In the global pursuit of greener and cleaner 'alternative' fuels, the ultimate goal must be in the development, advancement and eventual worldwide use of hydrogen to fuel our cars. BMW have been at the forefront of developing hydrogen fueled cars for over thirty years and have set world land speed records in their BMW Hydrogen Racer H2R.

The hydrogen racer has hit speeds of over 300km per hour in 2004 and is powered by a 6 liter V12 Hydrogen fueled combustion engine and to make for an ultra light car, it has an aluminum chassis an formula 1 style carbon-fiber body.

BMW's research into using hydrogen as a fuel began back in the 1970's which culminated in the unveiling of their first hydrogen powered car, the BMW 750hL, at EXPO 2000. A truly impressive green, clean car, the 750hL is powered by sunlight and water.

The next offering from BMW's research of hydrogen powered vehicles came in the unveiling of their hydrogen powered Mini at the 2001 Frankfurt Motor Show. The Mini was a concept car highlighting the possibilities of an affordable hydrogen powered car capable of running with no harmful emissions and still offering great performance worthy of the BMW badge. The Mini featured a new fuel injection system involving firing cooled hydrogen into the engine instead of the normal warmed hydrogen. The new cooled hydrogen injection system boosted the power and efficiency of the Mini's engine so much so that it could match the statistics of one of today's sporty gasoline engines.

In the same year, BMW publicized their clean energy system through the platform of the 'Clean Energy World Tour 2001'. In taking their clean energy system around the world, on the Clean Energy World Tour, BMW proudly displayed their answer to the regular environmental and energy issues associated with the motor industry. Their clean energy system has the twin benefits of using none of the earths limited natural resources usually used to power motor vehicles and the prospect of the emissions produced being zero and having no adverse effects on the environment.

The latest hydrogen clean energy BMW is the 745h which is modeled on the ultra high-tech, high spec BMW E65 7 Series. It has a 4.4 liter V8 engine with bi-VANOS variable valve timing and as well as running on sunlight and water it has the dual capability of running on premium unleaded gasoline which although at first it sounds like a backward step, it could be the link to get more hydrogen cars into the public domain with the end goal being the ditching of gasoline vehicles altogether. On hydrogen power the 4.4 liter BMW 745h produces 184 horse power with a top speed of 133mph.

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