Opel yesterday (6 April) held a workshop at its Dudenhofen test track near Frankfurt to discuss its ambitious plans in the EV, extended range and hydrogen fuel fields. Vehicle chief engineer, EVs, Christian Kunstmann and Opel manager, hydrogen fuel cell development strategy Europe, Lars Peter Thiesen, outlined some of Opel’s thinking behind the new technology.
Christian Kunstmann
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JA: How has the Ampera evolved?
CK: The Ampera clearly comes from a battery electric vehicle point of view [but] it was very clear we had to deal with the issue of extended range – that sets us [apart].
JA: Why not have EVs with extended battery ranges?
CK: You can build a car that you can drive from Munich to Berlin, but [if] I was a consumer I would have a car [able] to drive 500km [300 miles] and then in Berlin I am stuck at the charge pole for 20 hours. I can’t recharge in 20 minutes. Don’t neglect recharge time.
JA: What are some of the recharging challenges you face in terms of numbers? What is the Ampera advantage?
CK: From 100KW with an electric wire [compared to] the fuel pump that gives you 20mW – three zeros more. I want performance, I don’t want a lame duck. It [Ampera] will recharge in 4.5 hours if it is fully depleted.
JA: Do you think the public will share your enthusiasm for the Ampera, will it satisfy performance requirements?
CK: We will sell this car in significant volume, I think. The numbers are OK for an engineer, but there will be more people than engineers buying Amperas. In the end it is a very different approach to e-mobility.
Let the consumer decide. The consumer needs to understand the product, people need to drive it [and] some people need to drive it to make up their mind. Driving electric vehicles for 20 years, what I realise is I want acceleration.
Lars Peter Thiesen
JA: What will be any hydrogen commercialisation date and which countries could take it?
LPT: The US, Germany, South Korea and Japan will see the first markets for commercialisation by 2015 – we have our pathway of how we think we can get costs down.
JA: How much has the research cost GM?
LPT: We have invested EUR1.5bn (US$2.14bn) into this technology in 10 years, which is a major part of our global R&D spend. It is important we have this core knowledge in the company.
JA: What, if any, will be the hydrogen premium for the consumer?
LPT: They [vehicles] will be several thousand euros more expensive – the most critical is how you really start to grow the market – the UK [for example] is a very interesting market.
JA: Will Opel’s home market in Germany take to hydrogen quickly?
LPT: I personally don’t think you will have nationwide coverage in Germany in January 2015. You will need a lot of incentives from the government.
In the hydrogen business you have to have much investment per [service] station, something like EUR1.5m. In the end, we will show this technology works – it is zero emission.
