B-Class Mercedes-Benz Unveils Hydrogen Powered B-Class F-Cell

[Wolfgang]

Added Ford response.


Daimler said to be in talks with Ford, Renault-Nissan to share fuel cell technology

DETROIT -- Daimler has delayed plans to launch a fuel-cell powered variant of its B-Class compact car and is now in talks with Renault-Nissan and Ford Motor Co. on sharing the technology and reducing costs.

Daimler's hydrogen fuel propulsion system is ready for series production but the company believes that it cannot currently sell the B-Class at a competitive price, so it will delay the car until at least 2017.

In order to achieve higher sales volumes and reduce costs, Daimler is in talks with Renault-Nissan and Ford to achieve a deal that would allow all four automakers to share the technology in its compact cars, according to Automobilwoche sources.

"We are in promising talks with interested companies," a Daimler spokesman said.

Ford spokesman Alan Hall said Friday: "We don’t comment on speculative reports."

There was no immediate comment Friday from Renault-Nissan.

Any deal is likely to see Nissan, a current partner of Daimler, extending the use of the German carmaker's B-Class underpinnings, which it is currently using in the development of a compact model for its luxury Infiniti brand.

Daimler has already developed a B-Class electric car, which it unveiled at the Paris auto show last year ahead of sales in 2014.

Read more: http://www.autonews.com/article/20130125/ANE/130129936#ixzz2J1rFPOBT

 

[Wolfgang]

(L-R) Raj Nair, Group Vice President, Global Product Development, Ford Motor Company,
Prof. Thomas Weber, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG, Group Research & Mercedes-Benz Cars Development and
Mitsuhiko Yamashita, Member of the Board of Directors and Executive Vice President of Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., supervising Research and Development.

THE STRATEGIC COOPERATION BETWEEN DAIMLER AND THE RENAULT-NISSAN ALLIANCE FORMS AGREEMENT WITH FORD TO ACCELERATE COMMERCIALIZATION OF FUEL CELL ELECTRIC VEHICLE TECHNOLOGY

• Daimler AG, Ford Motor Company and Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., have signed a unique three-way agreement for the joint development of common fuel cell system to speed up availability of zero-emission technology and significantly reduce investment costs
• Collaboration expected to lead to launch of world’s first affordable, mass-market fuel cell electric vehicles as early as 2017
• Unique collaboration across three continents and three companies will help define global specifications and component standards
• Sends clear signal to suppliers, policymakers and the industry to encourage the further development of hydrogen infrastructure worldwide

Germany (Jan. 28, 2013) - Daimler AG, Ford Motor Company and Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., have signed a unique three-way agreement to accelerate the commercialization of fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) technology.

The goal of the collaboration is to jointly develop a common fuel cell electric vehicle system while reducing investment costs associated with the engineering of the technology. Each company will invest equally towards the project. The strategy to maximize design commonality, leverage volume and derive efficiencies through economies of scale will help to launch the world’s first affordable, mass-market FCEVs as early as 2017.

[...]

How a fuel cell electric vehicle works

Like today’s battery-electric vehicles, FCEVs are more efficient than conventional cars and diversify energy sources beyond petroleum.

The electricity for an FCEV is produced on board the vehicle in the fuel cell stack where it is generated following an electro-chemical reaction between hydrogen - stored in a purpose-designed, high-pressure tank in the car - and oxygen from the air. The only by-products are water vapor and heat.

http://media.daimler.com/dcmedia/0-921-614233-1-1569543-1-0-1-0-0-1-12639-0-0-1-0-0-0-0-0.html

 

[Wolfgang]

The new fuel cell motor is more compact and fits into standard engine compartments.

http://

 

[Wolfgang]

MBUSA sold 20 in 2013. Volume production is still planned to start in 2017.

http://www.autoevolution.com/merced...ent-now-drives-a-b-class-fuel-cell-73071.html

 

[Wolfgang]

As expected?

Daimler’s CEO not confident about fuel cells, but more optimistic about self-driving cars

Daimler AG Chief Executive Officer Dieter Zetsche said during a round table meeting with reporters at the North American International Auto Show that drivers looking to jump into their fuel cell-powered car or truck to run errands are going to have to live with disappointment for at least a decade.

Last year, Ford, Nissan and Daimler established a three-way partnership to accelerate the development of fuel cell electric vehicle technology, with the ultimate goal of releasing a ready for market fuel cell vehicle by 2017.

http://www.inautonews.com/daimlers-...s-but-more-optimistic-about-self-driving-cars

 

[Wolfgang]

NEARLY 1,000 FUEL CELL ELECTRIC MILES: CROSSING CALIFORNIA ON HYDROGEN
Mercedes-Benz B-Class F-CELL customers ventured beyond Southern California last week for the very first time, while only filling up at existing public hydrogen stations along the route from Los Angeles to San Francisco. The opening of a new hydrogen station in Coalinga along the I-5 corridor made this opportunity possible. A team driving five B-Class F-CELL refilled at four permanent hydrogen fueling stations located in Burbank, Coalinga, West Sacramento and Emeryville, accumulating nearly 1,000 miles over the course of their three day trip. Three F-CELL customers were accompanied by a team from Mercedes-Benz Research and Development North America based in Long Beach. The purpose of this unique road trip was to highlight the growing hydrogen station network and to show that the vision of the California Hydrogen Highway is becoming reality.

Early adopter Loki Efaw who has been an F-CELL driver since 2011 believes fuel cells are the future: “I don’t want a car that only takes me to work and back before I have to plug it in. I want a car that I can drive and drive. And the refuelling only takes a few minutes. That’s how it should be, and that’s why a successive build-up of hydrogen stations is absolutely necessary. This trip is the evidence.”

The current hydrogen station network is limited to 10 stations and is in position to grow significantly over the next year. More than 40 public retail hydrogen stations are planned to be opened in 2016. Tyson Eckerle, Zero Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Project Manager in the California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, joined the road trip to observe the progress firsthand: “It is incredibly exciting for the state to connect the two markets. It was a real pleasure getting to roadtrip with real drivers and learn how well Fuel Cell Vehicles can fit into their lives, especially as the network expands. Thanks to Mercedes-Benz, the station owners Linde, First Element Fuels and Hydrogen Frontier for their work in building up the network.”

The electric power driving the Mercedes-Benz B-Class F-CELL is generated directly on board in the fuel cell stack by a reaction between the oxygen in the air and hydrogen. There is no emission of pollutants, only pure water vapour. Thanks to the 700-bar high-pressure fuel tank system, the car has a long operating range of around 250 miles (400 kilometers) and can be refuelled in the short time of less than three minutes. The car combines local emission-free mobility with long-distance and day-to-day suitability and good performance figures. Produced under series production conditions, the Mercedes-Benz B-Class F-CELL has already been in day-to-day use with customers in the European and American markets since 2010. The total mileage of the Daimler fuel cell fleet, which now numbers more than 300 vehicles including numerous research vehicles, has now reached more than 7.4 million miles (twelve million kilometers). Numbering around 70 vehicles, the F-CELL fleet in the USA has now covered about 2 million miles (3.2 million kilometers).

The development of the new generation Mercedes-Benz fuel cell electric vehicle is on track and the company plans to launch the model by 2017.

Source: Daimler

 

[tennmb]

If you think greenhouse gases are bad for global warming, wait until you have a million cars coughing out water vapor.

 

[Wolfgang]

^ A combustion engine also produces water, an estimated 140 lbs per tank for an S/GL versus an estimated 70 lbs per tank for the B-Class F-Cell. May help to keep California wet?

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Accept third party cookies