The Lexus Hydrogen UTV Actually Exists

It has been almost two years since we puzzled over the announcement that Lexus had built a hydrogen-powered luxury side-by-side concept. In this industry, that is an absolute eon. Long enough, in fact, that we had quite forgotten about Lexus’ weird little foray into recreational off-highway vehicles. But thanks to our buddy Caleb Jacobs at The Drive, we were reminded this week of Lexus’ beautiful madness.

It turns out that the Lexus UTV was a collaboration between Lexus, Yamaha, and suspension supplier KYB. Essentially, it’s a Yamaha YXZ1000R with a Toyota Mirai hydrogen cell feeding the stock Yamaha 1,000cc parallel twin. It’s apparently only making about 80 percent of the stock YXZ’s modest horsepower, though it is still more than enough to blast through the woods at scary speeds.

Interestingly, the whole rig was built with sustainable materials, down to the mineral oil and palm oil used in place of traditional suspension and hydraulic oils. Also, since the “Lexus” is basically a development mule, it’s not exactly luxurious. Still, Lexus had to add at least one opulent touch, so the stock Yamaha steering wheel got a pasted-on Lexus badge and a hilariously homemade-looking leather wrap.

We were stoked on this concept when it came out, and we’re glad to see that not only does it still exist, but Lexus is still proud enough of it to be handing out rides.

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