In a meeting with Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires reporters and editors, BMW Chief Executive Helmut Panke said he plans to include a hybrid 7-Series car in BMW's catalog soon.

"By the time we have those cars, we will probably have a number of hydrogen fuel stations at our retail centers" in the U.S., Mr. Panke said. He said currently there are only a few hydrogen fuel stations in the U.S.

Many car companies have been working on hydrogen-powered models for years -- BMW has already driven a test fleet of the cars through several countries. And with gas prices pushing higher, the prospect of alternative fuels has become more popular among some drivers, with California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger even promising to build hydrogen fueling stations every 20 miles along major California highways.

Mr. Panke said BMW plans to use hydrogen fuel with internal combustion engines, rather than fuel cells, which other car makers plan to use with their hydrogen fuel technology.

"The experience of driving will not be possible with fuel cell cars," Mr. Panke said. He said BMW focuses on giving customers a particular driving experience, rather than just a beautiful car or other kinds of luxury.

The challenges of developing a hydrogen-powered car have included finding a way to keep the hydrogen cold enough to remain in a liquid state, Mr. Panke said. If the fuel gets too warm, it evaporates and can escape, Mr. Panke explained.

A further challenge has been to make sure the fuel doesn't leak or evaporate on its way from the hydrogen tank to the engine, Mr. Panke said. He said he believes BMW has resolved those issues.

Mr. Panke said it will probably be 20 to 30 years until hydrogen becomes a standard. Until then, car makers will experiment with hybrid models, as well as other alternatives to gasoline power, such as diesel fuel, he said. And the various alternatives to gasoline may be more popular in certain parts of the world, like diesel is popular in Europe but not the U.S. or Japan, he said.

"One has to take into account that different parts of the world will have different priorities," he said.

Separately, Mr. Panke said, BMW has hedged nearly all of its currency exposure for this year.

Mr. Panke further said BMW continues to work on the computer and software systems in its cars. Critics have complained the computer system in the 7-Series is too difficult to use.

"We certainly haven't gotten it all right," Mr. Panke said. "We are not satisfied with where we are."

BMW has drawn on the computer system to offer new safety innovations, but Mr. Panke said he won't go so far as to automate the actual driving of the car.

"We will not go in the direction of automated driving," he said. "This is already available -- take the Amtrak train."

-By Elizabeth Souder, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-4148; elizabeth.souder@dowjones.com