Future Present

Newcastle Herald

Wednesday February 28, 2007

Brent Davison

WHILE most of us flick the topic of diesel versus petrol versus hybrid backwards and forwards the world's car makers continue to creep forward with hydrogen fuel-cell development.

One of them, Suzuki, is about to show us where it is up to in the search. At tomorrow's Melbourne International Motor Show opening Suzuki will take the covers off its Ionis concept, a futuristic hatchback giving us a glimpse at what we might be driving 15 or 20 years from now.

Ionis engineers have maximised its interior space by placing the fuel cell under the floor where it can quietly convert hydrogen into the electricity needed to drive the car.

As well as the fuel-cell propulsion and sliding side doors (the front pair slide forward, the rear pair backward) Ionis also has fly-by-wire control systems electronic connections that eliminate the physical ones between drive systems and their end point (steering, brakes and throttle), reducing weight and freeing up space.

Unusually, Ionis features wooden floors.

© 2007 Newcastle Herald

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