A Toyota Corolla Sport modified to burn hydrogen instead of petrol has just finished the 24-hour-long Super Taikyu endurance race in Japan, proving that the technology is viable in motorsports.
The modded Corolla inherited most of its powertrain and tech from the latest GR Yaris hatchback, but its 1.6-liter engine was attuned to combusting hydrogen instead of gasoline. As a result, the car became the first vehicle in history to use the world’s lightest gas immediately for propulsion. Earlier designs were notably different, because they only used hydrogen to generate electric power and needed electric motors for moving around.
Throughout its day-long run, the car had to stop 35 times for a refuel, whereas its ICE-based rivals stopped 20 times on average. The team behind the project explained that hydrogen burned fast, so this was unavoidable.