Volkswagen once touted a 1-liter car way back in 2002: not the displacement, but one liter for 100 km of travel. That was for a concept vehicle, and VW improves on that figure as shows off its XL1 Super Efficient Vehicle, capable of 133 km/liter.
The XL1 packs a hybrid powertrain: an 800-cc turbodiesel two-cylinder engine, with 47 bhp, combined with an electric motor with 26 bhp, with a total 74 bhp. The electric motor can move the car alone, for up to 35 km, or in tandem with the diesel. The engine mates with a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox. Acceleration to 100 km/h is 11.9 seconds, and top speed 160 km/h.
Nothing exceptional, you say? The secret is the car’s relatively low weight of 795kg. With a carbon-fiber structure, the XL1’s chassis tips the scales at 230 kg. The car also has very low drag, at 0.186 drag coefficient, thanks to a very low height (1184mm). XL1 also has faired-in rear wheels and near-seamless skin smoother than a Vicki Belo-ed celebrity’s. The seating is conventional, unlike the original tandem style of the 1-Liter car. As a reminder that VW owns Lamborghini, the doors scissor upwards.
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