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"At auto shows such as Geneva, some of the cars on display have true production potential. Case in point: the Mercedes-Benz F800 Style, a head-turning concept car that&amp;#039;s powered by a plug-in hybrid powertrain or a hydrogen fuel cell.   And this 186.0-in. sedan (that&amp;#039;s about 5 in. shorter than an E-Class) manages to be a spacious 5-seater inside, thanks to each of the drive systems taking up much less space than in previous Mercedes iterations of these technologies. This is especially true of the fuel-cell electric drive system, which has been made more compact and powerful. Professor Herbert Kohler, Head of E-Drive &amp;amp;amp; Future Mobility and Chief Environmental Officer at Daimler, says the fuel-cell system in the F800 Style, as well as its plug-in hybrid system, is already close to the series production stage.   The powertrain of the F800 Style plug-in hybrid consists of a direct-injected 300-bhp gasoline V-6 that&amp;#039;s enhanced by a 109-hp hybrid module inside the housing of the car&amp;#039;s 7-speed automatic transmission. Total output, says Mercedes, is &amp;quot;around&amp;quot; 409 bhp. Lithium-ion batteries\u2014recharged via a charging station or a household socket\u2014allow the F800 plug-in hybrid to run exclusively on electricity for up to 18 miles. Mercedes says the performance of the plug-in F800 is like that of a car with a V-6, and although the car has an impressive top speed of 75 mph in electric mode, Mercedes spent more time refining the car&amp;#039;s electric-mode city driving.   When powered by hydrogen fuel-cell technology, a front-mounted fuel cell in the F800 sends electricity to a rear-mounted electric motor with 136 hp and 214 lb.-ft. of torque. Of note, the fuel cell used in the F800 is already in a commercial use, in a Citaro bus that uses two of them. In the F800, a lithium-ion battery pack is located behind the rear seats, protected from the effects of accidents. The F800 also has four hydrogen tanks\u2014two in the transmission tunnel, and two underneath the rear seat.   Without doubt, the Mercedes-Benz F800 Style is an intriguing concept that employs some future technologies\u2014the green powertrains already mentioned plus others such as a new multi-function display for the COMAND system that employs a camera touchpad for more precise operation. Other neat features include a &amp;quot;range on map&amp;quot; function that shows the remaining possible travel radius when the F800 is being driven in pure electric mode, plus the latest version of active cruise control that will allow the car to automatically follow the vehicle in front of it into corners.   The system, says Mercedes, recognizes the difference between driving along curving roads and turning, which means the F800 won&amp;#039;t &amp;quot;blindly&amp;quot; follow the vehicle in front...such as when it changes lanes to exit the freeway. And if that&amp;#039;s not enough, the system has Traffic Jam Assistant, which allows the driver to sit back and relax at speeds below 25 mph. That&amp;#039;s right, the car will take care of both longitudinal and lateral movements when the system is activated, provided the driver&amp;#039;s hands stay on the steering wheel. And when 25 mph is exceeded, the steering torque that keeps the F800 in its lane is gradually reduced and Traffic Jam Assistant disengages. It&amp;#039;s a future technology, for sure, one that can thankfully be overridden by the driver at any time.   Chances are good that if the Mercedes-Benz F800 ever reaches production, it won&amp;#039;t be offered as both a fuel-cell electric vehicle and as a gasoline/electric hybrid. We suspect the latter will win out in the more immediate future, although a fuel-cell sedan still remains a distinct possibility later down the line. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-shows/geneva-auto-show/news/a15544/mercedes-benz-f800-style/>