One month after its reveal, Renault introduced a prototype that centers on a hydrogen powered internal combustion engine. Alongside the reveal, the French automaker released a fresh promotional image showing a fragment of the concept car — a window frame lit with an emblem. It is worth recalling that earlier in February Renault had already shared details of the vehicle’s front-end design and overall silhouette, signaling a bold direction for the project. In this iteration, the emphasis shifts from the common hydrogen route to a different propulsion path that uses hydrogen in an internal combustion system.
Most hydrogen initiatives rely on fuel cells that convert hydrogen into electricity to drive traction motors. Renault’s latest development, however, explores a fundamentally different approach: an internal combustion engine that runs on hydrogen as its fuel. The anticipated advantages over conventional fuel cells include lower manufacturing costs and a simpler mechanical layout. When compared with gasoline or diesel engines, hydrogen combustion promises a cleaner emissions profile because the exhaust products are predominantly water vapor with only a small amount of lubricating oil particulates from worn components. Practically, this could translate to familiar engine performance and maintenance characteristics, but with a much lower environmental impact, especially in regions enforcing tighter fuel standards. Renault outlined these points in their 2024 materials and communications about the project.
Industry activity around hydrogen combustion continues to gain traction beyond Renault. Toyota has conducted experiments with combustion engines designed to consume hydrogen, with prototypes based on the Corolla and Yaris appearing in 2021 and undergoing rigorous testing on race tracks in Japan. The GR Yaris powered by a 1.6 liter engine adapted to hydrogen fuel illustrates how mainstream compact models could leverage hydrogen combustion technologies in the near term. Toyota’s program notes from 2021 emphasize the potential for smaller, everyday vehicles to adopt hydrogen combustion without sacrificing driving dynamics.
Historically, the concept of hydrogen combustion engines is not new. In the early 2000s, BMW explored this path as well, developing prototypes between 2002 and 2007 that used hydrogen-fueled units in several variants of the 7 Series executive sedans from the E38 and E65 generations. These early efforts laid the groundwork for understanding how hydrogen behaves in a high-compression internal combustion environment and helped map out challenges in fuel delivery, cold starts, and long-term durability. BMW’s historical program archives from the early 2000s reveal the technical hurdles that had to be addressed to make hydrogen a viable fuel for luxury and performance vehicles.
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