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Toyota's Bob Carter says far fewer stations needed in shift from gas to hydrogen

Toyota's Bob Carter has been talking about green cars for years, but it's only been recently that his comments have really caught widespread attention thanks to his disparaging remarks about electric vehicle supporters like Elon Musk and Carlos Ghosn and optimism about hydrogen. Speaking at the opening of the Chicago Auto Show this morning, Carter said that Toyota has claimed the "pole position on CAFE," thanks to its deep hybrid bench. The company's green car cred will continue to grow because of its upcoming hydrogen fuel cell car, due out next year. Carter is relentlessly optimistic: "I truly believe fuel cells will fundamentally change how we feel about transportation," he said. The reason, Carter said, is that a hydrogen infrastructure will be easier to install than people think. He referenced a study conducted by the University of California (which we've heard about before) that found that California would only need 68 hydrogen stations to refuel the roughly 10,000 H2 vehicles that Toyota hopes to sell in by 2016 or so. That's a lot more than the nine that exist today, but the state has already approved funding for 20 new stations by 2015 and then up to 100 by 2024. Then he said this: "If every vehicle in California ran on hydrogen, we could meet refueling logistics with only 15 percent of the nearly 10,000 gasoline stations currently operating in the state." "We could meet refueling logistics with only 15 percent of gasoline stations currently operating in CA" - Bob Carter This made us wonder: if the refueling time and range are roughly equivalent between hydrogen and gasoline – Toyota's hydrogen car is supposed to be able to go 300 miles on a five-minute fill-up - then why has the market decided that there should be 10,000 gas stations in California and why would 1,500 be sufficient for hydrogen? "If the locations are optimized," he said, "we don't need 10,000 stations." For example, at major intersections, instead of three gas stations, you'd really just need a single hydrogen one. "There are a lot of questions about the infrastructure, but it's coming. ... It's a hurdle that we've got to climb but it's not as steep as some may imagine." Toyota's Mike Michaels, the national manager, media and public affairs at Toyota Motor Sales, then stepped in to point out that there are gas stations closing and admitted that there might be too many gas stations in California.

Toyota again claims Corolla outsold Focus worldwide

Toyota isn't convinced the Ford Focus was the best-selling nameplate globally last year. Bloomberg reports that for the second time in seven months, both Toyota and Ford are laying claim to the title. Ford cites R.L. Polk & Co. data that says the automaker moved some 1.02 million Focus models in 2012 compared to just 872,774 Toyota Corolla units. But Toyota says the actual figure is closer to 1.16 million Corolla models.
Last year, Ford said it took the sales crown through the fist half of 2012 based on information from IHS Automotive, but Toyota pointed out those numbers left out models like the Corolla-based Matrix and Auris, as well as the Corolla Fielder and Scion xB-based Corolla Rumion. Whether or not Toyota's belief that all these cars should be counted in the Corolla bucket is accurate or not is seemingly up for debate... as is the question of why it matters so much to both parties.
This time around, Ford is holding the line that the Focus is the "best-selling nameplate," with Erich Merkle, a US sales analyst with Ford saying the company's figure is, "a pure number that is verified by a third party." Toyota, meanwhile, has requested clarification from Polk.

2017 Tokyo Motor Show | Mega Gallery

The 2017 Tokyo Motor Show has been a big and busy one. It's also had machinery ranging from beautiful to bizarre. But there's been something for everyone. Companies such as Honda and Subaru brought performance oriented vehicles, Toyota showcased a wide array of funky and practical concepts, and Yamaha even broke away from motorcycles to do another car concept. You can check all of these vehicles out, and more in the galleries below. 2018 Honda Gold Wing: View 5 Photos Honda Neo Sports Cafe Concept: View 5 Photos Honda Riding Assist-e Concept: View 7 Photos Honda Sports EV Concept: View 5 Photos Honda Super Cub: View 3 Photos Isuzu FD-SI and Elf EV: View 9 Photos Lexus LS+ Concept: View 18 Photos Mazda Kai Concept: View 18 Photos Mazda Vision Coupe Concept: View 15 Photos Mitsubishi e-Evolution Concept: View 8 Photos Nissan IMx Concept: View 29 Photos Nissan Leaf Nismo Concept: View 8 Photos Subaru Viziv Performance Concept: View 12 Photos Toyota Century and Crown: View 7 Photos Toyota Concept-i Series: View 16 Photos Toyota GR HV SPORTS Concept: View 6 Photos Toyota Tj Cruiser: View 12 Photos Yamaha Concepts (Cross Hub, MOTOROiD, MWC-4, Motobot): View 5 Photos Related Video: Tokyo Motor Show Honda Isuzu Lexus Mazda Mitsubishi Nissan Subaru Toyota