- BMW confirms the launch of a hydrogen fuel-cell-powered X5 version.
- The iX5 FCEV will arrive two years after the launch of the G65 X5, in 2028.
- BMW wants to encourage the development of hydrogen fueling networks to make the iX5 FCEV more commercially viable.
BMW is one of the few manufacturers that have not given up on hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, even though their appeal is very limited. They do bring several advantages, but their problem has never been the technology itself, which has been viable for years, but rather the almost nonexistent hydrogen fueling infrastructure. Even so, BMW is persisting with its FCEV dream and plans to launch a new fuel cell SUV.
It will be an FCEV version of the upcoming iX5, the electric variant of the X5. This will bring the number of powertrain choices for the new X5 up to five (gasoline, diesel, plug-in hybrid, electric and hydrogen fuel cell). It’s not clear if BMW actually thinks there is a market for this hydrogen variant or if it’s just flexing its tech muscles, but BMW board member Joachim Post did hint that it’s the latter when he said that “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.”
Post went on to say “Hydrogen has an essential part to play in global decarbonization, which is why we are committed to driving the technology forward.” He stopped short of saying where exactly BMW would sell the FCEV variant, but the places with the best infrastructure to support it would be Japan, South Korea, parts of China and California.
BMW’s fuel cell vehicle technology is co-developed with Toyota, and it promises to give the iX5 FCEV the same clean running as a pure electric vehicle but without the need for a huge and heavy battery pack. An X5-sized vehicle would need over 100 kilowatt-hours of battery capacity to have enough range to be competitive.
The FCEV model will be considerably lighter and offer similar range with a full tank of hydrogen while only emitting harmless water vapor and using the electricity that it generates more efficiently than a comparable BEV. However, an FCEV isn’t as clean as a pure EV, all added up.
The next-generation X5 (codenamed G65) will ride on the same CLAR platform that underpins today’s model and the rest of BMW’s larger models except its front-wheel-drive models. The only exceptions are the iX, which rides on its own bespoke platform, and the new iX3, which is the first BMW to be built on the 800-volt Neue Klasse platform specifically designed for pure electric vehicles.
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Source: BMW
BMW will launch the G65 in 2026 with combustion, PHEV and electric power, but the FCEV model will arrive two years later, in 2028. Given that it will have the instant power and torque of an EV but without the added weight, the iX5 FCEV should be very spritely to drive, superior in both straight-line and cornering performance to BEV variants laden with batteries.
There has also been talk of reintroducing range extender technology with the new X5. BMW last offered that in the i3 REX, which used a motorcycle engine as a generator to top up the battery while on the move. We reported in June that a new EREV system was reportedly in development with ZF (which supplies BMW’s transmissions), and it could be used on the G65 X5 but also the next X7 (codenamed G67) and even the smaller X3, which is due for a mid-lifecycle refresh in 2028.
Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles were never held back by their own shortcomings. It was always the underdeveloped hydrogen fueling network that held them back. BMW is working on that too through a program called HyMoS (Hydrogen Mobility at Scale), whose aim is to make operating hydrogen fueling networks more commercially viable and attractive for companies, which “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.”
