AUSA: Last year we introduced Breaking D readers to a camouflage-painted, hydrogen-powered pickup truck GM was going to test for the Army. This year, the Chevrolet Colorado ZH2 is back at AUSA, still dirty from months of tests at various Army bases around the United States. Its fuel cell turns hydrogen into electricity, powering an electric motor that limits range but makes the truck commando quiet and exceptionally speedy when necessary.

GM’s Charlie Freese, executive director for the auto maker’s global fuel cell business, says the Army tests went so well the company is developing an even more exotic autonomous flatbed vehicle that can be fitted with modules for different missions and drive itself. Freese talked to our contributor Richard Whittle about GM’s pursuit of electric propulsion for the military and gave us a quick tour of both vehicles.

One of the advantages is that the hydrogen fuel cell produces enough electricity for soldiers in the field to use it as a generator – and a by-product of the fuel cell process is water – often a precious commodity on a battlefield.