BMW has been experimenting with hydrogen-powered vehicles since 1987 after it purchased a 10% stake in Solar-Wasserstoff Bayern GmbH. The former Bavarian solar energy firm started working with hydrogen obtained from solar energy generation.
Two years later, BMW unveiled a hydrogen fuel-cell car at the International Motor Show in Frankfurt. The first production hydrogen BMW car debuted in May 2000 on the streets of Berlin and went on a world tour in 2001.
BMW has launched other hydrogen cars, even in the United States. In December 2006, the BMW Hydrogen 7 was unveiled at the Los Angeles Auto Show.
It has the same 12-cylinder engine put in the 2000 hydrogen vehicle. The biggest challenge holding them back from mass adoption is not enough fueling stations in America.
The climate crisis has changed many people’s minds about zero-emission vehicles, but when people say that, they talk mostly about hybrids or electric cars. However, hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles (HFCVS) offer similar benefits.
Some argue they could be more reliable than electric vehicles (EVs). BMW is re-betting on hydrogen fuel-cell cars, especially as the Inflation Reduction Act and Bipartisan Infrastructure bill funding increase alternative fuel corridors around the U.S. interstate system.
Photo Courtesy Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has invested more than $7 billion in Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs in the hope it will expand beyond the borders of one state.
If you guessed most hydrogen fueling stations are located in the state with the most registered EVs and charging stations, you’d be correct. California … we’re talking about California.
There are only 43 online hydrogen fuel stations in the country — all of them in California. Energy giants like Shell shut down their hydrogen stations “due to hydrogen supply complications and other external market factors,” according to Andrew Beard, Shell’s Hydrogen Vice President, in a letter announcing the closures.
In simpler terms, they weren’t profitable. However, attitudes about hydrogen are starting to change. More people are getting seriously affected by the climate crisis. At the 2024 New York Climate Week, BMW said fuel cell vehicles could be a more reliable alternative to EVs. All the U.S. really needs is better hydrogen fuel infrastructure.
Commercial vehicles, in particular, could utilize hydrogen fuel to continue the trucking business without causing harmful emissions, and passenger vehicles could also benefit from these stations. Many truckers have noted concerns about using electric semi-trucks because the batteries aren’t powerful enough to go long distances, and charging times are too slow.
BMW is working on its 2028 hydrogen production car, the iX5. It plans to use fuel cells developed by Toyota, which is also developing its own HFCV, the Mirai.
The iX5 claims to have 310 miles of driving and can be refueled in under four minutes.
That’s a big reason why BMW is betting on hydrogen again: it’s way faster to fill up with gaseous or liquid hydrogen than to plug in an EV. Even overnight charging won’t always yield the advertised voltage return, and leaving an EV plugged in too long causes battery damage. HFCVs don’t have this problem and likely wouldn’t have to deviate entirely from internal combustion engine designs as much as EVs need to.
Photo Courtesy BMW Group
Make no mistake, though: BMW is not giving up on EVs or plug-in hybrids. The automaker is expanding zero-emission options, which in turn can bring in more customers. Company officials told InsideEVs that the money going into hydrogen research and development pales compared to EVs. However, if HFCVs are going to work, they need fueling stations and many more of them.
The DOE is already handing out contracts for hydrogen refueling stations, including stations in rural areas that lack EV charging corridors. The question remains if hydrogen transportation will take off like BMW hopes it will.
Hydrogen fuel’s only byproduct is water, and some vehicles, like the REVO ZERO ENERGY, have reached the 700-mile threshold.
The Virginia-based niche automaker plans to build out its own hydrogen fueling network.
It’ll be interesting to see if BMW’s gamble on hydrogen will work in the U.S. InsideEVs suggests it might be more successful in Europe or Asia than in the U.S. The hydrogen infrastructure here is minimal, and the country is still growing its EV charging station network, although substantial progress has been made over the past three years. China, Japan, and South Korea — as well as Europe — have hundreds of hydrogen fueling stations.
One should also consider the risk of hydrogen, which is highly explosive (see the Hindenberg disaster). However, so is gasoline, and the environmental benefits of the zero-emission alternative may make it worth the risk. Not to mention, safety regulations are much stricter than they were in 1938.
If the U.S. can get its hydrogen fueling network, perhaps BMW will emerge as the top zero-emission vehicle provider.
