FRANKFURT MOTOR SHOW: Mercedes-Benz F 125! Concept

The Mercedes-Benz F 125! research concept vehicle celebrates the company's 125th anniversary. An audacious gullwing coupe design, it showcases several advanced technologies Benz expects to be commonplace in vehicles two decades into the future.

According to Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche, the F 125! Concept is "The S-Class of the day after tomorrow," and added that he could drive it from Frankfurt non-stop to Tuscany, Italy.

Powered by four electric motors, one located within each wheel, the F 125! concept outputs 230kW and is capable of accelerating to 100km/h in just 4.6 seconds, yet emits no CO2 whatsoever thanks to its hydrogen fuel-cell system. Harnessing the chemical reaction between oxygen and hydrogen to generate electricity for the electric motors, the Mercedes-Benz F 125! can travel up to 1000km on its 7.5kg tank of hydrogen. Mind you, to call it a tank is a misnomer, because Mercedes has managed to integrate the 'tank' into the car's bodywork.

"The structural integrated hydrogen composite unit of the F 125! represents a real technological revolution, as it allows the hydrogen tank to be fully integrated into the bodyshell structure for the first time," says Prof  Dr Thomas Weber, member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG responsible for Group Research and Mercedes-Benz Cars Development.

Weber says that based on the current estimations, Mercedes could have integrated hydrogen fuel tanks in series production from 2025.

"In the future, vehicles with emission-free fuel cell drive systems could achieve the operating ranges of current diesel models with no loss of interior space," added Weber, referencing the vehicle's 1000km cruising range.

Being a plug-in hybrid, the vehicle can also travel up to 50km on stored battery power alone. Mercedes also talks about inductive charging, that is 'wireless' charging thanks to electromagnetic fields that can transfer energy between two objects. It says that "intelligent" charging stations will be used and the process would be monitored via smartphone.

The battery pack is also a forward looking system, a lithium-sulphur setup, which Mercedes-Benz acknowledges is some ways off from mass production and "whose usability in vehicles still requires further research". The benefit of the lithium-sulphur battery system, claims Benz, is a greater energy yield - the batteries are smaller, yet retain a higher charge than current lithium batteries.

The vehicle also showcases a curious new design, incorporating gull-wing doors and a hatch-style rear end section.

"We have created contrasts in the visual perception: calm and quiet, yet dynamic," says Mercedes-Benz Head of Design, Gorden Wagener.

"The real power lies in the elegant, muscular winds and the wheels: the wheels symbolise electric motors with terminals and coils, and make the drive concept visually tangible as well."

Perhaps most pertinent to the mid and short-term development of vehicles are the updates to the car's infotainment systems.

"The F 125! is a smartphone you can sit in and drive," stated Benz boss Dieter Zetsche.

Touch-screen systems combine with voice control and hand-gesture recognition to make navigating the menus and Internet effortless, according to the Stuttgart-based car maker. The F 125! is always online and makes use of Mercedes new @yourCOMAND, a Cloud-based operating system, and can display information in 3D via projector beam technology.

The @yourCOMAND setup is fully integrated with next-generation networks and allows for effortless social networking. Benz says the F 125! is a "true companion with whom the driver is able to interact flexibly and effortlessly."