The 2010s

The dawn of the hydrogen era with our Mirai fuel cell vehicle

Sustainability and environmental concerns are at the heart of everything we do. So it is probably no surprise that in the 2010s we continued to improve and adapt our electrified technology to move closer to our goal of creating the ultimate eco-car. Welcome to the world of the Mirai.

Targeting zero emissions

The 2015 launch of the Mirai in Europe, Toyota’s first mass-produced fuel cell vehicle, marked another significant step in this journey. Driven by our commitment to the environment, we were researching how we could develop a zero emissions car as early as the 1990s. With the benefit of our success with hybrid, we were able to use the principles of this technology to open up the potential of hydrogen as a clean and sustainable energy source.

Developing the hydrogen infrastructure

A condition to drive the Mirai or other fuel cell vehicles is access to convenient places to fill up. This means setting up a new infrastructure for the distribution and sale of hydrogen fuel. For this reason, we introduced the Mirai first in European markets where there is investment in developing and providing this kind of network. Our initial target countries included the UK, Germany, Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden, before we gradually launched the car in the rest of Europe.

Vast potential of hydrogen

Mirai commanded a great deal of attention, not least from leading European politicians who believed in its potential to open up a new age of sustainable, zero emissions mobility. Still today, we consider hydrogen to offer even greater opportunities, beyond transport. It has the potential to provide society with a viable, cleaner and abundant future source of energy.