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Volkswagen’s XL1 hybrid, claimed to be the most efficient combustion-engined car the world has seen, goes on sale in 2013
XL1 is the culmination of a 10-year research programme to develop a “1 litre” car, or 1 litre per 100 km, the Continental way of expressing fuel consumption, equivalent to 282.5 mpg.
Volkswagen chief executive Martin Winterkorn said it will be available “at an affordable price” by 2013.
It is understood the initial production run will be a maximum of a few thousand and the price in the region of £35,000.
The car can achieve 314 mpg and 24 g/km CO2, which compares favourably with the most frugal VW today, the Polo Blue Motion, for which the official figures are 80.7 mpg and 91 g/km.
The forthcoming Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid achieves 108.6 mpg and 59 g/km.
XL1 is also a plug-in hybrid, combining an 800 cc two-cylinder diesel engine (in effect, half of the latest 1.6 litre TDI) with a 20 kW electric motor. Its top speed is limited to 100 mph.
The car has a carbon-fibre chassis, which forms a passenger safety cell, weighs just 65 kg.
XL1 can run for up to 20 miles and 50 mph on electricity alone. At higher speeds, longer distances or when more power is demanded, the diesel engine and electric motor work together.