Mercedes-Benz will join Honda and Toyota in the nascent hydrogen-car market.
Mercedes said it will unveil a production-ready hydrogen car on September 12 at the Frankfurt Motor Show. The car will be a hydrogen version of Mercedes’ GLC midsize SUV. A camouflaged prototype can be seen here:
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes said in 2016 that it planned to reveal a GLC F-Cell at some point this year. At the time, Mercedes said the GLC will come equipped with a 9 kWh battery to provide an all-electric range of 30 miles. The battery and fuel-cell stack will produce a combined range of 310 miles.
Mercedes has been developing a fuel-cell stack through a joint venture with Ford.
Ford had initially planned to reveal its own hydrogen car in 2017, but CTO Raj Nair told Business Insider that the company has pushed back the timeline for its reveal to focus on battery-powered vehicles.
Although hydrogen-powered cars boast longer ranges and faster refill times than plug-in vehicles, the infrastructure to support hydrogen cars is lacking.
There are currently 39 hydrogen stations in the US compared to 16,237 electric charging stations, according to the US Department of Energy. Thirty-five of those stations are in California. Still, we’ll have to wait to find out whether the the GLC F-Cell will be made available in the US.
Toyota sells its hydrogen-powered Mirai in California. Honda also leases its hydrogen-powered car, the Clarity, in the state.
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