{"id":58424,"date":"2013-02-21T15:58:41","date_gmt":"2013-02-21T20:58:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thedetroitbureau.com\/?p=58424"},"modified":"2013-02-21T16:15:39","modified_gmt":"2013-02-21T21:15:39","slug":"vw-launching-261-mpg-xl1-hybrid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/2013\/02\/vw-launching-261-mpg-xl1-hybrid\/","title":{"rendered":"VW Launching 261 mpg XL1 Hybrid"},"content":{"rendered":"
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VW claims the XL1 will be the world's most fuel-efficient car when it goes into production.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Volkswagen plans to launch what it is billing as the world\u2019s most fuel-efficient production car, the plug-in XL1 expected to yield a combined fuel economy rating of 261 miles per gallon.<\/p>\n

The gas-electric 2-seater also will get an estimated 32 miles per charge in all-electric mode, according to VW. It will nonetheless be able to hit a top speed of 99 mph.<\/p>\n

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Subscribe Now! It's Free!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The XL1 is the latest design to emerge from an ongoing project designed to see just how far VW can stretch a gallon of gas. The original goal was to use just one liter of fuel to travel 100 kilometers. That would have worked out to 235 mpg in American terms. The XL1 beats that by more than 10 percent.<\/p>\n

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The 2-seat VW XL1 features a highly aerodynamic body and distinctive gullwing doors.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It also more than doubles the current U.S. mileage champ, he Scion iQ EV, which gets 121 MPGe, or miles per gallon equivalent, a conversion used for plug-in hybrids and pure battery-electric vehicles.<\/p>\n

That means the VW XL1 will get nearly five times the 54.5 miles per gallon average that the Obama Administration has called for under the revised Corporate Average Fuel Economy, or CAFE, standard to go into effect in 2025. (In fact, because of various caveats and exemptions in the CAFE mandate, the average U.S. vehicle would only have to deliver something in the mid-40 mpg range.)<\/p>\n

The XL1\u2019s 261 mpg number itself is based on European testing procedures and that is likely to mean a moderate reduction if it were put through the tests used in the U.S. by the Environmental Protection Agency. Nonetheless, it is substantially better than any vehicle now on the road.<\/p>\n

To get there, Volkswagen designers and engineers have taken a number of critical steps:<\/p>\n