BMW has announced its next X5 will be its most diverse yet, with the SUV set to be sold with five different powertrains in some markets from 2028.
Alongside the traditional petrol and diesel engines which the X5 is best known for, it’ll be offered as a plug-in hybrid, an electric vehicle and even with a hydrogen fuel cell, marking a first for any model.
It’ll also be the first time BMW has offered hydrogen power in a production vehicle, having recently experimented with FCEV prototypes.
“By launching the new BMW X5 with a choice of five drive system variants, we are once again demonstrating our leading position as a technology pioneer,” BMW Development Member of the Board, Joachim Post, said in a release.
“Hydrogen has an essential part to play in global decarbonisation, which is why we are committed to driving the technology forward.”
Underpinning the X5 FCEV – understood to adopt the iX5 name – will be a third-generation hydrogen fuel cell system, developed jointly by BMW and Toyota, the latter of which being one of the leaders in the niche technology.
Toyota already offers FCEVs in the dedicated Mirai as well as the Crown, though both are only available in limited markets and can be purchased in limited agreements.
According to BMW, the brand is already producing prototypes for the X5 FCEV at its plants in Munich, Germany and Steyr, Austria, which has recently started to build electric motors for its ‘Neue Klasse’ range of upcoming EVs.
However, BMW isn’t just investing time and money into FCEVs, with the required refuelling network also a point of focus for the brand.
“The HyMoS (Hydrogen Mobility at Scale) initiative was established to support hydrogen ecosystems for mobility in cooperation with industry and institutional partners,” BMW said in a media release.
“The aim of this initiative is to increase the economic viability of hydrogen mobility ecosystems by pooling the demand for all types of vehicles, including trucks, buses and passenger cars. This will help to reach an optimal distribution and usage of hydrogen stations.
“The initiative supports existing hydrogen ecosystem projects in achieving their full potential by sharing experiences across projects and providing ground support of its industry partners.”
BMW’s investment into hydrogen vehicles comes just two months after Dutch automotive conglomerate Stellantis announced it would end development of FCEVs, citing a lack of demand and infrastructure.
At the time, Stellantis said in its media release that it “does not anticipate the adoption of hydrogen-powered light commercial vehicles before the end of the decade”, due to “limited availability of hydrogen refuelling infrastructure, high capital requirements, and the need for stronger consumer purchasing incentives.
FCEVs have been adopted in significantly smaller numbers than EVs globally, thanks in part to incentives and infrastructure support for the latter. The Toyota Mirai and Hyundai Nexo stand as two of the very few mainstream FCEVs available.
In 2023, US FCEV sales didn’t even surpass 3000 deliveries. Though the launch of an FCEV Honda CR-V could change this, it’s unlikely to sway the backwards momentum for the technology.
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