2014 Volkswagen XL1

After teasing the world with two prototypes since 2002, VW gives birth to an XL1 that’s more than a foot shorter and nearly five inches ­narrower than the Golf, with an extremely low drag coefficient of 0.19 and a European test-cycle label of 0.83 l/100 km (283 mpg). The 27-hp electric motor from the Jetta hybrid works in ­tandem with a 47-hp two-cylinder diesel engine, which is basically a Euro-market Golf’s 1.6-liter turbocharged and intercooled TDI cut in half.

The XL1 should run 31 miles solely on electric power, says Mitze. But on the cold and rainy April day we drove it, the small, 60-cell, 5.5-kWh, 150-pound lithium-ion battery pack needed a recharge after only 22 miles. Recharging can be done with a 220-volt outlet in one hour or on the fly by the diesel engine.

When we decide to proceed, the diesel engine kicks in smoothly. It runs with little vibration but sounds a bit harsh at city speeds. And it manages to both refresh the batteries and provide rear-wheel motivation with its scant 89 pound-feet of torque. Regenerative brakes assist the recharging effort. Lift the throttle and the XL1 coasts, but gently depress the brake pedal and the system switches to regen mode. Push harder and the hydraulic brakes start biting. The tipping point from regen into friction braking is easy to control.
The XL1 is a conglomeration of automotive oddness, with screens in the doors, no rear window, and a staggered seating configuration.

When the motor boosts the engine, the XL1 is surprisingly agile. Zero to 60 mph happens in about 12.6 seconds, which seems quicker when you’re only three inches off the pavement. Outside the city, the unassisted steering lightens up, and the XL1 seems to run more quietly as road roar drowns out the car’s mechanical noises. Out of EV mode and into hybrid mode, the XL1 can cruise at 80 mph with the flow of power from the engine, motor, and battery detailed on the dashboard info screen. If needed, the XL1 does 99 mph as the diesel engine twitters excitedly. “Due to the excellent aerodynamics, we could reach 124 mph,” Mitze claims, “but the engine is governed in the interests of efficiency.”

According to the on-board computer, we are fuel hogs. Having started with a full tank (2.6 gallons) and fully charged batteries, we ended our trip after 67 miles; fuel consumption plummeted at one point to a dismal 128 mpg. Achieving the XL1’s theoretical 749-mile range would take a right foot as light as a moonbeam.

But as far as the day-in, day-out functionality of the “Lighthouse Project,” as the engineers call the XL1, it is sufficiently practical for everyday use by cashed-up mpg-aholics. Europeans who can’t afford the expected six-figure price can wait until 2015 for the Up! hybrid, which will feature the same two-cylinder diesel-electric unit that’s in the peewee Up! hatchback. A similar system with four-cylinder-diesel/electric propulsion will be offered in the Golf hybrid due next year. But only the XL1 comes with flying doors and two actual Lambor­ghini parts: the aluminum interior-door handles. Oh, what party conversations the XL1 will spark. So much for saving CO2.