Volkswagen XL1 video review

The Volkswagen XL1 is the most fuel-efficient production car ever built, as we find out in this video review

After nearly ten years in the making, the Volkswagen XL1 has arrived, and we were lucky enough to drive one in this video review.

• Volkswagen XL1 drive

Volkswagen had one thing in mind with the XL1 - to create a useable, everyday vehicle that would use just a single litre of fuel for every hundred kilometres it travelled. Three concept cars and thirteen years of development later, the Volkswagen XL1 has now become a production reality.

It boasts a stylish teardrop design, shaped by aerodynamics to create as little drag as possible. It sits just over a metre tall, which is lower than most sports cars, including a Porsche Boxster.

When the XL1 finally arrives in the UK, only around 20-30 cars will be on offer, with early estimates for a price coming in at around £100,000.

Volkswagen claim the car can achieve 313mpg, so to put this to the test, we drove the XL1 around a short loop in full electric mode. Astonishingly, we managed to achieve 403mpg - so it actually beat the figures stated by Volkswagen.

Okay, so, when we did drive the XL1 a little faster, that figure did fall to 196mpg. But it's still efficient, and hardly going to break the bank. Overall, we were pretty impressed with the XL1 - the build quality of the interior was stunning, and it was hard not to be seduced by the cutting-edge technology on board.

Don't worry, though; it's going to be a while before the next Volkswagen Golf looks like an XL1.

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