Toyota to test carbon-free hydrogen engine on race track

Toyota Motor Corp. will test its Corolla Sport equipped with a hydrogen engine in a 24-hour endurance race that starts on May 21 at the Fuji Speedway track in Oyama, Shizuoka Prefecture.

The Japanese carmaker will use the racing circuit as a testing ground to develop the necessary technologies over the long term. It will also participate in other endurance races to collect data for technology development.

On April 22, Toyota announced that it will enter a carbon-free hydrogen engine-powered vehicle in motor racing powered.

Toyota has commercially released a car that runs on hydrogen, the Mirai. It will utilize existing technologies to develop a hydrogen engine that would achieve zero emissions at a low cost.

Hydrogen engines burn hydrogen instead of gasoline. Both hydrogen-fueled and fuel cell vehicles don't emit carbon dioxide when they are driven. But hydrogen engines emit exhaust gas, which includes nitrogen oxide.

Toyota did not present an outlook on the commercialization of the hydrogen engine in its announcement on April 22.