2011 Volkswagen XL1: Regular Car Reviews

We drive and review VW's diesel electric hybrid that never made it into full production.
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• Video

[@sledge3581]

“And it has an underbody that’s fully closed, like 90% of storefronts at your local mall” That one hit close

[@LouisSubearth]

Jokes on him, my local mall has 90% of its storefronts open

[@marcusdamberger]

Dan Bell would agree with that statement.

[@josecarbajak6190]

This is truee :(

[@eightymopar]

Dont worry spencers will always be there...

[@JoshCraver9000]

I can't relate.

[@DPortain]

This car is a straight-to-museum release. I don't think anyone was ever supposed to buy it.

[@ReverendTed]

Sometimes you have to make a thing just to prove that you can.

[@SuperAWaC]

@@ReverendTed yeah but you could at least get something out of them like the ford gt

[@Benzinilinguine]

@@ReverendTed Volkswagen just likes losing money, just look at the Veyron. Huge losses.

[@spessarterlandei]

i have one in my area (germany tho)

[@TheGuyinthePurpleCar]

I remember they said this would sell for $16,000 USD back at that auto show.

[@BruceLeedar]

Mid-engine ✅ Rear-wheel drive ✅ Carbon-fibre body ✅ Carbon ceramic brakes ✅ Dual-clutch transmission ✅ Futuristic design ✅ Two-seater ✅ Virtual wing mirrors ✅ 🤔

[@implodingbaby]

McLaren speedtail?

[@kasuraga]

Any semblance of power ❌

[@jalderink]

@Maimo Moline I believe he is trying to say that with all of these positive features, how did it not turn out cool?

[@NWieNils]

search for the XL1 sport and be amased, although it wasn't put into production at all to my knowledge :D

[@thejay8963]

*L S S W A P*

[@Ryanstuff]

I absolutely love the design. Really says something that it still looks incredibly modern/futuristic.

[@theinstitute1324]

It's weird, because it looks futuristic without the rediculous design trends of our current modern vehicles.

[@norgepalm7315]

It just looks like it was meant to look futuristic

[@petere8175]

It looks better than a Tesla sedan

[@Kyntteri]

It's built like a tank. A sensory deprivation tank.

[@redsevenbox]

Nice

[@CalSticks]

Yeehaa

[@TheTurtleneck64]

[JOE ROGAN HAS ENTERED THE CHAT]

[@DanArnets1492]

@@TheTurtleneck64 - "But does it have DMT?" - Joe Rogan on the XL1.

[@Pandamasque]

Not if you accelerate hard! *clakatakatakatakatakacrrrrr*

[@colonelk3000]

I remember seeing one of these in the wild in a car park in Germany, and pointing it out to my friends saying "take a good look, you'll never see another". We saw another 2 in the same trip haha

[@andrewduong2740]

What if it was just the same car again?

[@Munkenba]

You think you might have just been near the factory?

[@silasmayes7954]

The fuck?!

[@colonelk3000]

@@Munkenba we were near the VW factory yes

[@MrTARIQSs]

I saw a red one in Switzerland, in a car park too

[@medora2499]

"Just for that, I'm naming my first son Asimov." *WAHT?* "Nothing."

[@farrukhcage]

My friend's family name was Azimov. I don't understand the joke.

[@notenoughmemes1847]

@@farrukhcage Its a nod to Isaac Asimov, the science fiction writer who wrote those laws on robotics

[@G4m3G3ni3]

For anyone interrested *WHY* this car went into production: I am from Austria and fondly remember VW bragging since 1999 that soon there will be a 1L/100km mass production car and that their R&D is atleast 20 years ahead of the competition. That car shouldve been the VW LUPO but it ended up as a huge disaster much like the Elk Test Mercedes A-Class. So the head of VW (Piech) who was getting old and slightly senile had the 1 Liter car and the VW Phaeton (And to some extend the Bugatti Veyron) as some kind of Hobby project and needed evermore excuses for the stockholders to dump exorbitant amounts of money into the R&D. After the collosal failure that was the Phaeton they let him keep the XL-1 and (besides keeping a skeleton R&D depratement) outsourced the R&D to sponosring University competitions on with similar intent. Once it was clear that the old Piechs times at VW are counted for they used what they had on a limited production run for stupidly rich arabs (Thats why it was unveiled in the middle east...) to recoup some of the millions wasted. Source: I live in the same city as Mr.Piech and when you employ that many people in such a small town and the pet project that is supposed to keep you distracted is also located there you burn out alot of employees, also the stockholder meetings were often there and combined with wider known press releases you get a pretty broad picture. *EDIT*: OH SHIT, mister Piech died a week ago! I am sorry for the harsh tone this is very inappropriate such a small time after his death. May he rest in peace.

[@jh5kl]

its not the harsh tone, its the shit interpretation and lies. although i admit that there is the possibility that the australian Volkswagen staff spew so much shit because i ve been increasingly realizing that in some countries the brand there have a certain independence that allows them to change some things drastically like the way the present cars. he left the company with the most efficient car, the fastest and one of the most luxurious and technically very advanced

[@Tore_Lund]

So the Lupo 3L was originally intended as a 1L/100km car? Still 2.9L/100km is not bad, and enthusiasts still drive them as commuter cars today.

[@nox5555]

@@Tore_Lund the 3l A2 is the much better car from that program.

[@kaikart123]

@@GreveSparf It's a meme to change Austria to Australia to bait people like you.

[@krrk6337]

If only he poured that money to R&D batteries and EV drivetrains...

[@spamviking]

A German diesel-electric car? So it's a U-boat on wheels.

[@implodingbaby]

It's a Porsche tiger tank

[@toyotaprius79]

diesel-electric means that it's a series hybrid (engine power -> generator -> elec motor). But the XL1 is frighteningly a Honda Insight GM EV1 mashup without ever acknowledging then. Very much like the Honda's IMA system, the XL1 is a parallel hybrid that has a 2cyl TDI with a gear box and with an electric motor on the flywheel (and dct clutches to isolate engine). Unlike trains and U-Boats, Priuses and Volts, the XL1 cannot use the engine to generate electricity to propel the car. This does suck when the battery is empty, sucks like a 20kW AC compressor taxing the engine.

[@row2noob410]

@@implodingbaby Built by Ferdinand Porsche's grandson.

[@americanpanzer4163]

@@implodingbaby surprised the transmission didn't go up in flames

[@silasmayes7954]

@@toyotaprius79 I love the 1st Gen honda insight! It doesn't get good enough MPG to justify keeping them around unfortunately.

[@X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X8X]

As a petrolhead, I cannot help but appreciate true economic cars like this or the GM EV1. It is the "economic" hybrid SUV I loathe.

[@mandernachluca3774]

Or the Opel Speedster ECO ;D.

[@anthonyfarnan5935]

These guys will pine over a crap box Tercel and then criticise everything about something innovative like this. Don’t make a whole lot of sense

[@johnr.1592]

Everyone is wrong on this point. The thing is, improving on fuel economy of the already fuelly frugal segments doesn't make that big of an impact on overall ecological efficiency compared to the 4 wheeled aircraft carriers that some continue to buy. Improving the fuel economy of the average Ford Expedition has a far bigger environmental impact than improving the fuel economy of the average Nissan Micra. Bring on more model Xs esses and highlander hybrids. Improving the efficiency by 40% on a car segment that drinks 3 ounces of fuel to go 1 mile is great. Improving the efficiency by 40% on the car segment that drinks 13 ounces of fuel to go 1 mile is much better. Giant SUV drivers won't start to have less of an impact because the smart ev is available, they start to have less of an impact because the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV is available. Unless you can convince the four wheeled aircraft carrier segment to get into a smaller car (yeah, good luck with that!!!) then you should be applauding the big vehicle fuel efficiency efforts.

[@mandernachluca3774]

@@johnr.1592 ... ? You haven't understand anything, do you? The car was never supposed to appeal to a different buyer segment and it was also never supposed to decrease the emissions output of the company itselfe, it was purely an experimental car, nothing more. Why do you think all the new electric cars (besides Tesla) are SUV's, those are the best selling cars today and because of there weight the ones that produce the most emissions. That costs the company a lot due to recent changes in emission taxes. However, this logic applies not to this car, it was merely a model to showcase the possibilities of the time. If anybody got something wrong, it would quit possibly be you.

[@johnr.1592]

@@mandernachluca3774 I'm not sure what you mean. I'm replying about people loathing efficiency efforts on SUVs... Wanna share some of the meth you're on so I can understand your perspective? This car was really a way for vw to further brand the tdis as eco cars, when and if they could get George Clooney or Leonardo DiCaprio to buy and be spotted driving one. Limited run doesn't mean it's just a concept car, just like the initial couple hundred R8s lifted the entire Audi brand's performance cred, this car was to further improve vee dubs eco cred.

[@punnequraq]

kinda wanna take one of these and a salvage model s and fuse them together. electronics from the tesla, body from this. it’d be one hell of a car

[@smokejumper5379]

You could start a company out of that

[@user-sb8cs3le2j]

Sign me up!

[@jvdb5509]

This car is the result of a UI designer tasked with UX.

[@gabrielpokrajac5941]

This is actually a 2011 ultra futuristic beetle. It is slow, rear engined and (could have been) revolutionary

[@DTD110865]

Somehow I suspect the Beetle moved faster. Any New Beetle owners want to confirm or deny this?

[@timesweeper9778]

@@DTD110865 New beetle turbos are pretty good sleepers. 0-60mph (0-100km) in less than 5 seconds is nothing to scoff st

[@grymbathym635]

@@timesweeper9778 new beetles arent beetles, they are fwd and have the engine in the front. They are just golfs with a neo retro beetle design

[@Eatinbritches]

Late to the party, and with pedantics to boot: the Beetle was rear engined, the XL1 is mid-engined.

[@alexm4515]

Just like sports cars; The public debates them and yearns for them. However, when it is time to put your money where your mouth is, people buy SUVs.

[@larrylentini5688]

It's not a sport car

[@alexm4515]

@@larrylentini5688 it's a simile. I am making a comparison.

[@mro9466]

it's in the wrong price range. you see a lot of Porsches on the road yet they cost around 150 000 $ like this VW.

[@alexm4515]

@@mro9466 very valid point. Just like the Tesla, price continues to come down as people continue to express interest and buy.

[@eurosonly]

Not really. SUVs are driven by non car people. Mostly women. Sports cars are driven by people who can actually afford them and only drive them on the weekends. So the perception is there are no sports cars on the road.

[@BigBulgogi]

"IN 2003, I'LL TAKE ALLOFYOUON!" Thank you, Mr. Regular, for that unequivical declaration and reminding me why I fell in love with your content.

[@NRGMatrix]

Imagining this car with a Hayabusa Engine swap, its like being 9 on christmas eve.

[@MrTARIQSs]

They made a concept of it with a ducati engine but never made it into production sadly

[@mbn1083]

A little late to the party, but fun fact nonetheless: The Lane actually has a car in its collection that had a Hayabusa swap! It's a Smart Fortwo.

[@WolfrCats]

okay but why is the prius lagging? are my eyes playing tricks on me?

[@AnomNOM]

low battery

[@beemoescarmew]

high ping

[@platypusalex7262]

That's just how the Prius roll my guy. He do as he do.

[@Chris-dy1cb]

Unplug and replug the onboard router

[@MrJMS814]

Crappy software stabilization... A problem with most RCR vids.

[@alfredvonschlieffen6813]

You ask who this car was for? Ferdinand Piech. He wanted a 1Liter / 100km car, so vw build one. He was just that kind of man.

[@MrPaukann]

Rip

[@row2noob410]

Same thing crossed my mind when I saw the title. RIP, one of the modern automotive legends.

[@Alpostpone]

Good call. He wanted the world's most economical car, so he got this. He wanted the world's fastest car that was still comfy to drive, so he got Bugatti Veyron. He wanted the world's best-built car, so he got Volkswagen Phaeton. Volkswagen has put a tidy sum in Piech's ego projects.

[@MrPaukann]

@@Alpostpone, but he saved VW before.

[@mishXY]

@@Alpostpone I'm still annoyed that the Phaeton wasn't a success. but pricing a car at the same price as better known competitors was not smart. (known, as in BMW 5-7 Series, Mercedes S-Class, have been in that segment for ever)

[@rubberwoody]

I'm not sure why RCR was so bent on "who this car was for" when it's clearly just an engineering exercise

[@edstratton]

RCR's level of intelligence cannot run to grasping such a complicated idea, sadly.

[@stephen3164]

260mpg?! That’s pretty insane. You can’t think performance acceleration with those efficiency numbers. The thing holding back the whole industry from producing very fuel efficient cars is consumers desires for huge hp numbers. For those of us who started out with 70’s or early 80’s cars as their first ride, 12 second 0-60 was the norm, but gas mileage over 25mpg was not the norm. 260mpg is witchcraft.

[@artinyyk]

Quickly googles, ‘Elijah Baley’, so I can pretend to be in the know. Ah yes it does look like the kind of car an NYPD homicide detective would drive from a work of science fiction by Asimov, acclaimed author of ‘I, Robot’, Mr Regular.

[@WavveBoi]

I chuckled

[@tylerstuart9799]

What i was not in the know of is that Texas has a town called Nashville

[@jackgrafik]

This car was the result of an experiment to make a usable car that can go 100km on one litre of fuel. It was always about frugality on fuel, not performance. Also 12 seconds to 60 in Europe is fine, lots of small cars are equivalent, as is diesel as a fuel because fuel costs more over here. The best selling car in Europe is the VW Golf, the smaller 1.6 diesel version of which is around 11 seconds (I know, I own one), and that only gets around 45-55 US MPG, so this is pretty impressive as an experiment.

[@__-fm5qv]

exactly 11-13 seconds 0-60 here is completely standard. I often think americans are spoilt with hp.

[@sliwka621]

They could have given it a bigger battery and it could do 0L/100km. Stupid concept, stupid car.

[@carlosandleon]

@@sliwka621 that's just dumb, I don't have a charging point near me, a mild hybrid that still consumes petrol would be a far better optiom and would be more environmentally friendly than regular options? Ever thought of that? No! because you're lost in your obsession you homosexual monk seal

[@jackgrafik]

sliwka621 Your point is valid, the first concept was revealed in 2002, so ironically by 2014 (years after the Model S, Leaf and i3 were made available) this super futuristic car was out of date. Fortunately, VW make a bunch of electric cars now. The E-Golf is very good, I’d get one if I could afford it, but I make do with borrowing one regularly.

[@mandernachluca3774]

@@jackgrafik His point would be valid if it wouldn't get lost in his ignorance. The point of an experimental car is to push the boundaries of what is possible. In this case, the question was, how to build a Diesel car that can drive 100 km with 1 L of fuel, without the loss of the comfort and utility of a modern small car. This car did actually fullfill every aspect. So one can, without a doubt, say that this car was a success. Even the reasoning for such a concept was pretty valid, as one has to consider, that there were not that many charging points in Europe at the time.

[@NotDaender]

Having talked to the one of the Lane employees about this car, it's apparently VERY LOUD inside because NO SOUND DEADENING for maximum weight savings. You hear EVERYTHING; every rock that pings off the inside of the fenders, the chattere of the 2-cylinder diesel engine (as Mr. Regular noted), and ALL THE WIND AND TIRE NOISE. I just want one to turn into a drag racer or a Bonneville land speed record car with a hopped-up motor like what Honda guys do with Insights and K-swaps. Thanks, Ferdinand, you crazy SOB.

[@maikdeutscher4528]

Fun fact VW planed a faster variant of XL1 called the XL1 Sport. It should have a Ducati 2 cylinder motor with 200 Horsepower.

[@kaikart123]

if it ever reach production, I bet many of them gonna get converted with Hayabuse engine. That low drag coefficient and lightness are just too great to pass up as a drag machine.

[@johnroe3915]

Great idea put a dry clutch that often breaks.

[@ishitmypantsinacarwheniwas7]

Jesus fuck thats going to be scary

[@Hhh-j8o]

ducati barely makes a 4 cylinder that gets 200hp.....and those are 1300cc. which asshole did you pull this from btw?

[@tigercs1]

Still no 90's motorcycle speed wars documentary. I quote Mr. Regular "The Greatest story in motorcycle history"

[@MylesHSG]

Been waiting for 3+ years!

[@thomas316]

Sending your requests written on the back of a bottle of whisky will help accelerate the creative process. 😉

[@thereve]

Motorsickles don’t pay the bills. So we shall continue to wait

[@gregorysteffensen3279]

The Illestrator did a decent one (albeit a bit less epically thorough than the average RCR Stories documentary) if you at least want an appetizer to tide you over...

[@CrazyMotorMaster]

I'm still waiting too

[@mickles1975]

"in Nashville, Texas" LOL

[@EvilCerealBoX]

Thought it was another town i hadn't heard of before. Happens all the time.

[@1waffleiron]

Yeah... It was actually in Dallas, Tennessee

[@ReverendTed]

Yeah, I got real excited that I might get to visit there for a moment.

[@racingfortheson]

There is a Nashville, Tx. It is a Ghost town now, well really just a Historical Marker. It was almost the capital of "The Republic of Texas". Why do I know this? My brain is full of so much dumb, useless info. 🤦‍♂️

[@mickles1975]

@@racingfortheson Mine too. Now it has another bit.

[@ustradingdiary]

At least those who bought this, $0 depreciation. I remember I saw this last year. Same price after many years. Only 250units worldwide

[@benpeltola1364]

Expensive, Eurocratic, and somehow simultaneously anhedonistic and extravagant. Very interesting car.

[@B4R0N.]

“Elijah Bailey’s squad car” I see you’re a man of culture, mr regular.

[@pdahandyman]

Indeed. A lot of Asimov in this episode. Slick shoutout to both "A.I." and R. Daneel Olivaw in the same pop culture reference :)

[@skinnwork]

Haha, I went looking in the comments to see who got the reference

[@RegularCars]

ßaron thank you!

[@FEVERNOVAA]

atleast they had balls to make a futuristic car in 2011 edit: the people who can afford 140k can probably afford a gas station

[@LouisSubearth]

They had balls to make a futuristic diesel car.

[@ReverendTed]

As an aside, does anyone else feel the 2010-2012 Lincoln MKT's design is taken from 1987's idea of what cars in 2020 would look like?

[@GrijzePilion]

Look at some actual concept cars from 1987 - this low-drag, all-white, plastic eco-design is spot on.

[@Birdie_]

Futuristic cars date back to the 30s.

[@ACJ523]

Their Bavarian of coarse

[@dunc_n_fr]

Honestly though, the design is awesome.

[@yourfriendben2]

There is on of there in the wv factory in Dresden and they treat it like God, it's pretty funny

[@kaikart123]

100km/l is literally God territory though

[@josevargas1820]

2011 Volkswagen XL1, for the man who eats spaghetti.....WITH A SPOON !!! Sorry, it's 4:05 am......

[@TheinfamousHamid]

Its 4:27 am for me looool

[@josevargas1820]

@@TheinfamousHamid Well, makes sense. Now it's 4:33 am. I guess we are on the same time zone. Greetings from Costa Rica 🇨🇷

[@TheinfamousHamid]

@@josevargas1820 Greetings from Canada!!🇨🇦

[@DersNoNem]

Dammit my fork broke, what am I supposed to do? Eat it with hands like Asian?

[@lawnmowerdude]

Aren’t you supposed to? I mean aren’t you supposed to spin your fork within the spoon?

[@mschrage618]

“Just for that Mom, I’m naming my first son Asimov “ I died 😂

[@HUNKragor]

Isaac, you can name him Isaac

[@smashedfinger739]

I thoroughly enjoyed the mom voice- to my memory this is a new addition to the Mr. Regular voices family!

[@alexcrouse]

Wait... a VW I want? WHAT HAVE YOU DONE, REGULAR?

[@chrishansen7004]

11 second 0-60? Still better than the older k1500 with a 4.3

[@carmelothegoat1892]

What do you expect from a bare bones work truck from the 90s?

[@sanangelo7926]

Is that when you average in the typical broken down Chevy trucks with ones that happen to run?

[@milespannell6266]

Did you just fake us out on a "So Fancy" rant? How dare

[@Alpostpone]

But the brochure was _so fancy._

[@danielgoodman3578]

Thank you for the sooo faaaanncy reminder

[@bradford_shaun_murray]

10:29...fancy style...

[@milespannell6266]

@@Alpostpone unhh yesss it was quite fancy if I say so. Quite indubitabley so. 🎩 🧐

[@hacon4]

This car is for me. I commute 100 mi a day for work. The train hurts my soul.

[@Odddit]

why do you commute 100 miles a day

[@hacon4]

Because I live in SLC and my work is in Ogden. I usually bike to the train station and take the train, because i dont like putting that many miles on my Focus ST

[@Mrbootyman]

@@hacon4 Throw an engine on that bicycle! Seriously though, ever considered a motorbike?

[@hacon4]

@@Mrbootyman Cant bring my bike on the train if I put a gas engine on it. I would rather not ride a proper motorcycle to and from work everyday, when instead i could ride it in the canyons on the weekend. The train isnt the fastest, due to numerous stops but i get to relax on the train. Been considering getting an electric hub motor and battery pack for my bike tho

[@COYGunners]

Stef_R your commute is crazy

[@MrMduchesne23]

this was a test car showing, " yeah, you want 200 mpg, we can do 200 mpg." easier to just go electric. I'd still drive it, and enjoy it. I love futuristic cars. still cheaper to buy and run a Tesla model 3, and you won't smell like diesel.

[@cgduude]

Though Teslas have quickly become so common, they lose some "cool factor" points. 260 mpg 2cyl diesel hybrid with camera mirrors, etc. Peak cool factor.

[@MrMduchesne23]

@@cgduude I live in a small university town here on the west coast of Canada. there is at least 30 model 3 LR+ or stand range driving around and a dozen Model S of different years and a handful of Model X's. It's not like seeing a Lamborghini anymore. At any given parking lot at any given time, there is at least 1 tesla now.

[@edstratton]

Teslas are common as muck now. And so incredibly boring.

[@ulogy]

I just expected Will Smith to step out of it and chase down a robot.

[@FlymanMS]

Can we include Snobby McSnub as a reccurring character? I’d love to see his collab with Uncle Pulltab!

[@starvalkyrie]

Eh, he'd just end up feeling redundant with Sew Fanceh.

[@FlymanMS]

Keld Tundraking they’d turn out to be a long lost cousins.

[@FallenBadstar]

With Harold "Just Fine" Slovinski

[@TheOdst219]

Volkswagen XL1: The age old question of, "Will the owner fit in a locker?"

[@digitalrailroader]

Saw this at the Lane museum during my visit! EDIT: 10:38 TEXAS?!?!? I could have SWORN the Lane Motor Museum is in Nashville, TENNESSEE. You’re slipping Mr Regular!

[@HalfandHalfM]

digitalrailroader I caught that too lol it is in Tennessee

[@gabrielttenroc2906]

I love me some Nashville, coming from Memphis my friends use it as somewhat of an escape from the “ norm”

[@Zanelander]

"Nashville, Texas"

[@stevenbarbour1244]

My brain literally record scratched when I heard that. :-)

[@Christopher-no2ge]

I happened to watch this the day before my son asked to visit the Lane Museum. Distracted, I heard "Nashville, TX." Living in Nashville, TN I told my son Texas is quite a drive so we better get on the road. Not entertained, just a stare looking at me like I stapled my hair to the carpet, he rolled his eyes started walking off, not before stating "I wouldn't quit my day job if I were you."

[@z1lla4]

I could literally picture a person stealing a mic breathing heavier and heavier as it scopes the room before making the announcement lol

[@BrendenPragasam]

This car is beautiful to me. It's the main reason I became a car designer

[@veg1run]

Do you remember the VW 1.0 liter ?

[@ItsJustMirko]

Oh my that licence plate in the front is from Offenbach, Germany. And Brass sold us our Opel Zafira back in 1999. Kinda wild how far that little plate has made it

[@JCavLP]

Haha that's where my mom bought her Astra F

[@dzonijohnny5718]

But which brass is it? There stood only brass group! It could be also the headquarter in dietzenbach and please do not say that the plates say of. You have license plates for the city offenbach and license plates for kreis offenbach which dietzenbach is the capitol. How is he even allowed to drive with export license plates.

[@donutsteel8878]

In some US states only rear plates are mandatory . I guess they allow anything else on the front as long as it is not another US plate. Did confuse me when I saw German export plates but it seems more people do that in America.

[@ItsJustMirko]

@@dzonijohnny5718 I think it was the one in Hanau, which closed down a few years ago

[@ItsJustMirko]

@@JCavLP we had an astra G :D

[@butterfaceee]

This is why the 2011 Chevy Volt was so good. Actually the 2013 model which has "hold" function to control when you want ICE engine to run ie. on the freeways/crusing, and battery mode only in traffic or city stop & go.

[@CarsSimplified]

What a car! Still can't get MPG like that.

[@demond7l3]

If you add the diesel engine of the XL1 to a modern EV it could achieve 1000+mpg but they would never do that.

[@tacticalderpy2077]

If this was real, id seriously consider getting one. Not actually buy one. Just seriously consider it.

[@MazeFrame]

I would also seriously consider one, and then buy a Toyota instead.

[@cpufreak101]

I mean, it is real, limited production run of 250.

[@maYdaY1337]

there is a red one with 2000km on the clock for sale here in germany. only 90k€ :D

[@dopandasreadbooks6039]

Mom: Did your Dad get me E-flowers? Me: Dad, did Mom ever get you any E things? Dad: Other than E-rectile dysfunction, no. Me: Mom, whats E-reptile function and why does Dad have it, can I get one?

[@wadeguidry6675]

U need 2 write for this show

[@eightymopar]

@@wadeguidry6675 i wanna say this is a reference from a south park episode.

[@dopandasreadbooks6039]

@@eightymopar is it? Darn I thought I was being original.

[@eightymopar]

@@dopandasreadbooks6039 well if you never seen that episode and/or wernt makin said reference then i guess both are true. I cant remember the exact episode, but there was a reference that was very similar to your comment that was in an episode. Thought maybe thats what you were referencing there.

[@nslouka90]

Dad: I can give you e-jaculation if you’d like

[@ronaldderooij1774]

Oh by the way, 12 sec from 0-100km/h is fast enough. More than fast enough. I can remember that I drove cars that did 25 seconds from 0-100 and we crossed the Alps with it, with trailer and fully loaded. Yes it was also a Volkswagen. I did not get any happier that cars accelerate now three times faster.

[@otm646]

My w115 300d does it in 22 seconds, it's still perfectly capable in traffic today. Zero issues cruising at 80 mph.

[@MattsAwesomeStuff]

Late to the party but, to put this fuel economy in perspective, you could drive from Canada, to Mexico for $18 in gas. EIGHTEEN DOLLARS TO CROSS THE UNITED STATES! You could drive from New York to LA, for $20. TWENTY BUCKS. Less than an Uber home from the bar. Just find someone who wants to go and be like "I'm going to take a nap, you drive, I'll pay for gas."

[@itsmannertime]

Whoa, a large car manufacturer making a niche car that lets them try out new tech in cars? WOW WHAT A SHOCKER

[@KaitouKaiju]

What niche...?

[@abalakrishnan4152]

Plymouth Prowler

[@closedcl8]

It also led to the VW XL Sport, whose poster is basically a Burnout Paradise DLC waiting to happen.

[@nicholasazar1009]

This is still the best car review I've ever seen. The summary is great. The analogies and voiceovers are hilarious. Also, the amount of effort that went into making this (like the easily unnoticeable custom XL1 song at the end) is really impressive.

[@JamesSleeman]

1. The Lane Museum is the only reason I would ever travel to the US, so many cool cars I can only dream of. 2. The XL1 is just before it's time. I think it's a thing of beauty, wrapped around the love child of a forklift and a tractor. Stick tesla gubbins under the covers and ditch the diesel it would be a hell of a thing I bet.

[@MyDailyUpload]

Nashville TEXAS? And why does Mr. Regular keep saying 2011 when the car is a 2014 (placard at museum) and why does his Kanye rant keep referencing 2003?

[@cpufreak101]

I think he said 2011 was when it was first shown off, and they were sold in 2013, possibly as 2014MY. As for 2003, idk.

[@nomoreheroes93]

He literally corrects himself on the subtitles about 2003 with a (?)

[@cpufreak101]

@@nomoreheroes93 problem is subtitles don't appear on mobile

[@bibasik7]

@@cpufreak101 Yes they do. They're part of the video, not KZbin subtitles. This comment section makes me want to buy a Volkswagen just to destroy the fucking planet so that humans can go extinct.

[@fullweezy3553]

Dude did you just say Kanye rant lol oh boy that's funny. No sir that was the ultimate warrior yes warrior cut that type of promo of talking complete nonsense long before that wack ass Kanye

[@copperlocks1]

LOL! 260 mpg did they fudge the software on that diesel too!!

[@MrDmitriRavenoff]

They said 260mpg, not that it was low pollution.

[@DeerKoden]

Extremely low powered and tiny engine. So, wouldn't matter & they probably didnt. Even if they did tho, the production was limited to a small amount of cars.

[@mandernachluca3774]

You mean that Software that ecery other car manufacturer used :)?

[@jackroutledge352]

That figure was never tested by the EPA though - I imagine it’s while cruising long distances at 40mph. Down hill. With a tail wind.

[@sliwka621]

260 MPG until the battery completely depletes.

[@dankfrenkvisser5977]

VW did make a performance concept of this car called the XL sport. It had more aggressive styling and a Ducati V-twin hybrid system with over 200bhp from the combustion engine alone. looks like a mini Audi R8. shame that version never made it to the market, not even in pre-production form. just 1 prototype was ever built. But let's be real, no one would've bought it anyway.

[@edstratton]

I would DEFINITELY have bought the XL Sport. No question.

[@kaikart123]

If shitty things like DeLorean could sell, why not another dumb thing like the sport version of this thing?

[@jona_archi]

actually I think it's the COOLEST CAR EVER. It delivers a high end design and it has such a low fuel consumption. But while being extremely efficient it remains usable (not like the weird second seat in the twizzy or these 45kph-vehicles) JUST. COOL.

[@edstratton]

Jonathan you are so right. Coolest car on the road today.

[@terutend077]

funny how back in 2011 when I did keep up to date with car news, I never heard of this thing until now

[@Kacpa2]

I did and there was far more exciting XL Sport planned back then....with a powerful superbike 1.2 V2 engine, normal "fullsize" tyres and very good performance, but they never made it :/

[@nomadben]

I can't wait to go to Nashville, Texas and name my first child ASIMOV. I am grand counselor VARMON

[@reeewhydoihavetochangethese]

"Assaulting dwight schrute" This was a good reference

[@TheCuber2400]

Those tires are actually SMALLER than my donut spare! (125/80d15)

[@JEMHull-gf9el]

Its the apple car. Looks super amazing, is super expensive and is super disappointing.

[@bibasik7]

Are you just going to ignore that iPhone processors are YEARS ahead of any Crapdragon? Are you just going to ignore that iPhones get software updates for 7 years instead of 2? Please never reproduce.

[@shadowhunter99]

@@bibasik7 How can you get so upset about a phone 😂YEARS AHEAD YOU GUYS...YEARS!!!😂

[@JEMHull-gf9el]

@@bibasik7 Wow

[@DanaTheInsane]

Funny, I went Mac afer Vista came out. Still waiting to be disappointed.

[@OffGridInvestor]

Super disappointing TO REV HEADS who HAVE TO modify every engine they get near.... I think the fact they managed to ACTUALLY ACHIEVE 1 litre per 100km without CHEATING like VW is known to do, is quite an achievement.

[@Mogry51]

I couldn't believe when I saw the title... I knew this would be a good video! :-) Very supprised you guys got the XL1 over in the states. Even in Germany this thing is super rare and I worked at VW lol

[@ShaiyanHossain]

iirc this wasnt actually sold here Lane Motor Museum just gets their hands on a lot of weird cars (ie the 205, Tata Nano) that were never officially sold here

[@cpufreak101]

The car is technically illegal to own here still, it's just simply in a museum.

[@L00PdeL00P]

8:06 MISTER REGULAR’S MOM IS SKELETOR CONFIRMED IT ISN’T JUST HEAD CANON NO MORE

[@jona_archi]

just because it has no competition doesnt mean it's not one of the COOLEST CARS EVER MADE

[@SirNippletonMcSugarteets]

*its got the top speed of a brisk walk*

[@ferdinand12390]

Acceleration is who cares

[@willdowns1745]

Is this real or just clever voice manipulation?

[@NarfBLAST]

All we wanted was a diesel electric option for the VW Jetta.

[@marcst3199]

wait, 2 cylinder rear enginge? It's a space beetle!

[@maYdaY1337]

according to your logic a dmc-12 and a corvair are US beetles then ?

[@marcst3199]

Those have a not an underpowered 2 cylinder engine.

[@culleyfranks7620]

"High-bread" hybrid, "Cat-Tar" Qatar (I assume). Love the Pennsylvania accent.

[@Nobody-zq8bl]

Qatar is more like "gutter"

[@megu2272]

There was a sport version of this car that had an engine from a Ducati 1198 but sadly it was only a concept car

[@TKcolinTK]

Please sync your filming frame rate with your upload frame rate. I love the the videos, but the jumping frames with the Prius drives me crazy!

[@zuestoots5176]

Its free, stop your bitchin

[@cpufreak101]

I'm pretty sure that's a KZbin thing, nothing can be done about it besides ditching the website entirely.

[@yep-that-happened]

Absolutely loving the Elijah Bailey/R. Daneel Olivaw/Asimov references! My favorite four books of all time!

[@SomeFreakingCactus]

That’s a pretty cool kinetic sculpture.

[@christamu2]

This car was made for car magazines. 'MOVE OVER PRIUS! 260 MPG IS COMING!'

[@eivis13]

The rx club just called, they said they want their oil back.

[@Elios0000]

eh better analogy would be like Intel was chasing clock speeds in the 00's

[@abhimaanmayadam5713]

Elios0000 then ipc happened when the Pentium hit the shelves. The Pentium M was faster the p4m despite having a lower clock speed.

[@corneliusmcmuffin3256]

SIXTY FOUR CORES!!!

[@MarshalBeard]

hahaha, remember when everyone thought intel would have 10Ghz processors by 2005? Imagine a Pentium D, a CPU that already succs over 150W at 3GHz, running at 10Ghz? You'd need a personal reactor and factory sized industrial AC system to cool the stupid thing, all to be outperformed by 2W CPUs put into our phones.

[@Membrane556]

Then the AMD Athlon 64 came out and it was much faster than the P4 while using less power.

[@abhimaanmayadam5713]

@@MarshalBeard yup a c2q q6700 0 is on par with an i5 7200u. 100 watt quad core xeon goes toe to toe with a dual core laptop chip that takes 15 watts

[@JabbaTheAmerican]

As a guy who doesn't know a lot about cars but loves himself some wrestling, 1:42 to 2:45 is one of the funniest things I've ever heard.

[@mitchellbrowe201]

Wanna know the saddest part? I'd still drive this SLUG.. It's just so cool

[@nickb3968]

"What movie is this car from?" - Demolition Man

[@Steelairship]

I was thinking i, robot

[@mottmatt7844]

Thank you so much for bringing this out today. My factory job starts today and I need something to put on my headphones to pass the time.

[@MrJohndoakes]

The lack of a rear window might be a design nod to some of the early prototypes of the VW Beetle, which didn't have one, but they did have a two cylinder motor.

[@edstratton]

I can only think that whoever wrote and voiced this review had absolutely no clue why VW designed and built this car, or why they put it into production and sold it to the public. It never ceases to amaze me how people get up on KZbin and publicly pass judgement on things they just don't understand (and have made no real attempt to understand by doing any basic research). It is well known that VW had no interest in how many of this car they might sell, since its only intended reason for existence was to push the boundaries of fuel efficiency beyond what was thought to be possible for a car that can be produced and sold to the public, the whole point being that they would thereby acquire new ideas and technical solutions that would help them to make their future cars more efficient. VW spend over $1 billion just on facelifting a Golf, with good reason (they will sell millions of them) so it's hardly surprising they should invest a similar figure in R&D on the XL1 when it is likely to help them make ALL of their future models more fuel efficient and therefore more competitive in a tough market. It's obvious what kind of car enthusiast would want to buy an XL1 - someone who is not in this particular instance looking for performance (acceleration), who appreciates the technical masterpiece that this car is and the timeless beauty of its sleek aerodynamic design. Most of the XL1 buyers most likely already had a fast car in their garage, and now wanted something totally different, rare and exclusive that would be a huge talking point. The fact that it would turn more heads than virtually any supercar probably appealed to a lot of buyers too.

[@CynicalBastard511]

It's another Delorean DMC-12. Looks fast, but it's disappointingly slow.

[@ToastyMozart]

Looks like a good candidate for a Tesla swap. Replace the disappointment engine with a PSM out of a 3, stuff 25kWh of lithiums in there, and you'd be golden.

[@afmb9096]

Honestly that thing look so freaking slick, I would love to see a Fully electric 2019 Version; if the price was more reasonable, I mean it would actually probably go further than a Tesla, since the aerodynamics are ACE, if they had the same battery Overall maybe it was a couple years to early, for what they wanted, and just to half assed (hybrid) for what we now see as "green" cars.

[@texemplarstudios5481]

A FMB I know!! Why would they cancel it??

[@DIZAZZO]

I don't know... A fully electric version isn't viable alternative yet. It won't have the expected range, or would be bigger and heavier. But I could bet in a smoother engine gasoline version, with a slightly bigger fuel tank and modern hybrid system.

[@sirwafel]

As long as it's made of carbon fibre and magnesium there is no way it would be any cheaper, but if it's made of something else you loose the advantage of being incredibly light, making it electric also makes that worse, not to mention the cost... I don't really see it happening in any way

[@texemplarstudios5481]

@@DIZAZZO Ah, and I guess the hybrids nowadays can't reach this figure because they need to be cheaper and heavier? I just wonder why 40 years ago we broke the 40-50MPG barrier and now we are celebrating that we can do it again with hybrids.

[@tylhunt]

@@texemplarstudios5481 2 words; Safety standards.

[@anthoslykos6294]

I'd love to track one of these down, buy it, gut it, give it proper tires and make it 100% electric. I think it has a beautiful exterior design but the internals would benefit from being swapped to something more efficient and with more power.

[@mattskucas6983]

"Assault on Dwight Shrute." I just wanna let you know how much I appreciate that. Thanks Mr. Regular

[@stuuuuuuuu]

hey can you dragrace a 2000 corolla vs a 2000 civic? thats all i want

[@Zadkiel862]

"Go to Boscovs and eat at the Greenery." I too went to Park City during the late 90s.

[@RonaldMacK]

The thing is, that car still looks good today. I wonder if they kept almost everything the same - design, materials, etc, but updated the engines (and dash controls to a touch screen)... would it be capable of becoming an affordable hybrid today? They have the designs already, they may still have the molds, and they have eight years of advances in battery life and engine efficiency to work with.

[@maYdaY1337]

nope. Carbon monocoques are still expensive to make today. And with new regulations they probably have to add more weight or save it somewhere else too.

[@AirohThird]

I have to confess that I love this thing design. Get rid of the diesel engine and the electric crap and put a Golf R engine in this thing with some spacers on the rear wheels and you got a really cool but still somewhat simple looking supercar. VW has done that with the XL Sport Concept and that thing is gorgeous! BTW I'm a huge fan of your channel and love to see your reviews on the normal cars that I really like. I was just browsing for a Cummins Dodge RAM when I saw your review and laughed as hard as I could .Please keep the good stuff coming!

[@jimshulman9221]

Love the shot with the XL1 next to 1-800-GOT-JUNK. Couldn't have framed it better.

[@AMomcilo1]

Amazing car! One of my favourite cars ever produced, maybe I can buy one after 15 years in Canada.

[@TheKiltedYaksman1]

As a long-time VW owner, let me just say that an electric VW just doesn't compute. I mean, the entire gauge cluster should just be one giant Check Engine light.

[@diede2308]

VW actually mass produced a Lupo 1.2 TDI that AVERAGED 77 mpg. In real life it was even managing to do 87 mpg in some cases. It was VW engineering at its peak.

[@toyotaprius79]

HubNut did a review on this one. Unfortunately, the XL1 is and was just a PR stunt. The 1 litre car has been a VW project for 20 years now. To appreciate the XL1 needs the whole story of the 1l car told. And unfortunately, for €111,000, the world got a wannabe Honda insight (similar single motor on the crank). It does not operate like a Prius. 5kWh battery was a bonus, but woeful with just one motor that can't charge and drive at the same time. And it doesn't age well in the backdrop of diesel gate and in 2011 VW lobbying the EU to not reduce their sold fleet wide 160g/km emissions.

[@maYdaY1337]

+100k€ isn't to bad concidering it having a carbon monocoque and magnesium stuff. These things are expensive ... even today. Compairing it with the Insight isn't really fair. It's like compairing the Veyron to a 911 or Corvette. Sure they both play in the supercar game ... but in a completely different league. The XL1 was a (sadly delayed) tech project/study with a goal of 1L/100km in mind. The insight was designed to be a "high volume" production car with price in mind (and roughly three times the realworld consumption at ~5-6 L/100km compaired to ~2L/100km the XL1 can do in the real world).

[@kw9849]

3:57 Honda did the same thing with the 1st Gen Insight as well.

[@PistonsAndPetrol]

My buddy brought that thing here and drove it from NYC to Tennessee. Such a cool car. From the guy that imported it: It’s a 2014. Not a 2011.

[@rexbennett2953]

I work at the museum. That's me in the video. Correct, it's a 2014.

[@PistonsAndPetrol]

Rex Bennett Brett sent me photos when he was moving it. Such a cool car!

[@CertainlyCaro]

The slowly fading in Headphone Warning before that whole Ultimate Warrior bit was just, mmm, GOLDEN