Volkswagen just made the world’s most efficient EV that’s “near-production”

Car anoraks should easily remember the 2014 Volkswagen XL1, a two-seater, diesel-powered plug-in hybrid that had a very heavy focus on efficiency, down to its distinct teardrop-shaped aerodynamic body. The vehicle’s drag coefficient of 0.186 and incredibly light weight of 795kg allowed it to drive over 400km, especially with the tiny 5.5kWh battery and a 10L fuel tank.

Fast forward a whole decade (and some), and Volkswagen is back at it again with the world’s most efficient near production electric car. This is the Mission Efficiency, and well, it’s something that you can’t buy (yet), but you sure as heck can expect these technologies to trickle down to production cars.

During an officially documented drive from Wolfsburg, Poland, to Olmütz, Czech Republic, to Vienna, Austria, it managed to complete 1,278.36km with a real-world consumption of 13.32 km/kWh (with charging losses), and it only had to be charged once, with a remaining range of 164km. While it’s still not as impressive as doing it on a single charge, it shows what can be expected from Volkswagen.

Firstly, the teardrop-shaped aerodynamic body makes a return– complete with a tiny frontal area, active cooling flaps, covered rear wheels, a smooth underbody, and other aspects that allow it to consume 30% less electricity than the standard ID. Polo that it shares most of its underpinnings with. The drag coefficient? It’s a record-breaking 0.158, the lowest of any production car currently.

It uses the MEB+ platform, which uses a front-wheel-mounted electric motor producing 135 horsepower, the MacPherson front axle, and hydraulic brakes from the ID. Polo, and a 54.9kWh battery that was increased via software to eke out as much range as possible. The weight is kept down thanks to an aluminum structure, aramid composite, and high-strength carbon fiber-reinforced polymer panels.

However, unique parts include electro-mechanical brakes for the rear, a bespoke Continental tire based on the low-rolling-resistance EcoContact 7 series, and a solar roof that can generate up to 370W of power to increase range up to 30km per day.

The stripped-down cabin with lightweight materials is very unique, being a 2+2 seater with 481L of luggage capacity, but Volkswagen says that the rear seats are best reserved for people under 5’2”. a Bluetooth box that tells you to mount your smartphone or tablet in place of the infotainment display, all in the name of weight savings.

It’s nice to see brands like Volkswagen push the limits of engineering and production vehicles for efficiency, and others could learn from this experimental vehicle as well. As for fans, it would be nice to see the XL1 make a return in the EV era with the production version of this car.

^{Photos from Volkswagen}