HERNDON, VA – Volkswagen's Hydrogen Fuel Cell concept vehicle, the HyMotion Tiguan, will travel from Portland, Maine to Los Angeles over the next 13 days as part of the National Hydrogen Road Tour, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation, the California Fuel Cell Partnership, the U.S. Department of Energy, and the National Hydrogen Association. A dedicated Web blog, http://vwhydrogentour.com/, will provide daily updates and photos from the historic trip.

The Hydrogen Road Tour will visit 31 cities across the country as part of an effort to raise awareness of hydrogen's potential as a fuel and showcase these concept vehicles in real-world driving conditions. The Road Tour demonstrates the united contributions of industry, government, and academia in advancing hydrogen technology and meeting driving and infrastructure needs to bring these concept vehicles to market in the coming years.

The tour will stop in Chattanooga, Tenn., home of Volkswagen's newly announced U.S. production facility. The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga's Center for Energy Transportation and the Environment (CETE) will host the tour and Congressman Zach Wamp, a proponent of alternative fuel research, will attend. The event will take place Aug. 18 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the First Tennessee Pavilion and will provide invited guests, the public, and media with hands-on ride and drive experience of the hydrogen vehicles being displayed on the tour.

Volkswagen will join BMW, Mercedes Benz, General Motors, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, and Nissan in the tour. Other participants include Arizona Public Service, Centralina, Clean Cities, Chevron, Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology, The Center for Transportation and the Environment, Las Vegas Valley Water District, Maine Hydrogen Energy Center, Maine Clean Communities, Massachusetts Hydrogen Coalition, Missouri S&T, National Hydrogen Association, Powertech Labs, The PublicGen Companies, Shell Hydrogen, South Carolina Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Alliance, Southern Fuel Cell Coalition Triangle Clean Cities, US Army, US Environmental Protection Agency, Air Products and Chemicals, Inc, HF-150, and Linde/BMW liquid refueling station.

The Tiguan HyMotion concept features a fuel cell system integrated in the engine compartment capable of 107 horsepower. With an assist from the electric motor, the Tiguan HyMotion advances to 134 horsepower. The top speed of the Tiguan HyMotion is 93 mph, accelerating from 0 to 60 mph in about 14 seconds.

A lithium ion battery with a charge capacity of 6.8 Ampere-hours (Ah) serves as an auxiliary energy storage device with a maximum power output of 22 kW. The battery is charged by recovered braking energy (recuperation) or by the fuel cell. The HyMotion is a full functioning vehicle that makes no compromises on safety or passenger comfort with the addition of its fuel cell powertrain system. The battery system is installed in the trunk beneath the dual cargo floor available on the production Tiguan. The 700-bar hydrogen tank was integrated in the area beneath the floor in the rear bench seat and cargo area, and can hold up to 3.2 kilograms of hydrogen (H2).