Nissan considering fuel cell powered sports car
If the Nissan GT-R isn't high tech enough for you, you might want to consider waiting around for the middle of the next decade. According to Autocar, Nissan is considering producing a sports car with a hydrogen fuel cell powertrain. The rationale behind the consideration is to commercialize the advanced drive system by offering in it a premium vehicle. With the hydrogen fuel cell powertrain fitted to either a sports or luxury car, it could also be packaged either with high-end features or high performance that would entice buyers to pay high prices.
Nissan recently became the first acknowledged automaker to run a fuel cell vehicle at the Nurburgring with its X-Trail FCV. While its time was nothing to get excited about, its worth remembering that fuel cell vehicles are electrically driven with the fuel cell converting hydrogen to electricity. The Tesla Roadster has clearly demonstrated that electric drive and high performance are not incompatible, so a fuel cell vehicle with a suitably size battery providing bursts of energy for accelerating as well as storing energy from regenerative braking could certainly be tuned for performance. Last year, Ford took a fuel cell-powered Fusion to over 200 mph at Bonneville so top speed is hardly an issue. If Nissan does go forward with such a vehicle, a decision would happen in early 2009, production beginning approximately five years later.
[Source: AutoCar]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Kumail 6:02PM (8/15/2008)
if they build it, and if it's priced nicely (doubt it), nissan may have an awesome car. or they could just make a sentra coupe with the SE-R variants, or both. that would just make my day.
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Red 6:21PM (8/15/2008)
I would think the concept would better suit supporting electric vehicles over hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, but I do understand the theory behind using a fuel cell car as the "halo" to try to offset prices so the technology could be used in less expensive vehicles. I just think the hydrogen infastructure is still quite a ways off, even if the products are not. Bush's 2003 State of the Union speech addressed and outlined a hydrogen-based infastructure, but nearly 6 years on, all things considered, we're really no closer than we were before he gave the speech.
I would presume this would launch as an Infiniti product before it would be a Nissan, though.
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Cameron 6:46PM (8/15/2008)
Regarding a Hydrogen infrastructure, think of a future where we run hydrogen fuel cell vehicles but still fill the cars with traditional liquid fuel.
http://www.motortrend.com/features/editorial/112_0808_technologue/index.html
DasBoese 6:55PM (8/15/2008)
Well, considering the cost of fuel cells and hydrogen tanks, especially in a high-performance context, such a car would have to be somewhere near Veyron territory to pull it off. Possible, but -like all hydrogen fuel cell cars- nothing more than a PR stunt.
The problem is, by 2014 the next generation of battery-electric vehicles and RE-EVs will easily outperform it. Keep in mind that a fuel cell car is basically a RE-EV, only with a really expensive and inefficient range extender.
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BoxerFanatic-formerlyMK 9:37PM (8/15/2008)
until there is a large enough energy margin between recovering hydrogen and using it, Hydrogen is not a viable energy medium.
There is no way to market it. No way to feed your family by selling it.
There isn't an alternative energy source on the market that can handle the volume on a profitable level. Profit pays the bills, and feeds the family at home. Profit makes the investement attractive for people with money to spend the money.
Hydrogen has a lot of accounting, and technical drawbacks.
Energy in is much higher than energy out. Big kicker.
Hydrogen storage is low density, and hydrogen leaks through materials with wide molecular structures. Leakage is waste, and enough leakage posts a flamability hazard.
Converting hydrogen into electricity (ie fuel cells) is expensive.
Electrical storage becomes an issue, as with any other electric locomotion devices. Batteries are less dense and less effective at storing energy in a finite space.
Sorry, but organic chemistry in liquid fuel form is the best medium of stored energy available, and the energy input is already done, and stored in the ground.
A paradigm shift is required in scientific knowledge, and then engineering capability, before anything else will replace petrochemicals as a ready energy source.
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Dausman 12:04PM (8/17/2008)
If your area is lucky enough to host the Hydrogen Road Tour, take the time to educate yourself a little better about the future of hydrogen power and what other countries are doing now to advance the world as whole so as to lessen/eliminate our dependence on carbon/petroleum based fuels.
It is all quite feasible witout experiencing most of the negatives you have pointed out. Most of the same concerns were addressed when gasoline was introduced way back when......gasoline is actually more dangerous.
Drive one or two of the hydrogen powered cars....you will probably be amazed, as I was , at the power of the vehicles...I drove a Nissan and Toyota....the drive itself is no different than driving todays' car...quieter and smoother though ...although with AC fan blowing and factory rep talking it was about the same noise level.
Hyundai, BMW, MB, VW offered ride and/or driving opportunnities for all visitors...a retro-fitted Chevy pickup was available for rides only..it is a truck used daily at a plant in Aiken,SC...they have their own fueling facility and that is where the Tour team/autos spent the night.
There were FCEV, FCHybrid vehicles and a 12cyl internal combustion engine powered 7 series BMW.
A hydrogen fueling station will open in Febuary 2009 here in Columbia , SC in time for the National Hydrogen Association's annual conference to be held here in March 2009. There are 62 fueling stations in the U.S. now....one at the time they will be built...connecting city to city...very slowly at first and in time, Hydrogen stations will be as common as gas stations are today.........it all won't happen overnight but it is conceivable that we will be able to fill our tanks at home with our own units that produce the fuel...plug it up at night and have a full tank in the morning.
I have doubted the viability of Hydrogen for a long time...I am now a convert...the future looks very bright and in ?? years our sky could be much cleaner too.....
until that future is reality, we should be driving as clean as we can with the stop gap vehicles that are available or will be available in the next couple of years...hybird, clean diesels, etc.......2010 it seems will the magical year when we see so many new vehicles.
Dave 11:21PM (8/15/2008)
Hydrogen just ain't going to happen. Sorry, DeLorenzo. Good PR but that's all. With the only infrastructure in like 5 places in the country...well...look at E85....it's been out for 10+ years. Where are we today?
Diesel. DIrect injection.
Nissan, are you listening?
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Dausman 3:39PM (8/17/2008)
Diesel will probably be my stop gap choice ONLY until hydrogen power is available.... and it will happen......
? is when.
Hopefully sooner than later. Until the, we need to utilize any and all alternatives to gasoline that are available....for more reasons than one.
See my reply to
BoxerFanatic(above)
thx