More details are emerging about the car that will occupy the experimental-only Garage 56 at the 24 Hours of Le Mans next June. Home this year to the radical Nissan DeltaWing, it will be the 2013 headquarters for the even more innovative GreenGT H2 Prototype — the first hydrogen-powered racer to enter the world’s most prestigious day-long endurance event.
This eco-intense speedster was created by the Franco-Swiss GreenGT organization, a firm specializing in the design and development of clean and sustainable vehicle propulsion systems with a focus on competition cars. The GreenGT H2 is fitted with a hydrogen-fed fuel cell stack that creates 400kW of electricity and has a 262kWh maximum capacity. The 18-cell array powers two 3-phase AC motors, one at each rear wheel, that collectively develop 540 horsepower and a claimed 2,950 lb-ft of torque. A single-speed transmission and a GreenGT-developed torque vectoring differential gearbox complete the driveline mechanicals. The car has a projected top speed of 186 mph and will roll on specially formulated racing tires currently being developed by Dunlop.
Hydrogen fuel for the GreenGT H2 is stored at 5,076psi in a pair of reinforced composite tanks positioned on either side of the car’s central carbon fiber monocoque structure. At this point in time, the range between refills is only 40 minutes. However, the team is focused on extending that interval to a full hour between stops as well as to reducing the race vehicle’s weight from the prototype’s present 2,730 pounds to less than 2,200 pounds. In addition to competing in the 24 Hours of Le Mans next June, the team also plans to enter the GreenGT H2 in the 6 hours of Spa, Belgium.
