BMW has been focusing on petrol hybrids recently but hydrogen plans aren't forgotten, says Dick Ahlstrom
BMW has not abandoned its goal of developing a hydrogen-powered car, despite its current involvement in technologies associated with hybrid petrol/electric vehicles. Research into hybrid was only an interim measure according to a member of the company's board.
The hydrogen hybrid debate arose earlier this week during BMW's "Innovation Day 2006". Journalists brought by BMW to this international meeting in Munich were told about technological improvements meant to increase performance while at the same time increasing engine efficiency and reducing running costs.
A member of BMW's board of management, Prof Burkhard Göschel was on hand at the close of the meeting and he left little doubt about the company view on the development of a hydrogen-powered car.
The company would look at any technology that could help improve efficiency, including electricity generation from braking, he said last Monday. These technologies were only an "interim solution", he added, on the way to a car powered directly by hydrogen gas.
Senior research staff were in attendance at the meeting, including vice president in charge of vehicle concepts and integration, Dr Hans Rathgeber.
Hydrogen was where the company was headed, he said. "I think hydrogen will be the solution for the future. In the end it will be hydrogen but on the way there will be other solutions," he stated, including hybrid technologies.
It has been argued that BMW was forced to introduce cars offering petrol/electric hybrid characteristics given the success on the US market in particular of cars such as Toyota's Prius.
Dr Rathgeber dismissed this however. "I don't say no to hybrid cars," he stated, it was a matter of energy management as a way to improve efficiency. "It is not a question of philosophy, it is a question of efficiency."
He believed that some companies were pursuing hybrid technology as a way to demonstrate "engineering competence" rather than produce a more efficient car. "What I don't want to say is hybrid is a marketing gimmick. It isn't, it is more."
Having hybrid for the sake of hybrid had disadvantages however. "This technology is associated with higher masses, higher weights," says Rathgeber, something that works against fuel economy.
BMW was focusing instead on what hybrid technology might contribute to efficiency. "When we do hybrid we do it in a different way than others. It has to fit with what our customers expect of us," Dr Rathgeber said.
The company had developed a braking energy capture system that could deliver a three per cent improvement in fuel economy, he said.
Yet this was part of a wider approach that included changes such as an electric rather than mechanical water pump and electric steering and a software driven energy management system that could reduce energy demands by more than seven per cent.
Cars supporting this new technology were available for test drive on the day. The management system automatically switched electricity supply for the vehicle from generator to battery to braking energy as appropriate. As battery reserve fell, braking energy could be diverted to recharge it. The net result at the end of a short 30 to 40 minute test drive showed battery potential varying from 84 per cent down to 81 per cent and back up to 83 per cent at the end of the run.
Asked why BMW hadn't pursued hybrid technology sooner, Dr Rathgeber said the company's view was new technologies should be applicable across the widest range of its customer base.
"BMW is not for niche solutions," he said. "We think it is much better to bring the solution to everyone, not just to a few customers."
As evidence, he points to the new electricity management system including the braking generator. The entire system can now be retrofitted to cars across the company's range.
Hydrogen used as a primary fuel remains the company's goal however and these "hybrid" developments can contribute to the overall efficiency of any hydrogen car. "The work to make cars more efficient can be brought straight across to the hydrogen cars," he says.
The company still expected to be able to deliver a prototype hydrogen powered car within two years but "very much work" was required before then, says Rathgeber.
He acknowledged that there were engineering challenges but also challenges associated with consumer fears about the potential explosiveness of hydrogen. "If people think like that they think like that," he says, but the risks were relatively straightforward to manage.
"We do crash tests, everything that people can do with cars. We can manage all of these with hydrogen" as a fuel, he adds.
Asked about the unavailability of the fuel given there were no hydrogen "filling stations" as yet, he said this was a matter for the energy companies and for governments.
The fact remained that hydrogen represented one of the only energy sources suited to transport that enjoyed near limitless supply.
Unveiled: BMW 3-Series Coupé
BMW has unveiled its new 3-Series Coupé. The car on show during the "innovation day" event was the 335i Coupé powered by a 3-litre straight six that delivers 306bhp.
The company promotes the engine as the world's first in-line six-cylinder to be fitted with twin turbochargers coupled with high precision fuel injection and the company's patented Valvetronic valve management system.
It delivers a peak 400 Nm torque, with remarkable pull over a wide range from 1,500 to 5,000 rpm. The 0-100km/h time is 5.5 seconds.
The new engine also reflects current company policy to boost performance while making efforts to reduce fuel consumption. BMW says it weighs about 70kg less than an equally powerful eight-cylinder 4-litre engine.
Two versions of the new coupé will go on sale in Ireland from September 23rd: a 325i SE coupé with a retail price starting at €56,165 and the new 335i SE coupé starting at €65,395. Diesel versions are due by the end of the year.