Nissan X-Trail demonstrates promise of fuel cells

Nissan’s X-Trail SUV was one of the few fuel-cell vehicles we hadn’t driven until the company brought one to the Future of the Car day at our test track last week. The X-Trail is a midsized, car-based SUV sold in Japan and other countries. The fuel-cell version we drove houses the polymer electrolyte fuel cell under the driver’s seat, and the very tall rear seat accommodates a 5,000 psi hydrogen storage tank. Sitting in back, this 6-foot writer had to tilt his head to keep from hitting the roof.

Nissan claims the fuel-cell X-Trail can go 230 miles on a tank of hydrogen. Later versions of the car use a 10,000 psi hydrogen storage tank and have a range of more than 310 miles. Cold starting has been an Achilles heel of early fuel cells, and Nissan claims theirs can start in temperatures as low as -4 degrees Fahrenheit. Cost and durability are the other two fuel-cell bugaboos: the lower the cost, the shorter the lifespan, says Brian Johnston, senior project engineer for fuel-cell and electric vehicles at Nissan. He says the company is still working on that challenge. Modern fuel-cell cars have been estimated to cost between $500,000 and $1.5 million to build. The good news is that hydrogen fuel cells are clean and efficient. The bad news is that no infrastructure exists to distribute hydrogen for cars, and some chemical companies are skeptical that such an infrastructure can ever be cost effective.

While the packaging in this converted production car seemed compromised compared with some other fuel-cell vehicles, the experience behind the wheel was seamless. It was quiet and had good acceleration. The brakes, which generate energy for the on-board lithium-ion battery, didn’t feel grabby as some regenerative brakes do.

In the end, all of the fuel-cell cars we have driven recently have been paragons of smoothness and refinement and offer decent performance. But it will still take a decade or longer to begin bringing the cost down to a reasonable level and to provide an infrastructure to refuel the cars.

—Eric Evarts

Comments

[SunnyvaleCA]

So, the "promise of fuel cells" is vehicles costing at least $500,000 and running on a fuel more expensive than gasoline? Sorry, I could buy a few Teslas for that amount of cash.

[Glenn]

Fuel cell technology is a dead-end and the auto manufacturers know it. What benefit does even a well-designed fuel cell car have over an electric? Seeing as how the process of electrolysis itself gives up some overall efficiency, I see none.
Some would argue in favor of fuel cells, because a "hydrogen economy" would have a "vision" that is absent from electricity and the electrical economy. But "vision" is such a vague, ill-defined concept. It is ultimately a meaningless one.

The very best fuel cells are around 70% efficient. The electric car--powered by lithium ion batteries--achieves nearly 85% efficiency, and that figure is certainly going to improve in the coming years.

I agree with the auto manufacturers: hydrogen fuel cell technology is just window-dressing to appease the technologically-inept environmentalists, such as Hollywood actors and actresses.