Honda hits the hydrogen highway

Honda wants the FCX to look and feel upscale, as a car that leases for $600 a month should. With a two-layer instrument cluster, its design is similar to that in a Honda Civic

A large central gauge, shown here, displays what the car's electric motor is doing moment by moment. A tachometer shows how fast the motor is spinning. It goes below zero because sometimes the motor acts as a generator. Driven by a device in the car's brakes, the motor can spin backwards, producing electricity that it sends back to the batteries.

A circle in the center indicates how much hydrogen is being used. When no hydrogen is being consumed, the circle is small and blue. As more hydrogen flows to the fuel cell, the ball grows and changes from blue to green to orange to yellow.

Blue shading to the right of the "hydrogen ball" indicates how much hydrogen is left in the tank.

NEXT: Room for luggage