Volkswagen Is Working On a Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle With 1,243 Miles of Range

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Despite the automotive industry making a big push toward battery electric vehicles (BEV) for the foreseeable future, there is an argument that if we (humans) really want to fight climate change, BEVs alone won't get the job done. Some experts believe that it will take a combination of low-emission and zero-emission transportation tech to make a meaningful difference vehicles' impact on our climate. That's why several automakers are still exploring hydrogen power.

Hydrogen as an element is vastly abundant and its major emission is water vapor. It seems like the perfect solution—but of course, there are catches. Most automakers have moved away from using hydrogen as a combustion fuel, but development of its use for fuel cells that produce electricity continues. In these applications, hydrogen combines with oxygen via a membrane, creating electricity and—as a byproduct—water; the process is more efficient and cleaner than simply burning hydrogen. That electricity is then used to power electric motors to motivate the vehicle. Just look at the Toyota Mirai—and the Honda Clarity before it was discontinued—and now, this new effort from Volkswagen.

According to a report from Wards Auto (via Autocar), Volkswagen is doing its part by teaming up with Kraftwerk Tubes to create new hydrogen fuel cell tech that will not only lower the cost of production but could theoretically unlock a driving range up to 2,000 km—that's 1,243 miles! Feel free to explore the new technology's patent for more details, but one of the key advancements is a special ceramic membrane inside of the fuel cell stack.

Generally speaking, in a hydrogen fuel cell car, the hydrogen passes through a polymer membrane that contains platinum. As victims of catalytic converter theft know, platinum is very expensive. According to Kraftwerk CEO Sascha Kühn, the ceramic membrane is not only cheaper but has other advantages. It doesn't need to be moistened to function so it eliminates the possibility of getting frozen in winter or growing mold in humid environments. The membrane also generates heat which can be used to heat the car's cabin in place of a conventional heater.

Kühn, says that the goal for the company is to have this hydrogen fuel cell tech deployed in production cars as soon as 2026. If Kraftwerk and VW are successful, it could mean that we may see a hydrogen fuel-cell Volkswagen Jetta that could outpace anything from Tesla in the battery range game.

Ah, but there's another catch: There is a reason you never see any hydrogen fuel cell vehicles on the road, and it has nothing to do with the cars' range. Instead, hydrogen-powered vehicles are limited by scarce refueling infrastructure. Unless you live in southern California or Japan, your options for grabbing more hydrogen are virtually nil, and the process of generating hydrogen fuel is costly and energy intensive. Until those issues are sorted, fuel cell vehicles will remain perpetually just over the horizon, no matter what kind of novel developments automakers come up with for fuel cell technology itself.