DETROIT
-- The
BMW Hydrogen 7 is a hybrid car that can run on either gasoline
or hydrogen with a combined driving range of 425 miles. The
hydrogen tank can be refilled in just under eight minutes.
Daniel Kammerer, a corporate communications spokesman, described
the features of this car to me.
The luxury sedan
is the first of it's kind to come with a hydrogen engine.
Consumers can switch from hydrogen power to gasoline power
with the push a button. The button is located right on the
steering wheel for ease of use.
The total driving
range for this vehicle is 425 miles. The first 125 miles is
from the hydrogen engine. The other 300 miles come from the
gasoline engine. When it is time to re-fill the hydrogen tank,
it will take under eight minutes.
The hydrogen tank
has a capacity of 8 kilograms of Hydrogen. It is stored in
the liquid form at -418° Fahrenheit. The hydrogen tank
can hold about 170 liters of Hydrogen while the gasoline tank
can hold about 74 liters.
When the hydrogen
falls below 80% full, you can re-fill it. The automobile will
not allow you to re-fill the tank if it is more than 80% full.
You must wait until it goes below that level. There is a little
guage on the dashboard just like your normal gas indicator.
The Hydrogen 7
will be built in Germany at BMW's largest manufacturing plant.
The vehicle is already being put into production, Kammerer
said. He added, "it can be [priced] competitive
to a gas car."
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PHOTO
BY JASON RZUCIDLO / AMERICAJR.com
The
BMW Hydrogen 7 lives up to its reputation of "Clean Energy."
