Hyundai
Most of the talk around Hyundai’s newly announced Hydrogen Vision 2040 plan revolves around the full conversion of the automaker’s commercial fleet to fuel cell tech. However, the Korean automaker grabbed our attention when it rolled out the Vision FK concept, a 670-horsepower fuel cell plug-in hybrid sports car.
As best as I can tell through the digital camouflage, the Vision FK looks a lot like a mid-engine version of Kia’s Stinger — the proportions and roofline are almost bang-on. However, there’s an intake of sorts where the rear doors should be and the wheel arches, particularly the rears, feature wide body flares. There’s also the near total lack of engine noise as the concept ripped around a virtual track in the teaser clip.
Through the heavy camo, the concept looks like a mid-engined Kia’s Stinger.
Hyundai
Underneath the sheet metal is a 500 kW (around 670-ponies) dual-motor powertrain built in partnership with electric performance startup Rimac Automobili. Hyundai invested around $90 million in Rimac just a few years ago, so the two are pretty tight. With a motor for each rear wheel, the Vision FK is capable of torque vectoring around corners and through drifts. Put the power down right and it’s said to sprint from 0-62 mph (100 km/h) in under 4 seconds.
Providing juice for the electric powertrain is a plug-in hybrid hydrogen fuel cell system. It appears to be based on Hyundai’s new third-generation fuel cell stack, which is mated to a large plug-in battery pack. Like any plug-in hybrid, the concept can be plugged in to charge the battery for an undisclosed amount of pure electric range, which is augmented by the fuel cell stack acting as an on the go generator maintaining the battery’s charge for as long as there’s hydrogen in the tanks. (Yes, plural tanks; like many FCEVs, the Vision FK uses two cylindrical tanks.)
The hydrogen fuel cell and plug-in electric combo seems like a good match, but also like overkill.
Hyundai
With a full charge and its tanks full, the concept will cruise for around 372 miles (600 km) before needing to stop. That’s not hugely better than today’s best EVs, but consider that refueling takes just 5 minutes — about the same as a gasoline fill up.
Albert Biermann, Head of R&D Division at Hyundai Motors and Kia, called the concept “a bit of technical overkill” during its debut and I’m inclined to agree based on the first impression, but that makes it no less awesome.
Still in the highly conceptual phase, there is no timeline for when we could expect to see something like the Vision FK on the road. In the meanwhile, the Hyundai is hard at work on the next-generation Nexo SUV which Biermann says could arrive as soon as late 2023 and a hydrogen version of its Staria MPV — which we don’t get here in the States.