The Hughes 1925 Doble e-22 and custom built steam car

Howard Hughes paid a couple engineers for a couple of years to engineer a steam powered car that would go 400 miles without refilling the water, and could start in about as little time as a gas car

They accomplished it, but not to his satisfaction with safety... see, to conserve water they had heat exchangers throughout the body of the car, condensing the steam back to supply water... closed loop.

But he wouldn't have a car that would scald the occupants in a car collision. So he had it destroyed.

The long form of that short synopsis is at http://acdclub.org/forum/cord-l-29-acd-forums/4477-howard-hughes-car-info