Before it disappeared from the market at the end of 2002, the Suzuki Esteem
wagon had an MSRP of under $15,000. But sitting in the Sonoma, California, town
square is an Esteem wagon sporting a price tag approaching $100,000. It’s
powered by a hybrid-electric fuel cell powerplant built by Anuvu, Inc. of Sacramento,
California. And some passersby are asking where they can get one! Has everyone
here been breathing too much clean air?
 |
| San
Francisco played host to the fifth Michelin Challenge Bibendum clean
car "competition," the Left Coast providing a beautiful environment and
a willing political backdrop for the collection of clean cars and trucks participating
in the event.
|
Not according to Anuvu president and CEO Rex Hodge, they haven’t. The
Esteem wagon is a proof-of-concept for a Clean Urban Vehicle (CUV) fleet used
primarily for in-city deliveries and travel between cities and suburbs. Power
comes from four 1.5-kW “Power X” fuel stacks (each with 18 proton
exchange membranes, or PEMs, per stack), and a battery pack that can provide
a supplemental 50 kW for acceleration. The “Super Suzuki” is capable
of 70 mph, though range decreases dramatically as speed increases. “Our
CUV can travel at that speed for about 40 miles,” says Hodge, adding that
the capacity and recharge rate of the lead acid batteries are the main factors
limiting longer jaunts at freeway speeds. Conversely, the hydrogen Suzuki has
an in-city range of approximately 180 miles when speeds are kept at or below
35 mph.
When we point out that other companies participating in the event have fuel
cell vehicles that can run at 85 mph, and have a higher energy density and longer
range, Hodge responds: “Our competition is building mass production-intent
fuel cells. That’s like Henry Ford building a Model T that produced 100
horsepower per liter.” Warming to the subject he insists, “The auto
industry never would have developed had Ford taken a ‘run before you walk’
approach.” Hodge’s goal is to give the energy industry a reason to
start establishing the hydrogen refueling infrastructure fuel cell vehicles
will need.
 |
The
world's most expensive Suzuki Esteem wagon, or the vehicle that will
make fuel cells-and hydrogen refueling stations-commonplace? Not even
Henry Ford has the answer to that question. |
ICE vs. Hydrogen, Round 1
“Hydrogen fuel cells won’t be able to compete on cost with internal
combustion engines for decades.” No, that’s not Bob Lutz speaking,
it’s Dr. Daniel Sperling, director of the Institute of Transportation Studies
at the University of California-Davis. Sperling even went so far as to suggest
the switch from gasoline to hydrogen won’t happen overnight in the late
industrialized countries. Multiple fuels and propulsion systems–including
diesels, hybrid-electrics, and alternative fuels–will be part of the transition.
Though he questions whether a developing country like China might not leap frog
the more developed nations by pushing the development of cheap, reliable fuel
cells.
ICE vs. Hydrogen, Round 2
On-road emission measurement of ULEV, SULEV, and PZEV vehicles have shown them
to be more robust than expected. “We have seen much less in-use deterioration
than we expected,” says Joseph Norbeck, director, Bourns College of Engineering,
Center for Environmental Research and Technology, University of California-Riverside.
“Emission results show these vehicles are essentially equivalent to electric
vehicles in terms of pollution levels.”
The Future Isn’t Now
What will it take to keep oil imports at today’s level in 2020? Oh, a reduction
in use of five million barrels per day. Which means average fuel economy above
60 mpg, and a 50% mileage improvement for heavy-duty vehicles. “Even an
immediate 60% increase in CAFE–to 38.4 mpg–and new production from
the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge won’t close the gap between demand
and domestic production by 2020,” claims Tom Gross of the U.S. Department
of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. There has
to be a solution, right? “We need fuel cell vehicles in the showroom, and
hydrogen at fueling stations by 2020,” says Gross. Of course, that will
require a tremendous reduction in fuel cell and hydrogen production costs, and
improvements in hydrogen storage efficiency.
 |
| It's
called the Courreges La Bulle R, but it looks like something from Woody
Allen's movie Sleeper. This electric vehicle drew crowds wherever it
went, which-with its 50-mile range-wasn't far. So far there's been no
word on potential sales outlets in Roswell, New Mexico. |
But Here’s the Rub
Will people buy these new vehicles? Not if they have to compromise–or pay
more than they’re willing–they won’t. “People want room,
power, performance and amenities,” he says, “a trend that is driven
by the growing gap in income between new vehicle buyers and the rest of the
population,” says Walter McManus, executive director, Forecasting and Analytics
at J.D. Power and Associates. Recent studies conducted by the company have shown
that fuel economy is eighth on a list of 15 buying influences. Speed, handling,
and performance are the most important factors.
It’s not that people are interested in fuel efficiency, they just aren’t
willing to pay for it. Of the 45% surveyed in 2001 and 2002 interested in greater
fuel economy, those interested in a gasoline-powered vehicle said they’d
spend no more than $600 extra for greater fuel efficiency. Hybrid intenders
would pay up to $800 more. And clean diesel advocates would shell out just $400
extra. “This is not a case of ‘build it and they will come,’”
McManus says. “Automakers must provide a tangible benefit proportionate
to the extra cost since new vehicle buyers are both rational and risk-averse.”
