Earlier this week, Nissan delivered the first retail customer's LEAF EV, and today Mercedes-Benz has delivered its first customer-leased B-Class F-CELL hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle to another California resident. Unlike the LEAF, the F-CELL isn't quite ready for mass sale, but the test lease program is part of ongoing development work on a production hydrogen-powered EV.
At $850 per month, the F-CELL isn't a cheap way into the cutting-edge EV realm, but with only 70 of the vehicles up for lease, it's an exclusive platform. Over the next three years, lucky lessees will be testing the vehicles and, presumably, treating them like regular cars in the process. The data collected from use patterns and customer response will no doubt go to improve the next round of Mercedes fuel-cell cars.
Read up on the 54-mpge F-CELL and its merits at GreenCarReports.
[Mercedes-Benz]
