Will Hydrogen Race Cars at Le Mans Move Fuel Cell Cars into the Mainstream?

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Written By Barry Lenson

Road & Track magazine reports that in 2024, a company called Forze Hydrogen Racing will enter the historic 24-hour race that is held every year at Le Mans. Forze’s racecar is being built by a group of engineering students, who are developing the car with the help of Hyundai. It will compete at Le Mans in a new class that will be created that year for fuel cell cars.

“. . . the future might be closer than it appears,” Road & Track asks, and that could be true.

But Do Innovative Cars at Le Mans Always Predict Future Automotive Trends?

The appearance of a hydrogen fuel cell car in a major race could go a long way toward raising awareness of the practicality of cars that are powered by hydrogen fuel cells, which currently are only being sold in the U.S. in California and Hawaii.

In the past, other innovatively powered cars have run at Le Mans, then failed to gain widespread use. The most famous was a Rover/BRM gas turbine-powered car that competed there in 1963, failed to finish due to mechanical failure, and was entered again in several later races at Le Mans. That was a high-profile appearance of an alternatively powered car in a major race. Yet it failed to lead to widespread use of turbine-powered cars, which have inherent drawbacks. For one, they spew a stream of hot exhaust. And who wants a car that does that?

If you’re a car nut, you might also recall that some years earlier Chrysler made a few hundred turbine-powered passenger cars that never hit the market because they were deemed too impractical.

Yet hydrogen fuel cell cars are more practical and more promising, than turbine-powered cars. One reason is that fuel cell cars produce very little heat, and virtually no exhaust.

A Quick Overview of Fuel Cell Technology in Cars

Just to review, fuel cell cars carry fuel tanks that are filled not with gasoline, but with hydrogen gas that is stored at high pressure. That hydrogen is fed through platinum in a catalyst (“fuel cell”) where the interaction of hydrogen and platinum generates electricity. That electrical power is, in turn, used to power electrical motors that propel the car.

So even though hydrogen is used to power these cars, they are essentially electric cars – not completely unlike familiar electric cars like Teslas and others that we see on the road every day.

If fuel cell cars place as winners in their class, the reason could be that a hydrogen fuel-cell car can travel for upward of 300 miles on a single refueling. And if you are a race fan, you know that the fewer refueling stops a car makes during the French 24-hour race, the more likely it is to win.

What This Could Mean for Recycling Platinum

If hydrogen fuel cell-powered cars become commonplace on American roads and live out a full useful life before their fuel cells need replacement, the result could be a new source of recyclable platinum.

When will this happen? If it happens at all, it will not be for a very long time. But let’s keep our eyes open and continue to watch the trends. If the age of hydrogen fuel cell cars ever arrives, we will want to be prepared.

And you don’t have to wait to profit from recycling platinum scrap! No matter what kind of platinum scrap you have – old jewelry, old plating supplies, old used industrial catalysts – you can call us today at 800-426-2344 and we can test and recycle it for you. That’s one “future” technology you can profit from today.

Call our precious metal refiners to learn more.

Barry Lenson
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