Karl Schlicht, executive vice-president Toyota Motor Europe, said: “This marks the debut of a new age for clean mobility, a turning point in the history of the automobile. With Mirai and its fuel cell technology, Toyota is working on delivering clean, safe and enjoyable mobility for the next 100 years. We are looking forward to the start of deliveries of the first Mirai to customers from September and to see the future taking shape on European roads.

“As with Prius 15 years ago, we are proud to bring yet another ground-breaking innovation to the marketplace.”

Mirai – the name means “future” in Japanese – is designed to be as convenient to drive as a conventional petrol-powered car. Hydrogen fuel is stored on board in high pressure tanks and used to generate electricity in a chemical reaction with oxygen in a Toyota-designed fuel cell stack. The energy produced is used to drive the car, with the only tailpipe emissions being water vapour. Refuelling from empty takes between three and five minutes at the pumps and Mirai has a driving range similar to conventionally powered vehicles.