Honda to race hydrogen-powered CR-V at Pikes Peak
The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb isn’t known for subtlety. It’s 12.4 miles of altitude, aggression and apexes – 156 of them, in fact – climbing from 9,390 feet to 14,115 above sea level.
The ‘Race to the Clouds’ has seen some outrageous machines over the years. Sébastien Loeb’s Peugeot 208 T16 tore up the mountain in 8 minutes, 13 seconds.
Nobuhiro ‘Monster’ Tajima hit the summit in a 900hp twin-engined Suzuki. And in 1985, Michèle Mouton roared her flame-spitting Audi Quattro to the top in under 12 minutes.
So it’s fitting that Honda has chosen it as the proving ground for something quietly radical…
A mid-sized family plug-in crossover.
Wait, before you slam down your screen in disgust – this is the first hydrogen fuel cell vehicle ever entered into the race.
Honda are pulling up with a lightly modified version of the 2025 CR-V e:FCEV – now available for lease in California – on June 22, with pro driver Dai Yoshihara behind the wheel.
No changes under the skin
Honda says the CR-V e:FCEV will race in the ‘Exhibition Class’ with no modifications whatsoever to its zero-emission drivetrain.
It’ll be powered by the same second-generation Honda fuel cell system you’ll find in the showroom car, co-developed with GM and built in Michigan.
Same front-mounted electric motor, same 17.7 kWh battery pack, same two high-pressure hydrogen tanks.
Even the plug-in functionality is intact – though there’s no charging point at the summit.
Instead, the car’s been given the usual race essentials: uprated brake pads, lightweight 18-inch wheels on some fancy Yokohama rubber, lowered suspension, a racing seat and a full racing roll cage, fabbed by Honda of America Race Team.
Fuelled by a suitcase
Hydrogen at Pikes Peak? Not something you just pick up at the local petrol station. But no worries – because Honda’s sorted that, too.
The CR-V will be refuelled during the event by Zero Emission Industries (ZEI) using a portable unit called the FTcase – essentially a miniaturised hydrogen station.
It takes in gaseous hydrogen and delivers standard-compliant refuelling, operated by only a single technician. No on-site infrastructure needed.
A familiar face behind the wheel
Pilot duties fall to Dai Yoshihara, a Pikes Peak veteran with five entries under his belt and a 2020 Unlimited Class win to his name.
He’s also a two-time Formula Drift champion and currently races for Honda in IMSA’s Michelin Pilot Challenge.
Honda’s Pikes Peak legacy
This isn’t Honda’s first emissions-free foray up the mountain. The firm’s zero-emissions hill climb record dates back to 1994, when a Civic wagon EV conversion took top honours in the inaugural EV class.
They repeated the feat in 1999 and 2014, then came close to breaking the nine-minute barrier in 2016 with a four-motor NSX-bodied electric concept.
But this is the first time a hydrogen fuel cell has been let loose on the mountain – and in a production-spec car, no less.
Hydrogen hybrid on lease
The 2025 CR-V e:FCEV is the first hydrogen passenger car built in the US and the first to pair a fuel cell with plug-in hybrid tech.
Honda claims a 270-mile EPA-rated range using hydrogen and 29 miles of all-electric driving from the battery alone. Total output is 174hp and 229 lb-ft of torque.
It’s a niche product for now – leased only in California – but the fact it’s being put through its paces at America’s most demanding hill climb speaks volumes about Honda’s confidence in the drivetrain.
A fuel cell family crossover, running on hydrogen, climbing a mountain. If it makes it to the top without a hitch – and Dai’s track record suggests it will – expect a few more eyes on hydrogen’s potential beyond the lab.
