Production Audi fuel-cell vehicle four years away

Audi is drawing upon fuel-cell expertise from Hyundai to accelerate the introduction of a commercially available fuel-cell vehicle launching four years from now.

And according to Hans-Joachim Rothenpieler, Board Member for Technical Development at Audi AG, there's already a prototype running around on German roads.

“That happened two weeks ago exactly; I drove it [the fuel cell vehicle] two weeks ago,” Herr Rothenpieler told carsales through an interpreter.

Then, to hammer home the importance of the message, he simply said: “First car.” In English.

It's not actually the first hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle from Audi, but it will be the first production fuel-cell vehicle from Ingolstadt.

Developing and introducing a fuel-cell vehicle is accompanied by some hurdles along the way, however.

“There are two issues we have to address still: one, infrastructure – huge problem in Germany, China, wherever we go – but this is again social policy,” Rothenpieler explained through the interpreter.

“The second issue: the understanding of the technology of the fuel cell is a given by now. But producing it is still a huge challenge.”

Getting the production environment right will pay real dividends for Audi, Rothenpieler says.

“If you get that right the fuel cell will be on a competitive level, price-wise... against the ICE...”

That's where Hyundai enters the picture. Audi and Hyundai began collaborating about two years ago, with the South Korean company already an acknowledged expert in limited-volume production of fuel-cell vehicles.

“We're working together with Hyundai and we've completed a prototypical production line for these thin films in the stack, and right now we're debating with Hyundai this very topic: how do we get the equipment and production engineering right for that thin-film [stack],” Rothenpieler says.

The exotic materials and the relatively complex nature of the four thin (polymer) films in the fuel-cell stack can be reduced in cost through large-scale production efficiency.

“Of course, if you want to ramp it up for series production you need a factory capable of producing half a million units,” Rothenpieler says.

At this stage, the production location for Audi's fuel-cell stacks appears undecided. In fact, Rothenpieler says that it's not even certain whether further development of the IP (intellectual property) will be a joint project with Hyundai in whole or in part.

“We're talking to Hyundai [about] whether we're going to develop components or the entire fuel cell stack together... that's what we're negotiating right now.”

Audi will be conducting its own R&D effort out of its centre in Neckarsulm in Germany, Rothenpieler says, but production will be key to the new powertrain system's commercial viability.

“Neckarsulm is our technology headquarters for the fuel cell. We can produce as a prototype that stack with that film, but... production engineering is going to be the challenge.”

Audi is a brand known for its long-legged touring cars and SUVs. Its petrol and diesel-engined SUVs will happily cruise along Germany's autobahns at speeds double the national limit in Australia.

For this sort of motoring, a battery-electric vehicle just won't do. And fossil fuels are on the nose, leaving just fuel cells to power Germany's high-speed, inter-city touring cars in the future.

“I believe if you look at the urban areas, purely battery-powered cars are ideally positioned. Second generation of EVs [have] range of up to 500km,” Rothenpieler says of the battery-electric cars.

“No matter whether you drive 50 or 100km, you're on the safe side, charging once or every second week. I'd say that will normalise over time.

“We at Audi have a great haul of long-distance drivers – people who drive a lot. And that, of course, over the mid to long term is something that you can't just address or cover with an EV.

“To my mind, the fuel cell will be the solution, but in combination – a battery-powered car together with a fuel cell.”

The Audi executive expects that production fuel-cell vehicles will refuel in “... three or four minutes with a range of 600 or 700km – that will be possible in that combination.

“And we will see this implemented for the first time in bigger cars...

“It's going to be a top-down effect from the bigger cars [and trickle] through to the smaller vehicles.”

Those remarks are echoed by Rothenpieler's colleague, Julius Seeback, one of the two managing directors at Audi Sport.

“I don't think [fuel-cell technology] is the next step or the step after battery-electric mobility,” Seebach told Australian journalists attending the Frankfurt motor show this week.

“I think we will get it in parallel – first for heavyweight cars. It's a perfect solution for [trucks] and especially for long-range cars, for SUVs with high weight, for long-distance cars...”

And of course it's technology with real application for high-speed cars and SUVs of the type Audi Sport builds for world markets.

Chris Reinke, the head of Audi Sport customer racing, even sees a place for fuel-cell hybrid vehicles in motor sport competition.

It certainly wouldn't be the first time Audi has upset the motor sport apple cart with a new type of powertrain, citing “the Quattro drive, which has been established by [Audi's factory] rally [effort in the 1980s].

“We went into diesel racing at Le Mans; we have been the first factory committing to Formula-e racing,” Reinke continued.

“So, [for] future drivetrain technologies we will be desperate to find ways to differentiate ourselves from the competition as an Audi tradition...

“These technologies in the future will also be driven by strategic works projects, where we can do that.”