BMW to produce hydrogen car
Limited edition 'enviro-friendly' motor
BMW Hydrogen 7
Destined to make its first public appearance on 28 November at the Los Angeles Motor Show, the Hydrogen 7 will be built in limited numbers and offered to selected users in 2007.
The BMW Hydrogen 7 is based on the existing 7 Series and comes equipped with an internal combustion engine capable of running on liquid hydrogen or petrol. In hydrogen mode, the car emits just water vapour.
Curiously, BMW said that the Hydrogen 7 is "powered by a 260hp 12-cylinder engine", and gets "from zero to 62mph in 9.5 seconds before going on to an electronically limited 143mph top speed".
This implies that the car is powered by the 3.0-litre six-cylinder motor that sits in the entry-level 730i -- although that machine gets to 60mph in 7.8 seconds, so you can infer that the weight of the hydrogen tank is substantial. PH is investigating this apparent anomaly.
With its unique dual power engine, the driver of a Hydrogen 7 can switch quickly and conveniently from hydrogen to conventional petrol power at the press of a steering wheel-mounted button. The dual power technology means the car has a cruising range in excess of 125 miles in the hydrogen mode with a further 300 miles under petrol power. To make this possible the BMW Hydrogen 7 comes with a conventional 74-litre petrol tank and an additional hydrogen fuel tank holding up to 8kgs of liquid hydrogen. Such flexibility means the driver of a BMW Hydrogen 7 is able to use the vehicle at all times, even when the nearest hydrogen filling station is out of range.
Engine power and torque in the Hydrogen 7 remain exactly the same regardless of which fuel is in current use. The driver can switch between the two without any effect on driving behaviour or performance. The car always gives priority to the use of hydrogen but, should this run out, it automatically switches to petrol power.
BMW reckoned that, unlike many previous hydrogen concept cars, the Hydrogen 7 is a production-ready vehicle, which has met all the stringent processes and final sign-off criteria that every current BMW model undergoes.
A total of 100 BMW Hydrogen 7s will be built in 2007. Details on pricing and the destinations of the 100 cars will be announced at a later date.
Why hydrogen?
The BMW Group has been committed to hydrogen technology as a means of reducing car emissions, in particular CO2 emissions, for over 20 years. Unlike fossil fuels from which petrol is derived, hydrogen is available in virtually infinite supply -- when renewable energies such as solar, wind and wave power are used to produce the liquid hydrogen. Stored in a tank that keeps the fuel at a pressure of 3-5 bar and a consistent temperature of -250°C, liquid hydrogen offers significant advantages in energy density compared to other possible alternative fuel sources to enhance the cruising range of the car.
BMW didn't say how much weight the high pressure tank adds to the car, nor what effect this might have on handling. It also didn't comment on the progress it's making on the development of environmentally-friendly hydrogen production and distribution systems.
Update
BMW has confirmed that the car is based on the 760i, and that the engine in the Hydrogen 7 is the 5.9-litre V12. A BMW spokesman said that the motor's cylinder head has been altered to account for hydrogen's different burning characteristics, which accounts for the some of the lower output -- the V12 normally puts out a healthy 445bhp. He also said that the car weighs almost 300Kg more than the standard 760i's 2,180Kg due to the weight of the extra plumbing and the high-pressure tank, which accounts for the sluggish performance.
Update added 15:44, 14 Nov 2006
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