BMW has shed a bit more light on its upcoming BMW iX5 Hydrogen, confirming that the fuel-cell SUV will manage 620km of range between fill-ups.
That’s thanks to the very literally titled ‘BMW Hydrogen Flat Storage System,’ which we’re told is “new and innovative” with seven carbon-fiber-reinforced composite high-pressure tanks all connected in parallel and integrated into a metal frame.
“What makes the design special is that, instead of individual pressure vessels, there are several chambers connected to form an enclosed unit,” says BMW. “This unit is controlled by a central main valve. In this way, the optimized storage concept enables the BMW iX5 Hydrogen to achieve a greater range.”
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The system has also been designed to take up as little space as possible to preserve cabin space, and apparently, it means the iX5 Hydrogen can be built on the same production line as the electric, hybrid and combustion-engined variants. Nice.
“Think of it as installation Tetris: Every customer gets the drive system best suited to their needs and a true BMW X5 with no compromises,” says development chief Dr. Joachim Post. “This is technology openness and the art of engineering, just the way we developers love it!”
BMW—which has been collaborating with Toyota on hydrogen propulsion for some time now—also claims to have filed a number of patent applications for its new system, which can store 7kg of hydrogen and can be refilled from empty in less than five minutes.
It’s coming, folks, but is it really the future?
NOTE: This article first appeared on TopGear.com. Minor edits have been made.
