Jay Leno, is a fan of hydrogen cars. The American comedian and chat-show host thinks they are the shape of motoring in the future.

The BMW Hydrogen 7 which costs a cool £5m ($10m)

Leno comments, “For the past few days I have been driving BMW’s latest 7-series hydrogen car. There is some terrific technology there. It makes plenty of power for its size; the only thing that has limited it is the choice of fuel. This is a flex-fuel vehicle. It runs on either hydrogen or petrol. If you run out of hydrogen you press a button and it goes to petrol.”

Model BMW Hydrogen 7
Engine 5972cc, 12 cylinders
Power 260bhp @ 5100rpm
Torque 287 lb ft @ 4300rpm
Transmission Six-speed automatic
Fuel 19.2mpg (hydrogen) / 20mpg (petrol)
CO2 5.2g/km (hydrogen) / 325g/km (petrol)
Performance 0-62mph: 9.5sec. Top speed: 143mph
Range 125 miles (hydrogen) 310 miles (petrol)
Price £5m (but not on sale)

Jay Leno helped BMW to introduce the hydrogen car seven or eight years ago. “We did a rather dramatic demonstration where I drove the car up onto a platform. I let it run and put an empty glass under the exhaust pipe. I spoke for about half an hour and when I finished I shut off the car and drank the water that was in the glass. It wasn’t the best-tasting water I’d ever had but it certainly wasn’t bad for me.”

The main disadvantage, he says, “is that there is always a certain amount of hydrogen bleed-off as the liquid turns to gas. That means that if you let the car sit for an extended period of time, eventually the hydrogen would run out because it escapes. It’s deliberate. The hydrogen, as it escapes, keeps everything cold.”

It seems you cannot tell the difference moving from gas (petrol) to hydrogen. “It’s viable but it’s expensive. I think you’ll see it in the years ahead. There’s no hydrogen infrastructure right now. It’s got to be one of those things like when John Kennedy said we’re going to the moon, long before 1969. Everybody works on it and gets it done.”

Is the age of hydrogen nearly upon us?

American comedian and chat-show host, Jay Leno, is a fan of hydrogen cars — which are possibly the shape of motoring in the future.

The BMW Hydrogen 7 which costs a cool £5m ($10m)

Leno comments, “For the past few days I have been driving BMW’s latest 7-series hydrogen car. There is some terrific technology there. It makes plenty of power for its size; the only thing that has limited it is the choice of fuel. This is a flex-fuel vehicle. It runs on either hydrogen or petrol. If you run out of hydrogen you press a button and it goes to petrol.”

Model BMW Hydrogen 7
Engine 5972cc, 12 cylinders
Power 260bhp @ 5100rpm
Torque 287 lb ft @ 4300rpm
Transmission Six-speed automatic
Fuel 19.2mpg (hydrogen) / 20mpg (petrol)
CO2 5.2g/km (hydrogen) / 325g/km (petrol)
Performance 0-62mph: 9.5sec. Top speed: 143mph
Range 125 miles (hydrogen) 310 miles (petrol)
Price £5m (but not on sale)

Jay Leno helped BMW to introduce the hydrogen car seven or eight years ago. “We did a rather dramatic demonstration where I drove the car up onto a platform. I let it run and put an empty glass under the exhaust pipe. I spoke for about half an hour and when I finished I shut off the car and drank the water that was in the glass. It wasn’t the best-tasting water I’d ever had but it certainly wasn’t bad for me.”

The main disadvantage, he says, “is that there is always a certain amount of hydrogen bleed-off as the liquid turns to gas. That means that if you let the car sit for an extended period of time, eventually the hydrogen would run out because it escapes. It’s deliberate. The hydrogen, as it escapes, keeps everything cold.”

It seems you cannot tell the difference moving from gas (petrol) to hydrogen. “It’s viable but it’s expensive. I think you’ll see it in the years ahead. There’s no hydrogen infrastructure right now. It’s got to be one of those things like when John Kennedy said we’re going to the moon, long before 1969. Everybody works on it and gets it done.”

Is the age of hydrogen nearly upon us?

If you’re a getaway driver and you think you’re getting away with it, the last thing you want to see in your rear-view mirror is this latest police car :

The amazing vehicle, complete with reflective markings and flashing blue lights, is capable of 220mph, and can reach 60mph in 2.5 seconds. However, lucky for some, it’s not destined to make an appearance on our streets.

The car was specially assembled by manufacturer Caparo to impress visitors to the MPH motor show at Earls Court, London, last month.

“A car thief would be a little concerned if they saw one of these in the mirror,” said a Caparo spokesman. “Nothing would get away.”

They did admit, though, that underneath the decoration, the vehicle is a standard Caparo T1 racing car. The spokesman said it had been adapted for regular road use, but admitted it was still “bloomin’ noisy”.

Although it’s a great deal faster than the 5-Series BMWs currently favoured by the Metropolitan Police in London, their spokesman said: “We will never get these cars – we have helicopters.”

Spoil sports!

The BMW line at the Frankfurt Motor Show 2007 was that its new X6 Sports Activity Coupé is a “concept car”.

This has been challenged by some commentators who expect it in the showrooms next summer.

The X6 mixes X5 mechanicals with a snazzy coupé body. It will undoubtedly appeal to enthusiasts who appreciate its xDrive four-wheel drive system tuned for road performance. Also, all models will come with BMW’s “Dynamic Control Performance” active chassis.

The engine will be definitely sporty with two turbo-diesel sixes and turbo-charged six and V8 engines.

The consensus is that the X6 is rather unique. It has fine looks, and although climatologists might not like the idea of a SUV/coupé combination, BMW will counter by positioning it as a hybrid by 2009, claiming it will reduce fuel consumption by 20 percent.

It will be interesting to observe what emerges and when.