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BMW Hydrogen 7 Earns SULEV Designation

April 10, 2008

hydrogen_7Tests at the Argonne National Laboratory have awarded BMW’s Hydrogen 7 vehicle a super-ultra-low-emission vehicle (SULEV) designation. According to the testers, the vehicle passed the SULEV tests with flying colors, registering only a fraction of the maximum emissions allowed to achieve the designation. In fact, at times, with respect to certain exhaust components, the car exhaust was cleaner than the ambient air in the test facilities, and the laboratory needed special equipment to measure the vehicle’s emissions accurately.

The Hydrogen 7 is a mono-fuel version of an ultra-low-emission vehicle that BMW introduced two years ago. The test vehicle is production-ready and according to the company, additional vehicles will be delivered to consumers on a trial basis.

According to BMW, the facility at Argonne was the only test facility in the US that was capable of measuring the vehicle’s emissions accurately. Argonne has conducted cutting-edge alternative vehicle technologies including engines, batteries, fuel cells, and materials research for more than 30 years. Results of the emissions tests will be presented jointly by BMW and Argonne at the 2008 Society of Automotive Engineers 2008 World Congress in Detroit in mid-April.

The company is a strong advocate for the hydrogen-based economy, a stance that puts it into conflict with many other automakers. BMW indicates that the next major hurdle to overcome is the relative scarcity of hydrogen fueling stations in the United States.

BMW is not the only manufacturer looking for more hydrogen stations in North America. GM said last week that its development of FCVs and fuel-cell electric hybrids is virtually at a standstill for lack of a hydrogen filling station infrastructure. Larry Burns, GM’s VP of Research and Development said that the company is no longer able to make significant progress on hydrogen-based vehicles in the absence of safe and convenient access to hydrogen filling stations.

Photo Credit: BMW

Written by Hybrid Car Chat · Filed Under Hybrid Cars 

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