Then there are the hydrogen tanks. The Nexo has three, all mounted transversely across the rear of the car. They look like oversized scuba diving cylinders. Two are just ahead of the rear axle line, the third just behind it. By using three tanks – with a total capacity of 157 litres – rather than two like the ix35, the packaging is neater and boot space is preserved.
How does the Nexo compare to a traditional petrol car?
So the Nexo is a purpose-built fuel cell car. Hyundai quotes a 414-mile range (on the more stringent WLTP cycle) and says those tanks can be fully replenished in five minutes, little longer than it takes to refuel a conventional car.
The point of all of this, of course, is that you have the range and flexibility of a petrol or diesel car, but nothing more harmful than water comes out of the tailpipe.
The Nexo takes learnings and engineering know-how from the ix35, but not its hardware. The fuel cell componentry is completely new, and the stack itself was designed and built in-house by Hyundai. At current UK prices, it would be slightly cheaper to refuel the Nexo than a similar petrol car and its range is comparable too.
It feels exactly like an electric car to drive, albeit one with a relatively lightweight motor. You simply aren’t aware that any clever chemistry is happening beneath that bonnet. The car is every bit as serene as a conventional EV. What it doesn’t have is the surprising turn of speed of a typical electric car. Instead, it feels brisk enough to keep pace with traffic, but no faster.
There is regenerative braking to recoup some energy that would otherwise be lost and you can choose your preferred level of energy harvesting, from none at all to near enough single-pedal driving. Unlike with some EVs and hybrids, the Nexo’s brake pedal is actually quite consistent and easy to modulate.
At motorway speeds, there is a pronounced wind rustle from the A-pillar, as though a window has been left open a crack, but otherwise the Nexo is calm and relaxing at a cruise. On race-track-smooth Norwegian roads (we’re on the outskirts of Oslo because of the region’s well-developed hydrogen infrastructure), the ride quality feels perfectly fine, although it remains to be seen how the Nexo’s chassis deals with a really gnarly UK road.
The car is easy to drive around town, too, thanks in part to the elevated seating position, but out on a flowing, cross-country route, the Nexo is a little less impressive. The steering, for one thing, is bizarre, the wheel tugging lightly this way and that for no apparent reason, as though somebody has got a hold of the steering column and is trying to spook you out. In corners, meanwhile, the car feels heavy, tipping over quite markedly if you carry any meaningful speed through a bend. The Nexo weighs 1814kg and you feel every single kilo.
Within its comfort zone – on the motorway, in the city or in among gently flowing traffic on an A-road – the Nexo does exactly what it needs to do. But its comfort zone has no breadth. The cabin, meanwhile, looks very modern but also quite slabby. The flat, expansive centre console is littered with so many squared-off buttons that it looks like a game of Scrabble at the Rees-Mogg household.
Is the UK ready for hydrogen vehicles like the Nexo?
As an SUV-style car, the Nexo isn’t at all bad. As a concept, being able to drive for more than 400 miles, while emitting only water, before filling up again in five minutes flat is nothing short of brilliant. It’s game changing. Yet so few of us will be able to enjoy it, for there are just 15 hydrogen fuel stations in the UK.
