BMW iX5 Hydrogen targets 750 km range with new flat tank design
BMW says its production hydrogen X5 should manage up to 750 km on a single fill, a substantial improvement on the 504 km the pilot fleet achieved and enough to put clear air between it and the Toyota Mirai.
The iX5 Hydrogen is due in 2028 and will be BMW's first series-production fuel cell car, joining petrol, diesel, plug-in hybrid, and battery electric versions of the next-generation X5.
The company claims the new flat tank system, holding at least 7 kg of compressed hydrogen, should deliver up to 750 km on the WLTP cycle - though official homologation data is not yet available.
For context, the pilot fleet that has been circling the globe since 2023 managed 504 km from 6 kg, so the 50% range improvement suggests the Gen3 fuel cell BMW developed with Toyota is doing serious efficiency work, not just carrying more fuel.
Where does that leave the iX5 Hydrogen against the competition, such as it is? The Toyota Mirai manages around 650 km from 5.6 kg, while Hyundai's recently announced second-generation Nexo claims a rather optimistic 826 km from 6.69 kg. BMW would slot neatly between the two, assuming anyone's numbers survive contact with a test cycle.
The engineering achievement here is less about range than about packaging. The pilot fleet used two cylindrical tanks arranged in a T beneath the floor, which worked but required bespoke architecture. The production system instead uses seven carbon-fibre composite chambers laid flat within a single metal frame, dimensionally identical to BMW's Gen6 battery pack.
The result, according to development board member Dr Joachim Post, is "installation Tetris" - the same cabin, the same boot, the same production line for petrol, diesel, plug-in hybrid, battery electric, and now hydrogen. Five powertrains from one flexible platform is genuine optionality, and positions BMW to respond if hydrogen passenger car demand materialises.
BMW has secured €273 million in German federal and Bavarian state funding to bring the technology to production. The iX5 Hydrogen will arrive first in markets with existing refuelling infrastructure - Germany, California, and parts of France - though that network is expanding as AFIR mandates require EU member states to build out hydrogen corridors by 2030. BMW says its production system is ready; the question is whether the stations will be too.
No UK availability has been announced.
