GM already has a fleet of prototype vehicles, which are essentially test vehicles.

Gm says it's making steady progress to have a fuel cell ready car in the 2010 to 2015 time frame.

Last spring, Senator Hillary Clinton visited the plant as gm presented the first fuel cell truck to the U.S. Army. Fuel cell technology has tremendous implications for the military by improving fuel economy, and reducing the burden that logistics plays in maintaining a fuel supply chain to all corners of the world. The main fuel, hydrogen, can be produced much closer to the battlefield and cuts the need to transport gasoline in ships. “What a fuel cell is, it takes hydrogen and as a fuel and combines it with oxygen from the air to produce electricity that drives the vehicle. And it's basically a high fuel economy, zero emission vehicle,” said O'Connell.

A month ago Congresswoman Louise Slaughter met with GM CEO and Chairman Richard Wagoner and he says health care costs were a major issue.

In Rochester Monday Mrs. Slaughter said the future of the auto industry in this country doesn't look good. “I know that the Congress stands ready to everything it can to keep jobs here. But once a corporation has determined to go, there's very little you can do about it. I'm pleased to see that we're not on any list today, nor is Delphi, which is very important to us as well. Time will tell.”

The decision to locate GM’s fuel cell technology in Honeoye Falls is based primarily in the fact that so many of its researchers lived here.  They previously worked at the local Delphi technical center when that was part of GM.