Hyundai to reveal hydrogen truck concept

Hyundai Motor Company has released design images of its hydrogen-powered fuel cell electric truck concept.

Named HDC-6 Neptune after the Roman god of the seas, Hyundai will debut the truck concept at this year’s North American Commercial Vehicle Show in Atlanta on October 29.

Commercial vehicle subsidiary Hyundai Translead will also reveal its “eco-friendly, high-performance” refrigerated concept trailer solution, HT Nitro ThermoTech at the event.

The company says the name Neptune symbolises the hydrogen powered natural elements of the sea – the largest potential source of hydrogen fuel on Earth.

“We have cemented the fuel cell technology leadership position in the passenger vehicle sector with the world’s first commercially produced fuel cell EV and the second-generation fuel cell EV, the NEXO,” Hyundai commercial vehicle head Edward Lee says.

“With the introduction of HDC-6 NEPTUNE, in addition to the road proven Xcient fuel cell truck, we expand our technology leadership into the commercial vehicle sector by unveiling our vision of how fuel cell electric trucks can resolve the environmental equations of widely used commercial vehicles and our commitment to create a decarbonised society,” he says.

The HDC-6 NEPTUNE features a modern “Art Deco style” design with inspiration taken from the streamliner railway train sets of the 1930s.

The design team aimed to combine “both form and function” for a new offering in the commercial vehicle segment.

Hyundai’s commercial offerings include trucks from Class 2 to Class 8 and buses which are manufactured in three international plants and currently sold in 130 countries around the world.