“Like driving through a cloud”

6418289301_74c8b9cc07_bOslo, 26th of November 2011: The largest public test drive of hydrogen fuel cell cars in Norway attracted Norwegian, British, Dutch, Serbian and German drivers.

About 10.000 people saw the latest FCEVs brought to Oslo by the EU-project “H2moves Scandinavia”. After the new hydrogen station was opened last Monday in Oslo by the mayor Fabian Stang, the public was invited to test the green future of cars that offer the same comfort and luxury as today’s latest cars.

  • 4 Mercedes-Benz B-Class F-CELL,
  • 2 Hyundai ix35 FCEV and
  • 4 Th!nk City Cars with fuel cell range extender

were offered for a free test drive to everyone showing their driver’s licence.

FCEVs are popular

If you passed by and didn’t see the cars, it was because they were on the roads nearly non-stop. About 140 people took the chance to sit down in the driver’s seat and explore the streets of Oslo themselves, accompanied by a “FCEV expert” to answer questions.

Better than regular cars

After returning the car, one could detect a smile and “Wow”-expression in the faces of the test drivers. Most didn’t expect that a state-of-the-art FCEV doesn’t only offer the same comfort as “regular” cars, but is even a better experience: same seating comfort, but less noise (only as loud as a laptop) and more instant acceleration. Watch our YouTube video “Like driving through a cloud” to hear what people report on their first time sitting in a FCEV.

Premium Electric Cars

The Th!nk cars were already widely known amongst Oslo citizens. A novelty was the latest Mercedes-Benz family car B-Class in the fuel cell version and the Hyundai SUV ix35, also with this latest technology.

Proof of zero harmful emission: water only

As could be seen from the many small puddles on the venue, the cars really only left behind water. FCEVs allow zero emission driving with high ranges and short refuelling times, as some could see themselves last Saturday, when watching the cars refueling at the Gaustad station within less than 4 minutes. Afterwards the cars were ready to go for another 400-500 km – only leaving behind a fine trail of water.

Wondering where the water comes from?

The electric motor is supplied with electricity that is produced onboard by a fuel cell. In the fuel cell, hydrogen is merged with oxygen from the air, producing electricity and water. FCEVs neither emit exhaust fumes nor engine noise; they only leave behind pure water (H2O).

Answers to your questions

Our team of 20 people was busy explaining and presenting the FCEVs. You can find the answers to the most frequently asked questions here on our website:

Are you interested in owning or leasing one of our cars? Please contact us,info@h2moves.eu, and we can put you on our waiting list. Maybe you can drive your own FCEV even before several major car manufacturers will start their mass production of FCEVs, from 2014 on.

More photos from the event and the drivers can be found in H2moves Scandinavia’s photostream on Flickr.