One of the biggest concerns when it comes to military vehicles is their ability to operate quietly, while still offering up plentiful power. This poses a big challenge with traditional automotive drivetrains. Now, GM has teamed up with the U.S. Army Tank Automotive Research, Development & Engineering Center (TARDEC) to build out a special pickup truck that addresses both of those challenges.
Chevy Colorado Trail Boss Edition (not Hydrogen fueled)
The team aims to modify a Chevrolet Colorado mid-size pickup truck to operate on hydrogen fuel cell technology. This would allow the vehicle to run nearly silently thanks to electric motors driving the wheels, and also benefit from extremely good low-end torque, which is perfect for challenging off-road environments. As an added bonus, the only emission from such a vehicle is water.
Design sketch for Chevrolet Colorado hydrogen truck
And this isn’t just some clean room lab experiment. They plan on putting the system into the rigors of daily military use for a full 12 months to see how well it performs. I look forward to hearing more about this project as it unfolds.
[via GM]
