If you believe the hype out of Detroit, we'll all be driving ultra-clean cars running on hydrogen fuel cells one day, instead of today's gas-chuggers. The latest comes from General Motors, who "reported Monday it has made a breakthrough that brings hydrogen-powered vehicles a bit closer to reality," according to the Red Herring.
The Army's National Automotive Center is taking a peek into that future now, testing out its first hydrogen-powered car.
The 66-inch wide, 13.5 horsepower Aggressor Alternative Mobility Vehicle goes from 0 to 40 mph in four seconds, and tops out at 80 mph, according to its makers, Quantum Fuel Systems Technologies Worldwide.
But speed isn't really the selling point of the Aggressor. Stealth is. The vehicle has a "virtually silent operating mode with reduced thermal signature," making it harder for evil-doers to spot the car.
The Quantum Aggressor runs on compressed hydrogen utilizing... carbon fiber storage tanks. A 10 kW fuel cell is coupled with an energy storage module in a parallel hybrid configuration, which provides power on demand to a high-torque electric motor driving the rear-wheels...The Quantum Aggressor can be driven to the intended destination and then be used as a silent power generator to produce high quality electricity for telecommunications, surveillance, targeting, and other battlefield equipment.
But not to worry, greenies. Quantum says that the Aggressor is eco-friendly, too -- no matter what the operating mode, "the vehicle does not produce any emissions."
