Toyota has revealed the second iteration of its hydrogen fuel cell electric Class 8 truck – referred to as Beta – during the Center for Automotive Research (CAR) Management Briefing Seminars held in Michigan.
The new vehicle expands on the capabilities of Toyota’s first Project Portal test truck, and increases the range to more than 300 miles per fill. The new vehicle also sees the addition of a sleeper cab and a fuel cabinet combination that increases cab space without increasing wheelbase.
The first Project Portal truck, Alpha, has logged more than 10,000 miles of testing and real-world drayage operations in the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, California. The Beta vehicle will begin drayage operation in the autumn.
The Alpha truck offers a range between fills of more than 200 miles,and generates more than 680ps and 1,796Nm of torque from two Mirai fuel cell stacks and a 12kWh battery. The Beta vehicle maintains these performance figures while extending the range of the truck.
“By evaluating the first truck in our test facilities and on the actual roads in the LA area, we made a list of improvements for the Beta truck build process and performance enhancements,” said Andrew Lund, chief engineer for the project.
“We needed to move beyond a proof of concept, which the first truck accomplished, to something that is not only better than the original but is also more commercially viable.”
