Day Three
Headed upstate 50 miles to my parents' house. On the Taconic State Parkway, the fuel cell Equinox gets its first reactions from other motorists: a subtle thumbs-up from the passenger in an Infiniti G35 and an emphatic thumbs-up from a motorcyclist, who then roars off up the parkway.
As is clear in the photos, the fuel cell Equinox is not lacking for signage. (The graphics, in case you're wondering, are a representation of a water molecule, H20, because water vapor is the car's only tailpipe emission. The color, Glacier Gold, which flips from gold to blue, is also supposed to suggest water; it was a production color on 2005-06 full-size Cadillacs.) "You're driving a conspicuous vehicle," GM tells fuel cell Equinox drivers, who are encouraged to drive as if people are watching - and they are.
On the way home we stop to pick up a gas grill and a guy in the parking lot of the Home Depot wants to know: Do I have any information on the fuel cell car? What does it run on? How much does it cost to fill up? Where can he find out more? I answer: No; hydrogen; it's hard to say; and General Motors' web site. I later discover that there are little pamphlets in the car (printed on recycled paper using soy-based inks, of course), and a better web site is: http://www.gm.com/explore/technology/fuel_cells/
I wasn't sure if the grill would fit, but it did. Like the standard Equinox, the fuel cell version has fold-down rear seats although these don't slide fore and aft. There is, however, a bump up in the cargo floor to accommodate the hydrogen tanks, and the battery and washer fill tank are relocated to the rear, and they impinge slightly on the cargo area. Still, I was able to slide in the cheapie Char-Broil after removing one side shelf.