling stations are scarce, but with a swappable tank system, drivers could fully recharge in just a few minutes.
Although automotive applications are our main focus, Toyota has also teamed up with Rinnai Corporation to create a hydrogen-powered cooker. The cartridges can function as fuel cells to generate electricity or store combustible hydrogen gas. Toyota aims for innovations like these to help make hydrogen a familiar, safe energy source for a wide range of everyday uses.
Toyota is seeking partnerships with other companies to explore additional uses for its hydrogen cartridges, understanding that for hydrogen power to gain global acceptance, it must become integrated into everyday life. This effort is part of Toyota’s “multi-pathway approach” to decarbonization, as the automaker believes that battery-electric vehicles are not the sole solution for achieving a cleaner planet.

Toyota believes that the key to improving everyday cars is to start by developing them on the racetrack, and this philosophy extends to advancing new technologies as well. The company has unveiled a hydrogen-powered Le Mans-style racecar concept that uses combustion, while also continuing to refine its hydrogen-powered GR Corolla in the Super Taikyu Series.
Additionally, Toyota recently partnered with BMW to co-develop hydrogen technology, building on the knowledge gained from its Mirai FCEV. The upcoming exhibition could spark further collaborations and expand real-world applications for hydrogen. As Toyota has demonstrated, a hydrogen-powered future has exciting potential.
