The Toyota Mirai is sure to make a splash in its Hawaii debut at the First Hawaiian International Auto Show beginning Friday, and not just from the water that is the only emission from its tailpipe.

The car, whose name means "future" in Japa­nese, is in production in Japan where it is hand-assembled. It will be available for sale in Cali­for­nia later this year and could be in Hawaii To­yota dealers’ showrooms in mid-2016, said Glenn Ino­uye, senior vice president of Servco Pacific Inc., the parent company of Hawaii’s To­yota and Su­baru distributorships.

A preproduction model in Elemental Silver was made available for a news media sneak peek Tuesday morning in Servco’s Sand Island facility.

Under the hood of the Mirai is an electric motor, and toward the back are two impenetrable, bulletproof carbon-fiber tanks of hydrogen fuel with a capacity of about 11 pounds. In between the engine and the tanks is a fuel-cell stack "where the magic happens," said Maggie Clark, a To­yota product specialist who will be at the auto show at the Hawaii Convention Center to explain the vehicle to attendees.

The hydrogen enters the fuel-cell stack, where a chemical reaction creates electricity that powers the Mirai’s engine and sends water to the tailpipe, where emissions will total roughly half a personal-size water bottle over the course of 300 miles, she said.

The technology means the car weighs around 4,078 pounds, about 500 pounds heavier than a Camry, she said.

One feature is that the car can be used to power a house for up to a week, with up to 60 kilowatt-hours generated by the car’s fuel cells. "There’s no (carbon dioxide), so you can keep it running in a closed garage" for the duration of a power outage, Clark said.

The question of where to fuel them is a big one, and legislation to create Hawaii’s first hydrogen production and fueling site is making its way through the Legislature this session.

California is funding construction of some 100 stations in the state, while To­yota is funding the creation of 12 stations in East Coast states including New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts, Clark said.

The U.S. Department of Energy has made Cali­for­nia, Hawaii and the aforementioned East Coast states the focus for its Fuel Cells Program.

Hydrogen can be created domestically, decreasing dependence on imported oil, proponents say.

In addition to the Mirai, which is 100 percent hydrogen-powered, To­yota has converted 100 other vehicles into fuel-cell hybrids, such as a To­yota SUV on display at the Servco facility.

The cars are in testing across the U.S.