Hopkins, 61, first dabbled in exploring the possibility of alternate-energy cars as he wrote a science-fiction story in 1988.

"I thought outside the box, developing things beneficial to mankind," he said. "I came up with the idea of a hydrogen-powered car, but because oil was so plentiful, I put it aside."

Hopkins, who spent more than four years in the Air Force, admitted he has no background in engineering, but numbers, science and rocketry have all been passions since an early age. He studied business and economics at Amarillo College and said burning liquid hydrogen for fuel "isn't the most inefficient use of hydrogen."

Hopkins' design involves a tank of common tap water, a packet of sea salt and a "receptacle tank," where hydrogen extracted from water by electrolysis would be stored to power the vehicle's engine.

"Saline water makes the best environment for extracting hydrogen," he said. "All you need is enough hydrogen to get the car going, a fuel tank of water and a receptacle tank. You're making the (hydrogen) gas as you go."

Hopkins said he still doesn't have answers to some questions concerning the practicality of a hydrogen-powered vehicle, but "the system, in principle, is sound. I don't know why it wouldn't work.

"My wife, Judy, said, 'If it was that simple, they would've done it already." That's what I thought back in 1988. I don't know why everything's so complicated -- you separate hydrogen and oxygen."

Google, the Internet search engine, came up with more than 85,000 hits on the phrase "hydrogen-powered cars."

Some say that hydrogen-powered vehicles are not the answer, but a number of articles report on the progress being made in its development. A team of scientists at the University of Liverpool in England developed a "cat flap" similar to Hopkins' design.

And AUTOADVICE.ABOUT.COM argues the pros and cons of hydrogen-powered vehicles. Start-up costs seem to be a major factor in converting the world's gasoline-powered engines to accept hydrogen.

To modify a vehicle's engine so it can use other fuels, including hydrogen and natural gas costs, about $30,000, said Tai Robinson of Snowbird, Utah, who, with business partner Ernest Eich talked to the Durango, Colo., Herald about Robinson's Toyota Tacoma, powered by hydrogen.

Once the mechanics of the theory are overcome, Hopkins said, it should be easy to implement -- in a perfect world.

"Maybe it's so simple," he said. "Not everything has to be terribly complicated."

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