XL1-Citement Hits London As Volkswagen's 313 MPG Car Makes UK Debut

MILTON KEYNES, UNITED KINGDOM – July 12, 2013: Volkswagen’s futuristic XL1, the world’s most fuel-efficient production hybrid car, took to the streets of the capital yesterday.

The two-seat diesel-electric hybrid, which achieves a fuel consumption figure of 313 mpg while emitting just 21 g/km of carbon dioxide, turned heads as it passed through the streets of the city, with its white carbon fibre body shell standing out in contrast to black cabs and red double-decker buses.

While one XL1 made its way to the Goodwood Festival of Speed to take pride of place on the Volkswagen stand and make its way up the famous hill climb, another crossed the capital, heading to Buckingham Palace where it will be displayed as part of the Coronation Festival this weekend (for more details see below).

The super-innovative, ultra-frugal XL1 model looks like a vision of the future, but it is in fact already in limited production. Its body is made largely of carbon-fibre reinforced polymer, while its drivetrain melds a two-cylinder 800 cc diesel engine with an electric motor. Like any good supercar, it is also low (at 1,282 mm high it is lower than a Porsche Boxster) and features scissor-opening doors (although its 120-litre boot does make it somewhat more practical than supercar enthusiasts may like).

To achieve the target fuel consumption figure the XL1 was aerodynamically optimised, adopting the classic ‘tear drop’ shape and utilising innovations such as removing traditional wing mirrors and replacing them with small cameras called e-Mirrors which transmit exterior images to interior displays.

The XL1 is manufactured (left-hand drive only) at Volkswagen’s Osnabrück factory in Germany (which also produces the Golf Cabriolet and Porsche Boxster). Unlike these cars, the XL1 is ‘handcrafted’ using small series production processes. An initial production run of 250 XL1 vehicles will be made. Pricing and sales channels are yet to be confirmed.

Volkswagen At The Coronation Festival
Volkswagen is proud to participate in the Coronation Festival as 2013 also marks the 60th anniversary of the year when the first Volkswagen vehicles, Beetles, were imported into the UK. To celebrate, Volkswagen will be showcasing the XL1 at Buckingham Palace.

Volkswagen Group United Kingdom Limited is the UK importer for Audi, SEAT, ŠKODA and Volkswagen Passenger Cars and Commercial Vehicles. The Volkswagen Group and its retailer networks are responsible for the employment of approximately 25,000 people in the UK, and its sales account for just under 20 per cent of all new cars registered here.

Volkswagen Group UK is a wholly owned subsidiary of Volkswagen AG, Europe’s largest carmaker and one of the world’s leading automobile manufacturers. In 2012, the Group increased the number of vehicles delivered to customers to 9.276 million, corresponding to a 12.8 per cent share of the world passenger car market. The Group comprises 12 brands from seven European countries: Volkswagen Passenger Cars, Audi, SEAT, ŠKODA, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Porsche, Ducati, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Scania and MAN.