Between September 20 and October 22, 2007, Iwatani International Corporation led a caravan of hydrogen combustion and fuel cell vehicles from one end of Japan to the other. Kozue Nitta from Mazda's Corporate Communications and Liaison Division joined the caravan to report on the departure ceremony held in Tanegashima and its progress through the 5 prefectures of the Chugoku region, where Mazda's headquarters are located.
A departure ceremony was held in front of Tanegashima Space Center, at the southern end of Japan, to see the caravan on its way.
On the day before the departure, we held a test drive event for staff working at the space center, where Mazda's unique hydrogen rotary engine vehicle attracted a great deal of attention.
When an announcement was made to close the event, we heard someone saying, "I haven't tried the Hydrogen RX-8 yet!" We were extremely pleased that people were so interested.
On Thursday September 20, it was finally time to depart. The weather was fantastic. While Mazda's headquarters in Hiroshima were enjoying a hot September, down in Tanegashima, the scorching heat felt like it was still mid-summer.
The space center's launch tower watched over the caravan's departure ceremony.
A Shinto priest bestowed a blessing upon us for a successful journey.
Mr. Nagoe, town mayor of Minamitane, Mr. Sonoda, director of the Space Center, and Mr. Nishida from Iwatani International Corporation added their signatures to the caravan's flag.
The caravan had decided to adopt Japan's national flag! It seemed to represent everyone's desire to spread support for hydrogen throughout the nation.
The vehicles are finally off on their arduous 4,500 km trek across Japan. The Mazda RX-8 Hydrogen RE Iwatani, which is under lease to Iwatani International Corporation, leads off the caravan.
On September 25, 5 days after setting off, the caravan passed through Kyushu island and entered the Chugoku area of the main island, in which Mazda's headquarters are located. Members of staff from Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) and Mazda joined the caravan for a tour around local schools and facilities.
They took two additional vehicles with them, the "Mazda RX-8 Hydrogen RE Yamaguchi," which is on lease to Yamaguchi Prefecture, and another hydrogen vehicle owned by Mazda.
To reaffirm the spirit of the caravan, a second ceremony was held at the Yamaguchi Prefectural Industrial Technology Institute in Ube city, in the Chogoku region. A large gathering of hydrogen and fuel cell vehicles is still a rare sight, and the event was well attended by members of the public and the media.
Wednesday September 26 was another fine day. We visited two schools in Yamaguchi prefecture to spread the word about hydrogen; Konan Junior High School in Shunan during the morning and Nan'yo Kogyo High School in the afternoon.
Mr. Morimoto, who is in charge of hydrogen vehicle development at Mazda, explained how the hydrogen vehicle works.
The audience listened attentively with bright eyes as the cars of the future were described: "Nothing comes out of the exhaust except water vapor. It doesn't even have a smell."
The students were also treated to a ride in the cars. It's easy to enjoy Mazda's hydrogen vehicle because the ride feels almost identical to that of a gasoline powered car. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. We heard lots of positive comments such as, "Running on hydrogen is cool!" and "I loved it!!" A big thank you to everyone who took part.
On Thursday, September 27, the Mazda RX-8 Hydrogen RE's returned to their home with the caravan. Mazda's site is also home to the only hydrogen station in the Chugoku region, and a refueling ceremony was held.
At the ceremony, Mr. Sugita from the Chugoku Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry, Mr. Nishida of Iwatani International Corporation and Mazda's executive officer in charge of R&D, Mr. Kanai, all pledged to promote the spread of hydrogen cars through a joint effort between government, hydrogen supplier and hydrogen vehicle manufacturer.
Here in Hiroshima, the birthplace of Mazda's RX-8 Hydrogen RE, the Hiroshima prefecture and city government bureaus joined the caravan in their hydrogen vehicles. There were now four RX-8 Hydrogen RE models traveling in convoy, which was quite a spectacle.
Before moving on, we visited the Hiroshima Municipal Technical High School. Here, Mr. Kashiwagi, who is the program manager in charge of the RX-8 Hydrogen RE development program, delivered the lecture. Over 320 students turned up to hear him speak.
I wonder how many of these students will go on to become future hydrogen vehicle engineers.
Although there were many other happy encounters during the long trip across Japan, I will close my report here.
The hydrogen vehicles made it through the five prefectures of the Chugoku region on October 2, and reached their final goal in Wakkanai, Hokkaido on October 22. The great caravan across the nation had finally come to its successful conclusion.
Looking ahead, Mazdafs hydrogen vehicles will continue to appear at various events. When you see a Mazda RX-8 Hydrogen RE in your neighborhood, please be sure to give it a wave!