Audi reveals hydrogen SUV concept 12 | 01 | 2016
AUDI HAS CONFIRMED its aim to develop hydrogen fuel cell technology by unveiling its h-tron quattro concept at the Detroit Motor Show. The car is planned to enter production in 2020 (see more photographs of the Audi h-tron quattro).
Drawing heavily on the contemporary platform structure, electric drivetrain architecture and battery technology of the earlier e-tron quattro concept, Audi says the new model is a production-relevant hydrogen fuel cell SUV.
The Ingolstadt car manufacturer states the car has a refuelling time of just four minutes using the latest in hydrogen fuelling technology, zero-emission, and a range of 373-mile.
Audi also says the four-wheel-drive h-tron quattro will cover the 0-62mph sprint in less than seven seconds, a have a restricted top speed of 124mph top speed. It will also have the ability to run in front-wheel drive mode at typical urban speeds.
Created to showcase a fifth-generation fuel cell stack under development at Audi’s engineering headquarters in Germany, the concept is tentatively planned for introduction on a production version of the h-tron quattro in 2020.
Mounted up front underneath the bonnet in the space traditionally taken up by the combustion engine on existing Audi models, the new fuel cell stack is fuelled by hydrogen held in three carbonfibre-reinforced plastic, 700bar tanks, one in the space of the traditional transmission tunnel and smaller ones mounted across the car beneath the rear seat and the boot floor.
The stack consists of 330 individual cells and develops a nominal 110kW (148bhp) of electricity.
In combination with a relatively small 1.8kWh lithium ion battery mounted within the floor in the middle of the passenger compartment that provides an additional boost of 100kW (134bhp) for short periods, the fuel cell stack is claimed to provide the h-tron quattro with a range of up to 373 miles. All up, the battery is claimed to weigh just 60kg.
The power from the fuel cell and the high-voltage battery drives two electric motors – one located on the front axle and with an output of 90 kW (121bhp), the other on the rear axle and developing 140 kW (188bhp). This concept makes the technology study an electrified quattro. An intelligent management system controls the interplay between them as appropriate for the situation, placing maximum emphasis on efficiency.
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The driver can influence the amount of energy recuperated on a trailing throttle by selecting one of two modes: gliding or coasting. Fuel consumption is put at around one kilogram per 62 miles.
The h-tron quattro concept sits on a modified version of the MLB platform from the upcoming second-generation Q5. At 4880mm long, 1930mm wide and 1540mm tall, the e-tron quattro is 250mm longer, 30mm wider and 115mm lower than the existing first-generation Q5.
The concept also borrows four-wheel steering from the latest Q7, thus reducing the turning circle and aiding manoeuvrability at lower speeds around town while increasing agility at higher speeds.
Inside the concept, there's seating for up to four people, with two individual seats front and rear.
And as you would expect, Audi has used the latest concept to further illustrate the sort of autonomous driving technology we can expect to see on its future models: radar sensors, stereo cameras, ultrasonic sensors and a laser scanner are all included.
Utilising the zFAS central driver control system — which computes a complete model of the concept car’s surroundings in real time and makes the information available to the assistance system — the new technology will carry out various driving tasks at speeds of up to 37mph.
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Jim McGill