RE: VW confirms XL1 production

RE: VW confirms XL1 production

Thursday 21st February 2013

VW confirms XL1 production

Groundbreaking two-seater will be the world's most fuel-efficient production car



Volkswagen has confirmed that its mad hyper-economy XL1 coupe will go into production.

Aerodynamics are key. Looks cool, though
Aerodynamics are key. Looks cool, though
The two-seater was first previewed by Dr Ferdinand Piech way back in April 2002 at a VW shareholders’ meeting as the 1L, so named for its capacity to achieve fuel economy levels below 1l/100km (or above 282mpg, in real money). Since then, the 1L been transformed into the more production-friendly XL1, which loses the concept’s bubble roof to a more conventional coupe roofline, but retains the tapered profile and near-fully-enclosed rear wheels – as well, of course, as the remarkable fuel consumption.

Today, VW has announced that you’ll be able to buy your own XL1. And while we’ll admit this little car doesn’t fit entirely with the PH ‘Speed Matters’ maxim, it is nevertheless a stupendously clever car, and worthy of our attention as such. It’ll be a plug-in hybrid, driven by a two-cylinder turbodiesel that’ll produce 48hp, as well as a 27hp electric motor, both of which will be allied to a seven-speed DSG gearbox. Super-smooth aerodynamics will result in a drag coefficient of just 0.189, and combined with low weight (795kg) and height (just 1.2 metres), they’ll contribute to a staggering 314mpg fuel economy figure. Enough, in other words, to get you from Land’s End to John O’Groats on around £17-worth of fuel.

Standard-ish cabin makes XL1 usable
Standard-ish cabin makes XL1 usable
You won’t have to travel too slowly while you’re getting there, either, as the XL1 will manage the 62mph benchmark in 12.7 seconds. OK, that’s not exactly fast, but it’s not unusable, either. It’ll also crack 100mph – just – giving it the ability to cruise at motorway speeds without too much trouble. Unlike the 1L, which seated its occupants in tandem, the XL1 will also feature a near-normal seating arrangement, albeit with the passenger slightly rearward of the driver to assist with packaging.

No word has yet been given on how much the XL1 will cost, nor when (or, indeed, whether) we’ll see it on sale in the UK. But VW has confirmed that the new car will be hand-built at its Osnabruck facility, so expect to see a limited production run and a not-inconsiderable asking price.

We've seen that look before somewhere...
We've seen that look before somewhere...
Hmmm... now, what does the XL1 remind us of? Oh yes, that’s right – the first-gen Honda Insight wore the same tapered profile and covered rear wheels, for obvious aerodynamic reasons. And they still look just as outlandish today, which means they’re developing something of a cult following. So if you like the look of the XL1, but don’t have the cash it’s likely to cost (and, we hasten to add, aren’t looking for over 300mpg), you can still ‘own the look’ for significantly less. Here’s one, for example, going for just over £6,000 – which seems a trifle steep, but it has only done 45,000 miles. Or if not, how’s about this one? It isn’t cosmetically brilliant, but if nobody else bids it could be yours for £1,700.





Author
Discussion

CraigyMc

Original Poster:

16,326 posts

235 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
The initial message was deleted from this topic on 21 February 2013 at 15:46

kambites

67,461 posts

220 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
Fantastic. One of the most interesting new cars in years. smile

Scrof

197 posts

153 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
CraigyMc said:
?

It's 603 miles to get from one to the other. 314mpg would mean 1.92 gallons, which is 8.6l, and at 1.40 per litre that would be £12.09.

C
Noted! Forgot to convert from gallons to litres. Will nip in and change that now. Google suggests 837 miles, though... http://goo.gl/maps/lY0AW

wheedler

419 posts

136 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
I would buy one if they would start at 12k

alangla

4,723 posts

180 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
My first though looking at the rear was more Karmann Ghia than Insight -



No?

kambites

67,461 posts

220 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
wheedler said:
I would buy one if they would start at 12k
Ha! Multiple that by four and you might be about right.

blackchrome917

69 posts

147 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
It won't be cheap, but it does look cool!

Macboy

732 posts

204 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
CraigyMc said:
?

It's 603 miles to get from one to the other. 314mpg would mean 1.92 gallons, which is 8.6l, and at 1.40 per litre that would be £12.09.

C
It's actually over 800 miles to drive LeJog - the 603 is straight line distance (takes off pedant hat).
Regardless of costing a few quid more to drive it the car is still a remarkable engineering achievement. It'd still be £300+ cheaper doing that drive than my old RS4 would have been.

r129sl

9,518 posts

202 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
What an interesting car. It is interesting because it is so extreme. But if they can make that do 300mpg, surely they can make a bigger—Passat-sized—one that will do 150mpg? The performance is more than adequate: it's faster than my Merc E300 diesel T and yet uses one-tenth the fuel.

funkyrobot

18,789 posts

227 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
Looks like the bd child of a Citroen and a Cylon.

rhinochopig

17,932 posts

197 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
For one second I got quite excited, then I saw the hybrid bks, which automatically means it will be more expensive than it needs to be.

One of the big manufacturers needs to build a white goods commuter car. Essentially a insight with a 3 pot 1itre diesel and two comfy seats, simple interior with no sat nav / stupid electronic gadgets but a good quality stereo, and a decent boot. Faired in rear wheels and skinny little high profile tyres.

There are thousands of people who do fairly long commutes who just want somewhere comfy to sit, and something that will do mega MPG.

CAPP0

19,533 posts

202 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
£1700 with 4 days to run and it already needs a new battery AND a cat, let alone what else is wrong with it - that's going to be a bargain then!

rijmij99

423 posts

160 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
alangla said:
My first though looking at the rear was more Karmann Ghia than Insight -



No?
my first thought was maserati 3200gt

GroundEffect

13,819 posts

155 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
Very nice. I love my aerodynamics and that's splendid.


anonymous-user

53 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
Looks impressive from the front and inside, but not liking the covered rear wheel - looks kind of odd. Wonder how many mpg the rear wheel cover saves? Rear visibility when you're driving doesn't look good.

Krikkit

26,500 posts

180 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
rhinochopig said:
One of the big manufacturers needs to build a white goods commuter car. Essentially a insight with a 3 pot 1itre diesel and two comfy seats, simple interior with no sat nav / stupid electronic gadgets but a good quality stereo, and a decent boot. Faired in rear wheels and skinny little high profile tyres.

There are thousands of people who do fairly long commutes who just want somewhere comfy to sit, and something that will do mega MPG.
Quite - narrow high-profile tyres, concentration on best ride quality, minimal wind noise, good stereo, good boot. Forget the toys and twinkly junk, that's the perfect commuting hack right there, even if it looks weird a couple of hundred mpg are quite acceptable thank you!

darrenw

346 posts

282 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
Saw that one last year in Austria at Woerthersee:


VW XL1 Prototype by retromotoring, on Flickr

Looked absolutely fantastic just parked up like that in a regular driveway, really distinctive.

GroundEffect

13,819 posts

155 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
Andy20vt said:
Looks impressive from the front and inside, but not liking the covered rear wheel - looks kind of odd. Wonder how many mpg the rear wheel cover saves? Rear visibility when you're driving doesn't look good.
A fair chunk. Wheel-created turbulences make a big difference to drag.


W00DY

15,467 posts

225 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
Looks awesome and imagine the brilliance of 300mpg.


First new VW I've wanted in a long time.

alangla

4,723 posts

180 months

Thursday 21st February 2013
quotequote all
rijmij99 said:
alangla said:
My first though looking at the rear was more Karmann Ghia than Insight -



No?
my first thought was maserati 3200gt
Because of the tail light formation? You've got a point.