Hyundai NEXO 2018 Review

Eco-friendly flagship

The NEXO fuel-cell electric vehicle is part of a change in focus for Hyundai. It will join all-electric, petrol-electric hybrid, and plug-in hybrid electric versions of its Toyota Prius-rivalling IONIQ, which joins the local line-up from April.

The Korean manufacturer says it will release 38 electric, fuel-cell, and hydrogen-powered models worldwide by 2025, including the Kona EV which will arrive in Australia by the end of this year.

Hyundai Australia is yet to finalise pricing details of the NEXO small SUV, but says at this stage it’s something of a moot point. The lack of infrastructure locally means that the NEXO will initially be used in government and fleet trials to assess the long-term viability of hydrogen propulsion.

Twenty have already been purchased by the Australian government in Canberra.

Why hydrogen?

The NEXO combines a 95kW hydrogen fuel-cell and floor-mounted 40kW battery pack to power an 120kW/395Nm electric drive motor.

It’s a system that bypasses the hours of charging required by many battery electric vehicles, the hydrogen fuel-cell taking just a bit longer to refill than the average petrol tank (five minutes from empty).

The system is claimed to provide the purpose-made NEXO with up to 609km range, outpacing the smaller, heavier Tucson FCEV it replaces by 30 per cent.

Hyundai says the NEXO will accelerate to 100km/h in 9.6sec, but is even more potent at urban speeds.

Our drive of the NEXO at Hyundai’s showed this statement to be true. The NEXO is very responsive from standstill, and at city speeds can easily outpace traffic.

Hyundai’s FCEV system uses battery power to negate the initial ‘lag’ of the fuel cell stack, power transitioning seamlessly once a suitable road speed is gathered.

Highway and overtaking performance is on par with similarly-sized petrol-powered SUVs. There’s no mechanical noise to speak of, only a light wind rustle from the wing mirrors and a light hum from the tyres on coarser road surfaces.

The remainder of the NEXO’s operation is pleasingly uneventful. Save for the inconsistent brake feel typical of many hybrid models, the NEXO is as simple to drive and comprehend as any regular SUV.

The steering is light and accurate, and stability at freeway speeds secure. Our drive didn’t offer a lot of opportunity to test handling or bump absorption, but all other indicators are very positive.

Tech to impress

The NEXO is Hyundai’s fourth FCEV, the second to make mass production, and the first to use its own dedicated vehicle architecture.

And as well as demonstrating the successful application of hydrogen fuel-cell technology promotes a number of semi-autonomous technologies, many of which will soon be offered in conventionally-powered Hyundai models.

Introduced with NEXO is a fully digitised 12.3-inch instrument panel and wide-angle surround-view monitors Hyundai says virtually eliminates blind spots.

Set atop console-mounted directional and ancillary controls it also serves to provide road speed and charging data, HVAC information, and navigation and infotainment details.

NEXO also has the ability to park or retrieve itself – whether the car is ‘manned’ or not – demonstrating autonomous parking abilities that mimic systems seen previously at Audi and Mercedes-Benz. It also monitors drive fatigue levels via camera.

The hydrogen-powered car also boasts adaptive cruise control and the ability to ‘steer’ itself within a marked lane, driving autonomous at speeds up to 150km/h.

The system can also adjust vehicle speeds according to map-based data in what Hyundai says is Level 4 (hands-off) autonomous ability.

The system is impressive to say the least, and on well paved and marked highways like those in South Korea required little input at all from the driver for many minutes at a time.

Our only real criticism from the in-car technology came from a ‘disconnect’ between the USB and Bluetooth music streaming connection.

The telephony part of the equation worked just fine, but our Apple iPhone 8 seemed reluctant to pair and stay paired with the car when attempting to play music.

Situation normal

NEXO may face challenges when it comes to finding a place to fill up, but in almost every other way it’s a very normal family SUV.

Cabin packaging is sensible, the under-floor positioning of the hydrogen tanks and batteries giving plenty of room for passengers and their belongings. Cargo space is listed at 839 litres all told.

It’s also pretty competitive to run when compared to a petrol-powered car. Hydrogen currently retails for around $10/kg in Australia, meaning the NEXO would take $60 to fill from empty.

On test we achieved an average of 94km/kg, which translates to a 564km real-world range from the NEXO’s 156.6-litre hydrogen tanks, or roughly 11 cents per kilometre.

Hyundai says the NEXO takes as little as 30 seconds to start in temperatures down to -30C and that the fuel-cell ‘stack’ has a life of 10 years or 160,000km.

For now, acceptance of the NEXO is only really hampered by a lack of infrastructure and an excessive list price. At “close to $100,000” it’s mighty expensive.

But it’s also proof that hydrogen technology is now efficient, practical and safe enough to be a viable alternative to the conventionally-powered car.

2018 Hyundai NEXO pricing and specifications:
Price: $100,000 (approx)
On sale: Late 2018
Motor: Electric
System output: 120kW/395Nm
Range: 609km (claimed)
0-100km/h: 9.2sec (claimed)
Top speed: 179km/h (claimed)
Safety rating: TBC

Related reading:
>> Hyundai NEXO revealed