EV No Longer a Choice When It Comes To Fuel Efficiency

Over the past few years, we’ve focused on the fact that EV models are offered to provide zero emissions driving experiences on the road. These models have become better and better over the years with faster charging times and greater ranges to make the drive right for you. Because of the number of EV models that are being offered we typically forget about one particular segment of power that we can have on the road because not many automakers have tried to use it. Hydrogen Fuel Cell vehicles also offer zero emissions for the drive you want but present a different challenge.

The Choice You Had to Make When it Comes to EV

If your goal when driving was to have a vehicle that offered zero emissions you needed to choose an EV model that had long charging times and short ranges or you had to live in an area that is serviced by hydrogen fueling stations to have a Hydrogen Fuel Cell vehicle. In reality, the FCV model is more apt to be the choice you want to make if there were more hydrogen stations, but so far, these aren’t widely offered around the country or in the world. Because of this fact, you would be more likely to choose the EV that you could charge overnight at home.

With the model that Mercedes- Benz has shown off at the Frankfurt Motor Show, you no longer have to make a choice. They brought their new Mercedes-Benz GLC F-Cell which is a vehicle that uses a fuel cell engine that’s supported by the EV battery pack to add more range. This is the first of its kind and brings in a new type of hybrid with one that doesn’t offer you the harmful emissions of a gasoline or diesel engine under the hood.

This new F-Cell offers the ability to travel up to 271 miles on the tank of hydrogen and an additional 30 miles for the EV part of the drive. This battery pack only takes about 1.5 hours to charge on a regular household outlet while the hydrogen tank can be refilled in the same amount of time it would take you to fill a tank of gasoline or diesel in current models. This vehicle solves two of the problems we have with charging time in EV models and will hopefully be the choice that many customers want to choose for the drive.

What’s Next?

While the new Mercedes-Benz GLC F-Cell model is going to be able to be sold in areas where there are hydrogen refueling stations, the question becomes whether or not this new luxury zero-emissions vehicle will spur growth in hydrogen refueling stations. If so, we’ll see this vehicle sold in more areas than just along the west coast, which is where a vast majority of the current refueling stations are located. The power coming out of this powertrain is expected to be 197 horsepower and 258 lb.-ft. of torque to give this small SUV the power you’re going to need on the road.