The "Yamaha Direct Methanol Fuel Cell (DMFC) System" uses a liquid methanol-water solution for fuel, which eliminates the need for a converter and a pressurized (fuel) tank and thus makes it possible to create a lightweight system for a small vehicle requiring power in the 1 kW or less range without compromising on the bike's power. 

Optimizing the control parameters for the fuel cell system has allowed for an energy conversion rate for the FC-me that is 1.5 times that of the FC06 PROTO, and re-evaluation of the body components has lowered the bike to only 69 kg. The bike will be available for lease as of September 16 of this year.

Fuel cell systems using hydrogen gas as their fuel are most common but it is difficult to make a compact system of this type. The "Yamaha Direct Methanol Fuel Cell (DMFC) System" uses a liquid methanol-water solution as its fuel, which eliminates the need for a converter and a pressurized (fuel) tank and thus makes it possible to create a lightweight system for a small vehicle requiring power in the 1 kW or less range without compromising on power output characteristics.

Yamaha-"Based on survey data gathered from licensed public-road use of our "FC06 PROTO," a prototype mounting the Yamaha DMFC system, the advanced fuel cell motorcycle model "FC-me" has now been created with improved performance in areas like reliability and running distance. By optimizing the control parameters for the fuel cell system, Yamaha's engineers have achieved an energy conversion rate for the FC-me that 1.5 times that of the FC06 PROTO, while re-evaluation of the body components has made possible a light machine weight of just 69 kg. A contract has been signed with Shizuoka Prefecture to put this model in practical use on a lease basis as of September 16 of this year."