BMW i Hydrogen Next, hydrogen comes to the German brand's SUVs

It is called the BMW i Hydrogen Next and previews the brand’s range of vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel cells. Following the partnership between BMW and Toyota, the result is the expansion of the BMW line-up with alternative fuels from 2022. The brand with the propeller has confirmed its plans to begin offering a hydrogen fuel cell version of one of its flagship models. This is the BMW X5, which was shown during the Frankfurt Motor Show.

BMW has confirmed that this zero-emission vehicle will enter production on a small scale in 2022, using technology being developed by a third company jointly designed with Toyota.

This zero-emission SUV from BMW is planned as a precursor to a range of hydrogen fuel cell cars that BMW already has in development and plans to begin offering in 2025 at the earliest. However, the German manufacturer says the timing of the introduction of hydrogen-powered models “depends largely on market requirements and general conditions.”

The statement is seen mainly as a reference to China, which introduced incentives for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles earlier this year as part of a broader strategy aimed at providing a long-range zero-emission solution for larger commercial and passenger vehicles.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0omcXjkxXU&t=4s

BMW i Hydrogen Next, this is what the hydrogen-powered BMW X5 will look like

However, sources at BMW have commented that the decision to introduce hydrogen fuel cell vehicles will not depend solely on developments in China; it will also be driven by other key markets, including Europe and North America.

Despite high production costs, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are gaining acceptance as an alternative to battery electric vehicles, partly because they can offer refuelling times and ranges similar to those of petrol and diesel cars. The only by-product of the chemical process that allows fuel cell vehicles to convert hydrogen and oxygen into electricity to drive a motor is water.

The i Hydrogen Next reveals that BMW’s latest hydrogen fuel cell technology can be integrated into existing models with minimal design changes. No technical details of the drivetrain have been made public, although BMW confirms that its FIZ research and development operation in Munich, Germany, has been testing a small fleet of Series 5 Gran Turismo prototypes equipped with a fuel cell stack drivetrain system. This has been developed jointly with Toyota since 2015.

At a technical workshop in 2015, BMW revealed that the Series 5 Gran Turismo prototypes used a hydrogen fuel cell stack in combination with a two-speed automatic gearbox and a rear-mounted electric motor producing up to 188 CV. It claimed this combination delivered performance on a par with the now-replaced 520d.

To demonstrate the packaging possibilities of its alternative drive system, BMW also built a prototype based on the BMW i8 in 2015. It used a similar hydrogen fuel cell in combination with a more powerful 242 CV electric motor. Since then, it has been rumoured that BMW has added plug-in hybrid capability to its hydrogen fuel cell programme by adding a lithium-ion battery, as Mercedes-Benz has done with its new fuel cell Mercedes-Benz GLC.