Toyota Motor North America is advancing its heavy-duty hydrogen truck operations with new fueling infrastructure in California and successful high-speed refueling tests.
The automaker's Hydrogen Headquarters (H2HQ) division recently installed two mobile hydrogen fueling devices at its North American Parts Center California (NAPCC) in Ontario, its largest U.S. parts distribution facility. The mobile units will support commercial logistics fleets hauling freight from the Port of Los Angeles to the Inland Empire, ahead of a permanent on-site station.
The facility will initially fuel heavy-duty trucks through Hyroad Energy before integrating vehicles equipped with Toyota's certified fuel cell powertrain.
High-speed refueling milestone
In a public-private partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy's National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR) in Golden, Colorado, Toyota has validated 70 MPa high-flow hydrogen fueling designed specifically for heavy-duty commercial transport.
The technology allows trucks to accept hydrogen at speeds up to 300 grams per second—roughly five times faster than conventional light-duty fueling and equivalent to the energy transfer rate of a 20-megawatt fast charger.
According to Toyota, engineers completed multiple rounds of testing adhering to SAE J2601-5 standards, demonstrating that Toyota-powered heavy-duty trucks can refuel in about eight minutes for a range of up to 450 miles, offering refueling times comparable to diesel trucks while emitting only water vapor.
Production trucks utilizing the technology are scheduled to begin commercial operations in 2027.
Expanding infrastructure
Over the coming months, Toyota plans to upgrade its private fueling infrastructure at its H2HQ facility in Gardena, California, to the high-flow standard for ongoing heavy-duty vehicle testing. The site will also receive new equipment for light passenger fuel cell electric vehicles to evaluate hardware reliability.
When the permanent, publicly available station at the NAPCC facility opens, it will offer both conventional and high-flow hydrogen fueling for heavy-duty trucks, alongside a dedicated area for light-duty vehicles.
H2HQ serves as Toyota's lead North American office for the development, engineering, and commercialization of hydrogen fuel cell technologies, collaborating with research and development hubs in Michigan, Texas, and international business units.
