NAMX HUV Is A Pininfarina-Designed SUV With Swappable Hydrogen Bottles Heading To Production

We’ve updated this article with live images of the NamX concept from its world premiere at the Paris Motor Show that runs Oct 17-23, 2022. Check out our complete coverage of the show here.

Franco-Moroccan startup NAMX has unveiled a concept version of its first-ever vehicle. The hydrogen-powered SUV is being described as an “HUV” featuring exclusive new technology and Pininfarina design.

As such, the production version of the car is still a few years away and won’t arrive on the market until 2025. NAMX says, though, that it will initially be offered in two trim levels.

The first, an entry-level model, will be rear-wheel-drive and will make 296 hp (224 kW/300 PS). It should be able to hit 62 mph (100 km/h) in 6.5 seconds and keep going up to a top speed of 124 mph (200 km/h).

The GTH version, meanwhile, will get four-wheel-drive and 542 hp (410 kW/550 PS). It will be able to reach a top speed of 155 mph (250 km/h) and will hit 62 mph (100 km/h) in a spritely 4.5 seconds. Prices for these models will range from around €65,000 to €95,000 ($68,410 to $99,984 USD at current exchange rates) none of which sounds particularly revolutionary.

The HUV’s real party trick comes deeper down in the bowels of the vehicle, where fuel storage is concerned. NAMX’s patented technology combines a fixed hydrogen tank and six additional removable capsules to be used as secondary tanks. The startup promises that this will give the vehicle a range of up to 497 miles (800 km). It also intends to create a distribution network for its removable capsules.

These tanks were a primary concern for Pininfarina, which had to first ensure that their use was integrated into the design of the vehicle. Beyond that, though, Pininfarina reveals that it worked with NAMX to ensure that the HUV is a “next-generation” vehicle that does not lose touch with the past.

“Fascinated by science fiction, [NAMX Co-founder] Thomas de Lussac chose to give the vehicle’s shape the cutting edge of the coming era,” the company writes in a release. “His taste for the American design of the 50s and 60s, his predilection for ‘Muscle Car‘, inspired him to create a car that goes against the current, smooth, conventional design of electric cars.”

Along with the help of Pininfarina, the automotive startup is being run by a group of automotive industry veterans with experience at companies like Matra, Renault, and more. Development of the HUV is set to begin in 2023 and the HUV will make its physical debut at the Paris Auto Show this fall.