Hydrogen Car News / Alternative Fuel Blog

With increasing fuel prices, ongoing environmental concerns and updated emissions rulings, hybrid and alternative fuel vehicles are clearly the wave of the future.  If cars such as the Toyota Prius have not lured you to purchase a more fuel-efficient vehicle, the high end hybrids hitting the markets are sure to attract your attention.

 

The Hybrid and Hydrogen Concepts

 

The Scientific Alliance explained the science behind the hybrid and hydrogen concepts for greener, leaner cars.  Hybrids use both electric and fuel power.  Battery power only takes a car a short distance and companies are coupling the battery pack with an engine.  With two power sources, the car uses the petrol engine at higher speeds and switches back to electric at lower speeds.  When you are coasting or braking, the captured energy is used to charge the battery for the electric motor.  Driving a hybrid means using less fuel.

 

Another concept to improve fuel efficiency is using hydrogen, doing away with diesel and petrol completely.  Hydrogen is used instead of other fuels and water vapor is emitted from the car pipes for cleaner emissions.  Already a few cars and buses were built using fuel cells that get power from hydrogen.   With luxury and efficiency in mind, BWM built a handful of 7-series cars with a traditional petrol engine that burns hydrogen.

 

Vision of A Cleaner, Meaner BMW

 

Although the concept only exists in Car Magazine, George Kacher worked with the leading automotive engineers to come up with a blueprint for an even more efficient BMW coupe with 300 horsepower.  Kacher named the BMW of the future Vision Z, with hybrid and diesel models offering even greater efficiency.

 

In the May issue of Car Magazine, Kacher states, “Does Vision Z sound like science fiction?  It shouldn’t. Hybrids, start/stop systems, downsized engines, multi-material chassis, plastic panels and brake-by-wire all feature on today’s cars. This is just the next step.” With regard to the car being a “vision”, Kacher goes on to say it is, “based upon actual research projects and detailed interviews with leading engineers. It’s a natural extension of the lead that BMW has taken with its Efficient Dynamics program.”  Kacher estimates we may see a car like the Vision Z by the year 2018. 

 

The bottom line is the Vision Z would have a six cylinder petrol engine generating 400 horsepower.  Cylinder deactivation and direct injection emit 200 g/km of carbon dioxide and the driver gets 35 mpg.  The Vision Z seeks to surpass the Porsche Cayman S, which emits 254 g/km and gets 15 mpg.  A four-cylinder turbocharged version of the Vision Z would compete with the Honda Civic, which emits 139 g/km and gets 29 mpg.  Finally, the hybrid version of the Vision Z would be similar to the Opel Flextreme and Chevy Volt with a diesel or gas engine to charge the batteries for the electric motor.

 

Kacher says about the Vision Z, “ It might be hyperbole to describe Vision Z as the car BMW can’t afford to ignore, but the risk of not building it would certainly outweigh any reservations.”  Since BMW sold 44,421 7-Series sedans last year, this promises to be a green, profitable project.

 

Bentley Goes Green

 

Bentley is joining in the green movement, recently releasing a 17-page document about their commitment to lower carbon dioxide emissions and raising fuel economy.  Ten apprentices devoted their evenings and weekends to build a battery-powered electric car called Continental DC. 

 

The small car only weighs 265 pounds but can hit an impressive 40 mph on its own.  The Continental DC is powered by a 24-volt electric motor, offering 0.5 horsepower with 5.1 pound feet of torque fueled by two 12-volt batteries.  While you show off your green, lean machine, you sit in a cockpit with Alcantra faux suede, soft hide and a diamond stitching for a bit of bling in your Bentley.

 

Get Your Green On

 

While many people hesitate about buying a Toyota Prius because of aesthetics, as more luxury car manufacturers go green more drivers will follow.  After all, we cannot afford to continue compromising our environment while fuel prices steadily soar.

Thank you for checking out our hydrogen car news section.

My Name is Derrick, and me and my friend Stacey will be updating this section of the web site around the 1st of every month with the latest news from the hydrogen car/alternative fuel industry.

We both have full time jobs so while we probably won’t respond to every posting/question… every comment made will help us learn what everyone wants to know about so please… comment away!. We will try to address as many questions as possible in our monthly updates as well, or at least summarize some of the most frequently asksed/talked about subjects.

We are both very excited about the recent hype around alternative fuels and we know that things are heading in the right direction. If you are hoping to save money on fuel, lower our dependence on foreign oil, help our environment, or just generally have a passion for cars I think we can all agree that this is an exciting time, and we cannot wait to watch things develop.