Merc shows fuel cell concept
Technology-stuffed vehicle runs on hydrogen
  Fuel cell & transmission  Under the bonnet   |
The DaimlerChrysler group is showing off its new fuel cell-powered car at the Tokyo Motor Show. It's one of many such vehicles that have been produced as concepts in recent years, as the industry tests alternative fuel technologies -- fuel cell propulsion is the current long-term front runner.
This one, the archly-named F600 Hygenius, is said to be 40 per cent more compact, more efficient, is better at cold starts -- fuel cells run hot -- and is the company's first fuel cell/battery hybrid. It's more powerful as a result, reckoned MB.
"This has been achieved thanks to the inclusion of innovations such as the redesigned fuel stacks, the electric turbocharger for supplying air and an all-new humidification and dehumidification system", said research director Professor Herbert Kohler.
The hydrogen-powered F600 returns the equivalent of about 99mpg and has an output of 115bhp and a peak torque of 258lb-ft. The car's range of 250 miles on a tank of hydrogen is, said the company, a record, although it gave no solution for the problem of fossil fuel-based hydrogen production.
How it works
Surplus energy is stored in a lithium-ion battery -- the same technology as powers your mobile phone -- and the system acts like a hybrid car, selecting the best power source to use depending on the driving situation.
When parking or manoeuvring, for instance, the electric motor draws its power from the battery alone, while both fuel cell and battery provide energy when the vehicle is accelerating. The electric motor doubles as a generator that charges the battery during vehicle braking by recuperating drive energy.
The drive technology, high-voltage battery and hydrogen tank are housed beneath the occupants, so saving space, while the electric motor is integrated into the rear-axle carrier.
Other technologies
Given that the machine is a concept and there's therefore little point in building it down to a price, MB has filled it with a number of conceptual widgets like drinks holders that can keep your drink either cold or hot, cameras everywhere so that the door opening mechanism is disabled if it spots a car or cyclist alongside the car, along with warnings if the driver moves to change lanes while there's a car in the adjacent lane.
There's also a range of other technologies that seem likely to show up in future cars such as the S Class, as featured here on PistonHeads (see link below). These include all-LED lighting inside and out, and greater use of head-up displays (HUD). Mercedes-Benz said that the Active Body Control system in today's CL-Class, S-Class and SL-Class cars is an example of technology transfer from research to production vehicles, along with windowbags, Active Light System, voice-operated control and the carbon-fibre bodyshell.
This is Merc's 11th such research vehicle since 1981. But will sound as good as a 6-litre V8 on full song?
