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In 2014, living with a hydrogen car is fun, challenging

Read his lips: more hydrogen stations, please. That's the crux of the commentary from a Southern California gentleman who's been tooling around in a Honda FCX Clarity hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicle since 2005. Jon Spallino, the first "retail customer" to lease the Clarity, tells The Wall Street Journal that he enjoys "everything about the car," including the peppy acceleration from the car's electric powertrain. The added bonus, of course, is the fact that the car's emissions are nothing more than water vapor. He pays $600 a month to lease the car, including the hydrogen refueling costs, and says he can go about 230 miles on a full tank. The flipside is the paucity in hydrogen refueling stations, which is understandable considering that they cost an estimated couple million dollars a pop to open. It's no accident that Spallino is one of the early hydrogen drivers, though, since there are eight public refueling stations in Southern California (and one in Northern California), more than any other state, according to US Department of Energy records. The only other public station is in South Carolina, so road trips are tough. Spallino, a resident of Redondo Beach, joins higher-profile folks such as actress Jamie Lee Curtis and former pro hockey player Scott Niedermayer among those who've gotten the opportunity to lease the super-low-volume fuel-cell vehicle. How low? Honda leased out 10 of them last year and just five in 2012. You can read more of Spallino's hydrogen-powered thoughts here.

Baby Ford Ranger and electrified Dodge Challenger? | Autoblog Podcast #569

In this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Green Editor John Beltz Snyder. They address a couple interesting news topics, including an upcoming Ford pickup that's smaller than the Ranger, as well as a future electrified Dodge Challenger. They also opine about the new Honda Urban EV prototype that's scheduled to debut at the Geneva Motor Show. Then they talk about the cars they've been driving, including the new Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid, Volvo V60 and Audi A6. Finally, they take a question from Autoblog's recent Reddit AMA to help spend a Redditor's money. Autoblog Podcast #569 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown Ford Focus-based pickup Electrified Dodge Challenger Honda Urban EV Cars we've been driving 2019 Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid 2019 Volvo V60 2019 Audi A6 Spend My Money Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video: Green Podcasts Audi Dodge Ford Honda Subaru Volvo Truck Coupe Crossover Hatchback Wagon Electric Hybrid Performance

Newest version of Honda's ASIMO coming to TV on April 15

Honda's ASIMO robot is moving into its teenage years, having originally been introduced in 2000, and like all teens, it's still learning. The bot has received regular incremental upgrades over that time, and the latest version will premiere on LIVE with Kelly and Michael on Tuesday, April 15.
The newest enhancements provide ASIMO with improved hand dexterity, the ability to use sign language, run faster, climb stars more smoothly, balance on one foot, jump and more. Honda says other new features will be demonstrated with hosts Kelly Ripa and Michael Strahan on the show.
The ongoing development of ASIMO, which stands for Advanced Step in Innovative Mobility, is being done so that one day it can help humans who require assistance. The current version is 4-feet, 3-inches tall, weighs 110 pounds and is made mostly from magnesium alloy and plastic. A big limit is still its lithium-ion battery that only provides 40 minutes of charge. The robot has not needed human control to move since a previous iteration in 2011, which also improved its manual dexterity. It could even pour drinks.