14 DAY TRIAL // Well, it doesn't really look like the car of my dreams, but it does bear some resemblance to the flying cars from 'The Jetsons', and best of all, it can run more than 100 kilometers with only one liter of fuel. Too bad it doesn't fly, though. Volkswagen's One Litre is currently the most economical road car in the world and may be out on the market as early as 2010, after it exits the prototype stage, although it will only be fabricated in limited numbers.
One Litre has two seats, is powered by a diesel power plant and has a tank that can hold only 6.5 liters of fuel, which can take it as far as 640 kilometers without requiring a re-fueling. Furthermore, because it uses diesel, which costs about 131.9 pence per liter, a complete re-fueling would only draw 8.50 sterling pounds out of you pocket.
Its highly efficient diesel engine is greatly supported by the fact that the car has an aerodynamic design, and a shape that forced the designers to place the drive and the passenger seats one in front of the other, as in the case of the jet fighter cockpit design, plus sheathed wheels which further reduce drag. Forget about side and back mirrors, they have been replaced by cameras and displays so that the aerodynamic shape of the vehicle is not altered.
Volkswagen says that One Litre will be available for purchase for a price of about 23,000 sterling pounds and could reach a top speed of 120 kilometers, which is rather acceptable in comparison with its fuel efficiency, albeit the storage compartment will only provide just over 0.079 cubic meters, or close to zero. Most of the car is built out of carbon fiber composites, while the engine has a capacity of 0.33 liters and one cylinder.
Everything on this car is ultralight, even the steering wheel which weighs only about 450 grams, not to mention that everything comes in only one color, black, since One Litre will not be painted. The engine stops automatically, upon lifting the foot off the accelerator, and springs back into motion when commanded to do so, all this only to conserve a couple more grams of fuel.
