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Toyota is claiming that that its latest fuel cell vehicle, which has just received certification from the Japanese authorities, improves the range and the ability to start at low temperatures.

The FCHV-adv vehicle was approved by Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on 3 June and will be one of the vehicles used at the G8 Summit in Japan in July.

The fuel cell system membrane electrode assembly has been adapted to reduce the amount of water produced so that it interferes less with the electricity generation at low temperatures. This improves start-up and Toyota says the new vehicle can be started and operate in temperatures as low as -30°C.

In addition, the company is claiming fuel efficiency improvements of up to 25 per cent through better fuel cell performance, enhanced regenerative braking and cuts in the energy consumed by auxiliary systems.

With the introduction of Toyota's 70 MPa high pressure hydrogen tanks, the car can travel around 830 km on a single fuelling, which is more than double the range achieved by the original FCHV.