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Who can really claim first mass-produced fuel cell vehicle delivery in US?

Last month, Hyundai said that the initial deliveries of the Tucson Fuel Cell vehicles in California meant that, "For the first time, retail consumers can now put a mass-produced, federally-certified hydrogen fuel cell vehicle in their driveways." But try telling that to Jon Spallino. In 2005, Honda leased a hydrogen fuel cell FCX, a small hatchback, to the Spallino family (as far as we know, he parked it in his driveway). The company did the same thing again in 2008 with the FCX Clarity, a sleek new design based on the FCX Concept, and others signed for the H2 ride as well, including celebrities. No matter how you slice it, Honda has been in the fuel cell delivery market for almost a decade now. Just look at this. Or this. Or this. Oh, and other automakers (General Motors in Project Driveway in 2006 and Mercdes-Benz with the F-Cell in 2010, for example) have delivered fuel cell vehicles in the US as part of short-term test programs. But let's get back to Hyundai's claim. There's little question that the first delivery of a "fuel cell vehicle for the US market" has already taken place (and they were federally certified, too), which means that the debate revolves around the definition of mass-produced and whether "mass production" is about a number or about the process? Let's investigate below. First, lets review Honda's bona fides. We can start with the official version of Honda's fuel cell history, which is missing the pertinent detail that Honda build the Clarity on a dedicated assembly line and established a small network of three dealerships to lease the FCX Clarity in 2008. All of the FCX Clarity vehicles in customer hands in the US were leased through these dealerships. Sure, Honda started with hand-built stacks in its hydrogen vehicles, but went to automated control of some parts and components with series production. "It is good to see others doing today what we've been doing since 2008" – Steve Ellis, Honda Or, as Honda's Steve Elllis put it to AutoblogGreen regarding Hyundai's fuel cell deliveries: "This was exactly as prescribed by the creation of the California Fuel Cell Partnership. It's the very essence of 'co-op-itition.' We at Honda, as do many others, continue to push forward on many technologies, both the battery and the fuel cell. And society is the beneficiary." Then he added, "It is good to see others doing today what we've been doing since 2008." Now, how does Hyundai compare?

2018 Hyundai Ioniq Plug-In Hybrid costs $26,000, goes 29 miles on electricity

The Hyundai Ioniq hybrid and Ioniq Electric were two of the more pleasant surprises of 2017. Besides their lofty fuel economy and useful electric range, respectively, they boasted reasonable pricing, a useful interior and shockingly buttoned down handling. They could almost be deemed fun to drive. Yet, there was a missing member of the family for 2017. While we always knew a plug-in hybrid would be added — it was with its siblings when the Ioniq was introduced at the 2016 New York Auto Show, and we drove a prototype earlier this year — it wouldn't be until year 2 when the production car would show its face. And although that face is shared with the Ioniq Hybrid rather than the Electric, the 2018 Hyundai Ioniq Plug-in Hybrid obviously has its own set of facts and figures that have now been revealed. Chief among them is a 29-mile all-electric driving range, which, when depleted, effectively turns the Ioniq Plug-in into a regular hybrid capable of 52 mpg combined. It has a 119 MPGe estimate, for whatever that's worth. To put all those numbers into perspective, there's the Toyota Prius Prime (25 miles, 54 mpg combined, 133 MPGe), the Honda Clarity Plug-in Hybrid (48 miles, 42 mpg combined, 110 MPGe), Chevrolet Volt (53 miles, 42 mpg combined, 106 MPGe), and the Ioniq's mechanical sibling, the Kia Niro Plug-In Hybrid (26 miles, 46 mpg combined, 105 MPGe). Pricing for the Ioniq Plug-in Hybrid starts at $25,835, including destination. The Limited trim level starts at $29,185. By comparison, the regular Ioniq Hybrid starts at $22,200 for its Blue trim and goes up to $27,550 for the Limited trim. However, keep in mind that the Plug-in Hybrid is subject to a $4,500 federal tax rebate plus whatever your particular state doles out. As such, the Plug-in Hybrid is effectively cheaper. That's also the case with the Toyota Prius Prime relative to the regular Prius. However, the Prime starts at just north of $27,995 (including destination). A regular Prius' base price is also only about $1,500 lower than the Ioniq Hybrid. In other words, the Plug-in Hybrid seems like a screaming bargain ... and if its siblings are any indication, it'll be a pretty appealing car, too. Other updates for the 2018 Ioniq lineup include paddle shifters added to the Hybrid (yay?), lane keeping assist added when lane departure warning is specified, and the availability of red paint for the Hybrid.

2019 Hyundai Santa Fe previewed in official renderings

As we near its official reveal in Geneva, Hyundai is trickling out more teasers of the 2019 Santa Fe crossover SUV. This time, instead of a dark photo, the company released a pair of renderings of the new family car. From what we can tell, it's like a huge, subtle Kona. At the front, we can see the SUV version of Hyundai's corporate "Cascade" grille complete with mesh insert instead of the slats found on Hyundai cars. The most obvious connection between this and the Kona are the headlights. It appears illumination may be split between slim, angry lamps high up, and a set of extra lamps lower in the fascia. The front fascia also looks more upright and tough than that of the current model. From what we've seen in spy photos, the front fascia seen in the rendering will translate very closely to real life. The illustrations also suggest the new Santa Fe will have much more sculpted, detailed flanks, too. Bolder plastic cladding shows up on the rocker panels, complete with contrasting aluminum brightwork. Another nod to the Kona shows up in the wheel arches. The creases rise up at the back, similar to the Kona's plastic flares. The rendering also shows a crease just below the windows running along the length of the Santa Fe. Looking at the last teaser image of the actual crossover, this crease is quite prominent. At the rear, the plastic cladding continues along the bottom. The hatch also looks more sculpted than the plain slab of the current model. It also appears to be raked forward more. But the forward rake is countered by the window line on the sides that rises upward. As mentioned with the front fascia, comparing these renderings to spy shots and the previous teaser, it looks like the production Santa Fe will look very much like it does here. Only the exaggerated things like the ultra-slim windows and massive wheels with rubber-band tires will be altered by the hands of rational, practical engineers. As such, the Santa Fe should be a pretty handsome family hauler, and a slightly bigger one than its predecessor, when it makes its debut at the Geneva show in March. Related Video: