Hydrogen cars get no respect. A lot of people consider them the stuff of science fiction, a technology as vaporous as the stuff that drives them. But despite some hurdles even Liu Xiang couldn't clear -- creating a fueling infrastructure comes to mind -- Uncle Sam and the big automakers love hydrogen cars and are driving across the country in a fleet of them to prove they work.

Even if they're occasionally hauled on trucks.

The old joke "Hydrogen is the fuel of tomorrow -- and always will be" isn't keeping Mazda from jumping on the H2 bandwagon and stuffing a dual-fuel rotary under the hood of the next RX-8. They might even dub it the RX-9.

Click above for a high-res gallery of the Mazda Taiki concept.

The rotary engine is world-renowned for many things, but fuel-efficiency isn't one of them. Mazda wants to make Wankel's masterpiece the poster child for its hydrogen-powered endeavors, so it's considering offering a dual-fuel version of the engine in its next RX-badged offering.

Hydrogen has been touted as a viable fuel source for decades, and seemingly every day, some new or upcoming hydrogen-powered milestone is reached or discussed. However, in nearly every case, hydrogen is being touted as a standalone fuel source. But what about using pure hydrogen mixed with gasoline to increase fuel economy and reduce emissions?

The undisputed champion of hydrogen fuel cell SUVs at the Nurburgring has been crowned: the Nissan X-Trail FCV. The winning time: 11:58. Of course, it's the winning time because it's the only time -- a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle has never ran the 'Ring before.

After piloting the 120 bhp X-Trail around the world for two years, Nissan engineer Frank Eickholt, decide it was time to take it to the track. The €1.3 million X-Trail was apparently hampered by moist tarmac, so you can expect a redo at some point in the future. Just when you thought the 'Ring craze was as hot as it could get, here come the hydro-powered vehicles to... pour some water on it...

[Source: ZerCustoms]

By Stuart Schwartzapfel

Lotus, the go-fast gurus who brought us the wonderful Elise and helped Tesla Motors with the Roadster, is developing a hydrogen fuel cell taxi that could be on the road by 2012 and hybrid Jaguar limo.

Click above for a high-res gallery of the Tiguan HyMotion

Volkswagen's hydrogen fuel cell Tiguan made its North American debut today, and it's a pretty slick bit of kit even if it won't appear in showrooms anytime soon, if at all.