Mercedes-Benz F 600 Hygenius

The Mercedes-Benz F 600 Hygenius was a fuel cell concept car from DaimlerChrysler. Unlike earlier fuel cell vehicles such as the Mercedes-Benz F-Cell, it was not derived from a car with a conventional drive, which made possible solutions such as rear-wheel drive through an electric motor of 85 kW and 350 Nm mounted directly on the rear axle. Gaseous hydrogen stored at a pressure of 700 bar fed a fuel cell stack that powered the motor through a buffer battery. According to the maker, consumption was equivalent to 2.9 litres of diesel per 100 km, which gave a range of 400 km, and top speed rose from 140 to 170 km/h over the previous generation. Its technical basis was a modified A-Class, and DaimlerChrysler said the F 600 series would be its last experimental vehicle, with the findings feeding a fuel cell drive for the B-Class.