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no they're not a good idea at all. Hydrogen does not exist by itself for very long at all in nature. It wants to combine with other molecules, such as oxygen to make water. To make the pure hydrogen these cars require we have to crack the molecules, which takes a HELL of a lot of energy. That energy comes from coal, oil, gas, and nuclear power plants. You put more energy into cracking the hydrogen than you get from the hydrogen when you use it as a fuel. Hydrogen is an energy storage medium, not an energy producing medium.
In short, a hydrogen car will pollute far more and waste far more energy than a gas-powered car. The only difference is that the pollution/energy waste happens farther up the fuel chain than in a gas car.
The ONLY reason Bush & Co. are endorsing hydrogen cars is that a common source for getting hydrogen is methane, which is a by-product of oil wells. It's cheaper to get and more expensive when sold than oil is. In short, Bush's oil buddies stand to make a frigging FORTUNE if hydrogen cars become popular.
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