The improvements to Hyundai’s third-gen hydrogen fuel cell vehicle have finished. A test will be prepared this year with a mass display planned for 2015. Fuel cells are considered one of the most effective ways of producing an electric vehicle.
The Tucson iX Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEV) will be able to travel about 650 kilometers on a single charge, due to a 100-kilowatt fuel cell system and two hydrogen storage tanks. This is similar to a gas-powered vehicle and represents a 76% advance over the second generation Tucson FCEV, which couldn’t travel for more than 370 kilometers, which is a little more than a half of what the current-generation Tucson can.
The previous Tucson iX’s system had 20% less volume of the fuel cell system. So, the quantity and the resistance to cold are of major importance for fuel cell vehicles. The futuristic vehicle will be able to start in low temperatures such as -25 degrees Celsius.
The car was built using lightweight, high-performance aluminum body components and with advanced safety features.
It seems that the vehicle represents a part of a “Domestic Fleet Program,” which is sustained by the Korean government. 95 percent of the vehicle’s components are fabricated in South Korea.
There are many projects on fuel cell vehicles worldwide, initiated by carmakers like General Motors or Mercedes Benz. One of the problems that the fuel cell vehicle owners will have to face for the moment is the absence of filling stations, but this is going to get fixed pretty fast, as oil companies and other private smaller firms already invest in a hydrogen infrastructure all around the US, with government subsidies as their reward.
