Zero-emission motoring includes more than electric vehicles. Some automakers, like Toyota, continue to invest in developing hydrogen technology while others have gone all-in on EVs. Not one to follow, Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus is also getting in on the hydrogen action with its latest hydrogen-powered Boot. But Glickenhaus is going a step further by trying to develop cryogenic hydrogen fuel cells for its electric truck.
See, Glickenhaus can’t just do what everyone else is doing. That’s boring. Cryogenic hydrogen fuel is denser than liquid hydrogen, which should equate to more power. Glickenhaus believes the future will include a combination of hydrogen fuel cells and batteries, and it is laying the groundwork with its hydrogen-powered Boot. The company is well aware of the infrastructure issues facing hydrogen, but it is planning its own solutions because Glickenhaus can’t even source the cryogenic hydrogen needed for its truck’s test runs.
Gallery: SCG Hydrogen Boot
Glickenhaus sees an opportunity for hydrogen power in certain applications, like for fleets, believing the trade-offs for electric vehicles are just too high for such companies. Recharge times, compromised cargo capacity, and limited range are factors a company must consider before switching to EVs. The company also plans to develop a US road-legal version, though there’s no timeline as to when that’ll emerge. There will be a race version that will compete in the Baja 1000.
Most automakers have abandoned hydrogen, but some see a future where both batteries and fuel cells power our vehicles. Toyota is developing a hydrogen-powered combustion engine that might see real-world production in the next-gen Prius. However, it will face the same infrastructure problems that have always plagued hydrogen vehicles.
Glickenhaus has some significant challenges ahead of it. The company says there are only about four labs in the US that can test cryogenic hydrogen at the correct temperatures. There are also no existing tanks that meet Glickenhaus’ needs. There’s a lot of work to be done, and Glickenhaus seems poised to complete it.
