2013 Volkswagen XL1 Test Drive

On-Sale Date: 2014 model year

Price: In the $100,000 range

Competitors: 2014 BMW i3, Renault Twizy, Opel?s RAKe, Audi?s Urban Concept, and the Volkswagen NILS. Also a host of tilting three and four wheelers such as BMW?s Clever and Simple concepts, and Mercedes-Benz Life Jet and Carver concepts.

Powertrains: 0.8-liter turbocharged diesel I-2, 47 hp, 89 lb-ft; AC electric motor, 27 hp, 103 lb-ft; combined system output 68 hp, 103 lb-ft; 5.5kwh lithium-ion battery pack; seven-speed, dual-clutch automatic, rear-wheel drive.

Fuel Economy (New European Driving Cycle): 261 mpg (EU Combined Cycle)

Where did this come from? The project began life in 1998 as an order from the egregious former chairman of VW, Dr. Ferdinand Pi?ch, who wanted a 1-liter car: something that could make 100 km per liter, or about 261.4 mpg (U.S.). In his last public appearance as VW chairman, Pi?ch drove the experimental 1-liter car from his office in Wolfsburg to the 2002 VW shareholders? meeting in Hamburg, his engineers crossing their fingers as the boss set off in the rain mixing it with heavy trucks on the autobahn. The wily old engineer beat even his own engineering target, setting an average fuel consumption of 264.3 mpg at an average speed of 43.5mph. "We will never build a 1-liter car," he said as he climbed out, "but it could give us the knowledge to build a 2-liter car."

The following year I drove this 299-cc, single-cylinder, diesel-powered cigar tube. It was noisy, claustrophobic, rode like a trolley jack, engineered like a bicycle, and was just wonderful. Then nothing happened for about five years, until Pi?ch?s replacement Martin Winterkorn and VW research director Ulrich Hackenberg picked up the project anew. At the 2009 Frankfurt Show they debuted the next stage, the L1, which swapped the noisy, experimental, single-pot diesel for a two-cylinder, 800-cc turbodiesel with assistance from a small electric motor. It had a 100-mph top speed and was capable of 157.4 mpg on the European test cycle.

What?s New: We drove this third-generation car as a prototype in Qatar a couple of years ago, when it wowed us with its technological virtuosity and annoyed us with its noisy engine and rock-hard suspension rattling our brains inside the rigid carbon-fiber bodyshell. Now, after great leaps in refinement, VW plans to build a limited run of 250 XL1s at the old Karmann plant in Osnabr?ck, Germany, hand-built by engineers in conditions that resemble a motorsports workshop.

It?s rumored that even at an as-yet-unrevealed purchase price, VW will lose tens of thousands of bucks on each model sold. "The business case for this model is different," says Heinz-Jakob Neuber, head of the powertrain development group. Because its purpose is to be a testing bed for new technologies for more conventional plug-in hybrids across VW Group brands, XL1 doesn?t have to make a profit.

The XL1 starts as a carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer monocoque, built in Bavaria with an experimental molding process. It is then transferred to Osnabr?ck for assembly including the attachment of the wings and scissor-opening doors, the driveline, trim and polycarbonate side windows and thin glass windshield. Two vehicles will be built per week.

At just 12 feet 9 inches long, 5 feet 5.6 inches wide, and 3 feet 9.4 inches tall, the diminutive XL1 is one of the slipperiest cars in the world, with a drag coefficient of 0.189. It is also the lightest plug-in hybrid, weighing a total of 1752 pounds. The engine is half of a Polo 1.6-liter turbodiesel, made in aluminum, with plasma-sprayed bores and pistons plus a balance shaft to reduce vibrations. This rear-mounted parallel twin produces 47 hp and 89 lb-ft; it is supported by a 27-hp, 74 lb-ft electric motor with a plug-in parallel hybrid system with a 5.5-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery supplied by Sanyo. The transmission is a magnesium-alloy-cased version of VW?s E400 seven-speed, twin-clutch unit driving the rear wheels.

The XL1 is the zenith of energy efficiency and lightweight innovation. Features include LED headlamps, narrow-gauge wiring with electrical fuses, carbon-ceramic brakes, an electrical air-conditioning/heater unit, and a fully faired underbody. The wheels are magnesium alloy. The all-cast aluminum suspension uses upper and lower unequal-length wishbones at the front, with semi-trailing arms at the rear. Coil-over-damper units are steel and aluminum and the antisway bars and engine mounts are hollow carbon-fiber units. Crash safety is said to be comparable to the current range of VW models and in case you roll the XL1 over, there are explosive bolts in the scissor door hinges that will shear off and allow you to clamber out.

Tech Tidbit: Although the modular plug-in hybrid driveline is clever and will appear across the VW range, it is the carbon-fiber tub/body, with its aluminum subframes front and rear, that is the XL1?s piece de resistance. It?s made using a resin-transfer-molding process where the carbon-fiber weave is laid in first. The mold is held slightly open while the resin is injected and then it is closed to cure. The process takes an hour.

Driving Character: It is clear you are (a) in a VW and (b) in something special. The instrument pack is straight out of the VW Up with switches from a Polo model and a Garmin PDA unit proving navigation and information on energy flows and fuel consumption. Which feels pretty normal, if not for the figure-hugging carbon-fiber bucket seats, the carbon-fiber steering wheel, and the dash covered in a soft, matte-black carbon-style weave. The offset seats are surprisingly roomy, and while there?s not a lot of room in the cabin, there is a 4.2-cubic-foot trunk behind the engine.

Press the push-button starter and there?s, well, silence. In normal operation, XL1 stays in electric drive until the car uses full throttle, exceeds 62 mph, or the battery charge falls to 14 per cent. E-mode, the electric-only function, lasts up to 31 miles, after which the engine starts to maintain charge and drive the vehicle, although it never fully charges the battery. Recharge time via a separately supplied charge box is just over an hour using a 240-volt connection. Top speed is limited to 99 mph (an unrestricted XL1 would do 125 mph), with 0-to-62-mph acceleration in 12.7 seconds. The NEDC EU Combined economy is 261 mpg using the EU?s slightly contrived fuel-consumption calculation, which includes battery range, but Hackeberg claims the XL1 will actually achieve 0.83 liters per 100 km, which translates as 283 mpg. With the batteries charged and a mere 2.64 gallons of fuel, the combined range is about 311 miles.

Around town the XL1 feels pretty crude. VW has done a lot to the ride quality, but there?s still a bobbing harshness, and the unassisted steering feels odd when turning off the dead-ahead position. The skinny Michelin tires crash over bumps and potholes and the electric motor whines behind you. When the engine starts you?ll think someone dropped a wrench inside the intake. We nearly stopped to find out what was wrong. The beat changes constantly, sometimes sounding like a coffee machine, sometimes a concrete hammer.

The servo-assisted brakes are brilliant, though, combining regenerative and friction braking seamlessly. Get out of town and speed up, and the suspension calms down and the steering feels better, though never as good as an unassisted system should. The engine noise is muted at higher speeds as well. "The only twin in the whole [VW] Group that sounds good is from Ducati," says Heinz-Jakob Neuber, head of the powertrain development group. "This engine becomes smoother the more load you have, though, as we can put more preinjection fuel into it. It?s all about combustion stability."

Despite the slow acceleration time the XL1 actually feels pretty fast, or at least as fast as you?d want to go on the tiny tires. The body rolls a bit in corners as the car takes half a second to figure out that you want maximum thrust rather than maximum gas mileage. It could be faster, but maximum torque is restricted to protect the exotic transmission casing.

The seven-speed transmission changes gears almost silently. We drove an alpine route over the fearsome 5000-foot Br?nig Pass, where at the highest point the dash indicator showed the XL1 averaging well over 116 mpg (U.S.). A convoy of these ghostly silver cars slipped through the mists at the top of the mountain, no noise or carbon dioxide marking their passing, just a phut phut of the cooling fan venting out the spine.

Favorite Detail: Walter de Silva, VW?s design boss, is pretty grumpy when he talks about how the XL1 was formed mainly in the wind tunnel, but that?s not the whole story. This little coupe is a fantastic looking, wind-cheating shape reminiscent of great record breakers of yore. Think Mercedes C111 project cars, Volkswagen?s ARVW diesel speed-record breaker, streamliners such as Buckminster Fuller?s 1933 Dymaxion car, or the 1937 Mercedes Avus Stromlinie.

Driver?s Grievance: "Use the comfort features consciously," said one VW engineer. That means the heater, which in e-mode uses the battery to keep you warm. Which means if you want really great gas mileage, you stay chilly. Now where are my driving gloves?

Bottom Line: We are still waiting for the bottom line here, and it?s unlikely to be cheap, though Winterkorn promised at the eve of the Geneva Show that "VW will have attractive offers for interested customers." The first 50 cars are already covered by advance orders, and they?ll be staying with hardcore VW fans in Germany, where a team of engineers called the Flying Doctors will keep an eye on their progress and deal with any problems.

In engineering virtuosity, materials technology, and sheer innovation, the XL1 is sufficiently super to join the pantheon of new supercars (McLaren P1, Ferrari LaFerrari, Lamborghini Veneno, and Porsche 918) at this year?s Geneva Show. In some aspects it?s even more advanced than these behemoths. There?s still a slightly homemade feel about the driveline, but once you get used to the gentle (and sometimes not so gentle) engine note, there?s great fun to be had in driving for miles on a thimbleful of fuel. It?s no substitute for lighting up the tires and burning a tank of gas in a morning?it?s a different and more intellectual appeal. But trust us, it?s a lot of fun.

Source: http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/reviews/drives/2013-volkswagen-xl1-test-drive-15175417?src=rss

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