Provoq concept Video

GM to announce Hydrogen FC Cadillac Crossover

GM has announced the Cadillac Provoq Fuel Cell crossover concept at the Consumer Electronic show in Las Vegas.  The overall look is something like a Saturn Vue with a Cadillac fascia and interior. It’s clearly some lovely drawings. I will be at the Detroit Auto Show next week and will endeavor to get a photo of the actual concept.

It’s nice to see that GM hasn’t given up on its hydrogen initiatives. While things these days seem to be all hybrids and ethanol, hydrogen still has some great opportunities associated with it. It seems that Honda has beaten GM to the gate with their FCX Clarity model. But this concept seems like a really exciting car upon which to develop their own fuel cell technology while staying true to their core market’s demand for crossovers.

This is an interesting step for Cadillac. This brand, while making great strides in recent years, still struggles against the Lexus’, Mercedes, and BMWs of the world. This is a sharp looking concept that could continue to push the brand’s image to include “green” along with luxurious and high tech.

This is a concept car so not everything on it is very reasonable. Most notably are the solar panels in the sun roof that are to power all the interiors (lights, radio, etc). That is actually a very reasonable design that, if plausibly introduced into an automotive supply chain, should be introduced in future Cadillac models.

If I were a betting man, I’d say Cadillac will make some version of this in the coming months. This system uses the E-Flex system (from the Chevy Volt Concept).  Given that GM is going to produce the Volt, it seems reasonable that this type of vehicle isn’t far behind (perhaps not with hydrogen as an option, but with a more conventional fuel).  However, there’s also been an announcement of a 2-Mode hybrid Saturn Vue. I don’t see any reasons why this concept couldn’t be swung into this same platform.   So there are many options upon which to develop this concept.  I would assume that GM move forward with at least one of them.  I think I want one.

Images from Wired.com