2008 Los Angeles Auto Show: Honda FC Sport Concept

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What is it?
Honda FC Sport

What's special about it?
You might recall that Honda has been testing a fuel-cell car in the real world for quite some time now. It's called the FCX, and it's not exactly the most attractive car on the road. In fact, if you close your eyes and imagine what a fuel-cell car looks like, you'll probably imagine something much cooler-looking than the homely FCX.

More recently, Honda rolled out the FCX Clarity. It's a shapelier fuel-cell sedan, but unless you're into its technology, there's still not much to love. With that in mind, Honda's recently established Advanced Design Studio in Pasadena, California, dreamed up the FC Sport.

As its name implies, the FC Sport is a more extreme version of the typical fuel-cell vehicle. It's designed to not only attract attention, but also exploit the advantages of hydrogen power for improved performance. Although it uses roughly the same drivetrain components as the FCX Clarity, it strategically places them to help achieve a very low center of gravity and improved weight distribution.

A custom-formed fuel-cell stack sits up front, while the battery pack resides somewhere near the middle, just ahead of the electric motor. Behind that motor sit two storage tanks for the hydrogen fuel. They're visible through tinted windows and look as if they could have been pulled off a movie prop for Star Wars.

Then again, the whole vehicle has a certain otherworldly look to it. From the abrupt nose up front to the hexagonal, rocket-thruster rear end, the FC Sport is part exotic sports car, part spaceship. Details like Formula 1-style barge boards behind the front wheels and external cooling vents in back add to the effect, along with the 19-inch wheels and low-profile Pirelli P Zero tires.

Honda says the white exterior color was used to convey the vehicle's environmental friendliness, while the dark windows and wheels hint at its performance personality. Those dark-tinted windows also perform another role by concealing the fact that the interior is nonexistent. Honda says the theoretical setup would be similar to a McLaren F1, with a driver in the middle and two passengers on each side. Given the size of the FC Sport, we're guessing three adults would be a tight fit no matter how they're arranged.

Inside Line says: A rear end shaped like a jet fighter's afterburner? Seems like we've seen that design cue somewhere before. — Ed Hellwig, Lead Senior Editor