When Ford’s Airstream concept debuted at Detroit two weeks ago, press materials mentioned that the concept’s unique HySeries Drive hydrogen fuel cell powerplant had already been in-use on the road, under the hood of an Edge prototype. Then, this week and just days before the opening of the D.C. Auto Show, we spotted the Edge HySeries Drive giving some Capitol Hill staffers a demonstration ride as it turned off Pennsylvania Avenue just a block from the National Press Club.
This aggressive-looking Edge makes enthusiasts yearn for a production version with the handsome over-sized alloy wheels. Greenies though will yearn for the much-more significant hydrogen fuel cell drive system under the hood of the car.
Below is the press copy describing the HySeries Drive powerplant from the Airstream media kit.
The new HySeries Drive plug-in hydrogen fuel cell featured in the Ford Airstream Concept is more than a concept.
“ This powertrain is already on the road and driving in a Ford Edge prototype. Ford scientists and engineers created this vehicle with partial funding from the United States Department of Energy. The HySeries Drive delivers the combined city/highway equivalent fuel economy of 41 miles per gallon.
In this aplication, the fuel cell’s sole function is to recharge the vehicle’s lithium-ion battery pack as needed. This allows it to work like a portable generator, instead of an engine, as had been the case in previous Ford fuel cell vehicles.
The new fuel cell, supplied by Ford partner Ballard, operates in a steady state, allowing a significantly smaller, less expensive fuel cell and drastically improving the durability of the fuel cell. With this system, the fuel cell delivers the power needed to recharge the lithium-ion batteries, rather than to be the primary power source to drive the wheels, as in a typical fuel cell-powered vehicle.
In pure electric mode, the Ford Airstream Concept can travel 25 miles before the fuel cell begins operating to recharge the vehicle’s 336-volt lithium-ion battery pack. With the hydrogen-powered fuel cell, the range increases another 280 miles for a total of 305 miles.“
Read Article