Hyundai Tucson PHEV Debuts In Geneva

It wasn’t that long ago that the Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell vehicle debuted in Detroit with some fanfare, and the promise of free fuel. It seems that the Korean automaker is hedging its bets when it comes to hydrogen though, debuting the Hyundai Tucson 48V Hybrid Concept and an even more-efficient plug-in hybrid diesel, both riding on an all-new platform.

The Tucson 48V Hybrid Concept pairs a 2.0 liter turbodiesel engine making 134 horsepower with a 14 horsepower electric motor powered by a 48-volt lithium-ion battery pack. Total combined output of 148 ponies and 305 lb-ft of torque through a six-speed manual transmission, and the Hyundai contributes just 109 g/km CO2 to the atmosphere. Though just in hybrid form, Hyundai wants to bring this technology to its larger SUVs as a means to offset emissions at just a quarter of the price of full hybrid system might cost.

But the automaker didn’t stop there, as the Tucson PHEV concept not only offers more power, but a respectable electric driving range as well. A 1.7 liter turbodiesel making 113 horsepower is mated to a 67 horsepower electric motor for combined output of 180 horsepower and a substantial 350 lb-ft of torque. Electric driving range is estimated at 31 miles per charge of the 10.7 kWh lithium-ion battery, and CO2 emissions are estimated to a mere 48 g/km, less than half the 48V Concept. The electric motor can drive the rear axle, while the diesel engine powers the front wheels, offering a hybrid drivetrain not unlike the Kia Soul e-AWD concept that debuted earlier in the month. There’s also rumors of a dedicated EV coming as early as next year.

The new Hyundai Tucson comes with a host of other improvements, such as new engine, connectivity, and safety features. But the big news to me is that Hyundai is debuting an all-new Tucson, sans the hydrogen drivetrain they made such a big deal about less than a year ago. At the Detroit Auto Show, Hyundai showed off its first Sonata Plug-in Hybrid, but it barely mentioned its efforts with hydrogen. This could be another indication that the automaker may be moving away from hydrogen fuel cells or, at the very least, making sure it doen’t ignore a growing plug-in car market.

Car Makers Giving Away Free Hydrogen

As part of the hoopla surrounding the official introduction of Toyota’s Mirai fuel cell car this week, the company announced that customers would receive free hydrogen for up to three years. Previously, Hyundai also said it would provide free hydrogen for buyers of its Tucson fuel cell vehicles. Are the manufacturers just being generous or is there something else going on here?

Actually, according to AutoBlog, the real reason is it’s not possible right now to accurately measure how much hydrogen is being dispensed at today’s refueling stations. Says Toyota’s national manager of environmental, safety and quality communications, John Hanson, “There are no set standards, so there is no way to charge people for anything.”

Alberto Ayala, the deputy executive officer for the California Air Resources Board, told the group attending the Mirai introduction, ” If you think about it, it’s a real simple yet real practical challenge. If you’re going to pay for X amount of hydrogen, you’re actually getting that amount of hydrogen.” Ayala said it’s not a difficult technical problem to measure the hydrogen as it goes into the car, but “we just have not done it. We are at a point where we are solving multiple remaining questions [with hydrogen infrastructure], and that just happens to be one of them.”

Last summer, the National Institute of Standards said it wants to set the standard tolerance for delivery accuracy at 1%. That’s half of the current 2% standard and would allow motorists to be sure of getting the amount of hydrogen they pay for every time they fill up. Last summer, NIST announced it had developed a hydrogen pump with an accuracy of 99.55%, but that equipment is not in widespread use yet.

Also earlier this year, the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) promulgated new standards for hydrogen refueling, including the shape of the nozzle and the pressures at which the gas will be delivered.  The new SAE J2601 establishes two standard pressures – 35 and 70 megapascals (MPa) – it says will permit refueling times of 3 to 5 minutes.

Hydrogen is the most active element on the periodic table. Containing it and making it bend to man’s will takes some doing. A few years from now, hydrogen refueling standards will be finalized and fuel cell cars will go mainstream. Or not. Until then, we all get free hydrogen.