Honda has released pricing info for the lease-only hydrogen-electric plug-in hybrid SUV, the 2025 CR-V e:FCEV.
As we reported earlier, the compact 5-seat SUV will be available only through a select network of California dealers – six in Southern California, five in the Bay Area and one near Sacramento.
The two, three, and six-year leasing terms give the CR-V e:FCEV (fuel cell electric vehicle) a retail value of $50,000. All include a hefty credit for the vehicle’s hydrogen fuel, which is now selling at the gasoline-equivalent of about $17 a gallon at the limited number of retail hydrogen stations in the three leasing areas.
The automaker said it expects most hydrogen Honda customers to opt for the three-year, 36,000-mile term, which will run $459 a month after a $2,959 initial payment and includes a $15,000 hydrogen fuel credit.
A high-mileage term of two years and 60,000 miles for the hydrogen Honda will run $489 monthly after a $2,989 initial payment and will include a $25,000 fuel credit.
There’s also a six-year, 72,000-mile lease for $389 per month with a $2,889 initial payment. It includes a $30,000 fuel credit.
The EPA rates the hydrogen Honda at 57 mpg-equivalent for combined city (61 mpg-equivalent) and highway (52 mpg-e) driving. That means that $15,000 worth of fuel at the present price would be good for about 25,000 miles of mixed city and highway driving- fewer miles than permitted under the three-year lease.
The 57 mpg-e fuel efficiency rating gives the CR-V e:FCEV an estimated 270 miles of range. That includes up to 29 miles of all-electric range from its grid-charged 17.7 kWh PHEV battery and 241 miles on electricity generated by the SUV’s on-board fuel cell stack, which breaks down hydrogen to produce electricity.
The CR-V e:FCEV’s two high-pressure fuel tanks hold a total of 4.3 kilograms of compressed hydrogen, which carry the energy equivalent of 4.3 gallons of gasoline.
The leases all include up to 21 days’ free use of a rental vehicle from Avis – in California only – as well as round-the-clock roadside assistance.
Because it doesn’t have an internal combustion engine, the hydrogen Honda also is eligible for California’s single-occupant HOV lane sticker. The program is slated to expire on Sept. 30, 2025, though, so won’t give CR-V e:FCEV drivers much more than a year of benefit unless the state legislature renews it (which it has done several times in the past).