Rolls-Royce is contemplating hydrogen powertrains for future autos, however within the type of gasoline cells somewhat than combustion engines, the posh model’s CEO mentioned in a latest interview with Autocar.

The Rolls-Royce Spectre, the model’s first manufacturing EV, is scheduled to start out deliveries later this yr. After briefly contemplating plug-in hybrids, the model is anticipated to go all-electric by 2030. However CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös sees a risk for hydrogen fuel-cell luxurious automobiles as effectively.

“We would exit batteries, and we would enter into gasoline cells,” he mentioned within the interview, noting that this is able to solely occur as soon as fuel-cell know-how was sufficiently superior. Nevertheless, Müller-Ötvös sees no future for hydrogen combustion engines, which burn hydrogen instead of gasoline or diesel.

Rolls-Royce Spectre testing

“I believe a hydrogen combustion engine is nothing I might in any method look into, as a result of that was examined already years in the past,” he mentioned, referring to Rolls-Royce mother or father BMW’s Hydrogen 7 of 2005-2007, a modified 7-Sequence luxurious sedan with a hydrogen-powered V-12 engine. Gasoline cells are a extra environment friendly use of hydrogen, he mentioned.

That view appears to be aligned with that of Rolls-Royce’s mother or father firm. BMW hasn’t returned to hydrogen combustion because the Hydrogen 7, however has continued growing gasoline cells, even saying that it is leaving room for hydrogen within the Neue Klasse structure that can underpin its next-generation EVs.

BMW iX5 Hydrogen prototype

There’s been renewed curiosity in hydrogen combustion from different automakers, although. Toyota has been growing hydrogen combustion engines, with an emphasis on racing. And just lately a group of Japanese automakers dedicated to exploring the thought.

Hydrogen combustion is considered as a method for current inner combustion engines to outlive in a way forward for stricter emissions requirements. It comes with some drawbacks, although, together with the problem of storing sufficient hydrogen onboard for an inexpensive vary. Hydrogen combustion autos will even be topic to the identical infrastructure points which have restricted the adoption of fuel-cell autos—however with the addition of tailpipe emissions.