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Weekly Recap: Toyota propels hydrogen fuel cells

Toyota is serious about hydrogen fuel cells, and it wants the auto industry to follow suit. The Japanese automaker said this week it's releasing 5,680 fuel cell patents from around the world, including technologies used on its upcoming sedan, the 2016 Mirai. The move is unusual, but not unprecedented, as Tesla similarly released its electric vehicle patents last year. The idea for Tesla, and now for Toyota, is to spur development of alternative propulsion. "By eliminating traditional corporate boundaries, we can speed the development of new technologies and move into the future of mobility more quickly, effectively and economically," said Bob Carter, Toyota Motor Sales senior vice president of automotive operations, in a statement. Toyota's fuel cell patents will be free to use through 2020, though patents related to producing and selling hydrogen will remain open forever. Toyota said it would like companies that use its patents to share their own hydrogen patents, but won't require it. "What Toyota's doing is really a logical move, and really a good move for the industry," Devin Lindsay, principal powertrain analyst with IHS Automotive, told Autoblog. The announcement was made at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. It comes as Toyota prepares to launch the hydrogen-powered Mirai in a limited number late this year in California. The launch will be extended to the Northeastern United States next year. Toyota also has announced plans to support networks of fueling stations in each region to try to smooth consumer adoption. The Mirai has a 300-mile range on a tank of hydrogen, and it takes about five minutes to refill. Fuel cells have been receiving increased attention recently, and Audi and Volkswagen debuted hydrogen-powered cars at the 2014 Los Angeles Auto Show. Honda, another proponent of the technology, also showed its updated FCV concept in November in Japan. The company, however, has delayed its fuel cell sedan a year until 2016. Like Toyota, Honda says its hydrogen-powered car will have a range of 300 miles or more. Meanwhile, Hyundai currently offers leases for fuel-cell powered Tucsons, which have a 265-mile range, in Southern California. Despite the optimism some automakers have for fuel cells, the technology still faces barriers. A lack of filling stations has long held it back, and many consumers are not familiar with the potential benefits.

Dodge Charger Pursuit takes Tesla interior approach

A police car's computer is just as integral to its duties as a set of lights and sirens. The popular approach for these systems is to grab something like a Panasonic Toughbook laptop, add a big, bulky tray to hold it, and use this inelegant setup for running plates and doing all the other things a cop needs to do while on the road. The downside, besides simple aesthetics, is that this arrangement robs the officer's shotgun-riding partner from legroom. Dodge, though, has come up with a far more elegant and functional solution. Taking a page out of Tesla and Volvo's book, Dodge has replaced the five-inch UConnect display and laptop mount in the Charger Pursuit police car with an enormous 12.1-inch, portrait-format touchscreen display. Called, UConnect 12.1, the new system doesn't do away with the old fashioned computer outright. Instead it moves the bulky unit to the trunk, where it can connect to the display via an ethernet cable. This is good for multiple reasons. First, there are no pricey installation or upfitting charges, like there are for most laptop carriages. Secondly, the plug-and-play nature of the new UConnect system won't require the department to buy new laptops. And third, there's no need to retrain officers, since the only thing that's really changing is the input. While the Charger Pursuit will continue to offer redundant audio and HVAC controls, the 12.1-inch display can, at the press of a "button" split to display Fiat Chrysler's familiar 8.4-inch display. Make one more tap on the screen, and the police-issue laptop can be managed through the full touchscreen. The touchscreen will also display a menu bar at the top of the page, which can easily be edited by officers. All it takes is a simple drag and drop from the application menu to the top of the display. According to Dodge, the touchscreen will even play nice when its operator is wearing gloves. "As America's high-performance police vehicle, Dodge Charger Pursuit is going big for 2016, offering a massive, Uconnect touchscreen system that streamlines a law enforcement officer's computer system with our easy-to-use Uconnect system – on an all-new laptop-sized 12.1-inch touchscreen display," said Tim Kuniskis, Dodge and SRT's president and CEO.

Autoblog Podcast #391

Episode #391 of the Autoblog Podcast is here, and this week, Dan Roth, Mike Harley and Brandon Turkus talk about the appointment of Kumar Galhotra to run Lincoln, changes coming for Scion, the Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat, and which cars won't live into 2015. We also take a quick detour to talk about the Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge prototype, which Mike Harley just came back from driving. We start with what's in the garage and finish up with some of your questions, and for those of you who hung with us live on our UStream channel, thanks for taking the time. Check out the new rundown below with times for topics, and you can follow along down below with our Q&A. Thanks for listening! Autoblog Podcast #391: Topics: 2015 Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge Prototype New boss at Lincoln Scion xB, iQ ending soon Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Cars that won't live to 2015 In the Autoblog Garage: McLaren 650S Hyundai Genesis Hosts: Dan Roth, Michael Harley, Brandon Turkus Runtime: 01:42:06 Rundown: Intro and Garage - 00:00 Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge - 30:05 Kumar Galhotra to Lincoln - 34:32 Scion Changes - 43:58 Dodge Charger Hellcat - 54:25 Discontinued Cars - 01:06:24 Q&A - 01:22:59 Get the podcast: [UStream] Listen live on Mondays at 10 PM Eastern at UStream [iTunes] Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes [RSS] Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator [MP3] Download the MP3 directly Feedback: Email: Podcast at Autoblog dot com Review the show in iTunes Hirings/Firings/Layoffs Podcasts Dodge Hyundai Infiniti Lincoln McLaren Scion Supercars mclaren 650s