The first of the hydrogen-powered Toyota Mirai’s heading for buyers in the UK and Europe have arrived on UK shores, ahead of delivery to end users.

The arrival of the Toyota Mirai on UK shores isn’t of itself a huge deal, but it does mark a step-change in the car market as the first hydrogen-powered cars land in the UK, and perhaps foreshadows a complete change in how we power our cars in the years to come.

Of course, the Toyota Mirai isn’t the only hydrogen-powered car on sale in the UK – if you try really hard you could probably get a Hyundai ix35 FCEV – but Toyota has already proved it can change buyers’ attitudes to alternately fuelled cars with the Prius, and we wouldn’t bet against them doing the same with the Mirai.

There are only 11 Mirais earmarked for the UK at the moment – and the demand for the Mirai means it’s unlikely we’ll be awash with them anytime in the near future – but they are the vanguard for an electric car that promises all the clean benefits of an EV but without the refuelling hassles and range anxiety.

Karl Schlicht, a Toyota Europe VP, 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.