Honda's president and chief executive Takeo Fukui has confirmed that the FCX hydrogen fuel cell car and a hybrid sportscar will both be built.

The production version of the FCX will make its debut next month at the Los Angeles Motor Show, with the car going on sale in Japan and the US next year.

The CR-Z Concept, a small, sportier model, will also enter production and launch in 2009. “Hybrids have always been seen as niche products, and hybrid car design has mostly been based around practicality and versatility,” said John Kingston, environment manager at Honda UK. “The fact that we will be producing cars like this – and the global hybrid – proves that hybrid cars are becoming key volume products within our range. All of this means that Honda will be selling over 1/4 million hybrids a year by 2009.”