Volkswagen has announced that its 2013 Jetta Hybrid became the fastest hybrid production-based car in the world during Southern California Timing Association’s (SCTA) annual Speed Week. Motor Trend Associate Road Test Editor Carlos Lago was in the driver's seat of the specially-modified compact sedan when it set the new hybrid speed record of 185.394 mph (298.363 km/h) at the Bonneville Salt Flats, near Wendover, Nevada last week.
In order to comply with SCTA rules, VW says that the record-breaking Jetta's powertrain was altered by the company's R&D team in Wolfsburg, Germany, to ramp up the available horsepower. Engineers from Volkswagen Test Center California took care of drivetrain implementation and final calibration, and further mods were undertaken by California's A-Salt Racing and Advanced Product Engineering to make sure the car could run safely on the famous Salt Flats.
"It was a real challenge to integrate the complex hybrid elements and generate the power needed to run at these speeds," said VW's Marc Trahan. "The Jetta Hybrid Land Speed Record project shows both the sporty nature of our Hybrid offering and the technical excellence of our engineers in Wolfsburg and in the Test Center California."
The 2013 Jetta Hybrid was announced in January 2012 and is scheduled for release in the U.S. toward the end of this year. VW expects the vehicle to achieve a combined fuel economy of 45 mpg (19.1 km/l), using about 20 percent less fuel than a similarly-powered sedan with a conventional drivetrain. It features a 1.4-liter turbocharged, direct-injection four-cylinder TSI gasoline powerplant that weighs just 216 pounds (98 kg) and develops 150 horsepower. It can get to 0 to 60 mph (96 km/h) in less than 9 seconds and is also claimed to be the first hybrid car to use a seven-speed DSG dual-clutch automatic transmission.
An additional 27 hp is provided by a 20 kW electric motor that's powered by a compact 220-volt, 1.1 kWh Li-ion battery pack of 60 individual cells integrated behind the rear bench seat. The Jetta Hybrid can be driven in pure electric mode at speeds up to 44 mph (70 km/h), although only for a distance of 1.2 miles (1.9 km). The vehicle also makes use of regenerative braking to feed kinetic energy back to the Li-ion battery but is claimed to do so more efficiently than other systems.
When Jetta's driver releases the gas pedal to apply the brake, the car's decoupling clutch disengages the ICE engine so that all the retardation is done by the brakes rather than a combination of brakes, drivetrain drag and engine torque. VW says that this releases more energy back to the battery.
Provided there's enough charge for the electric motor to operate, the Jetta Hybrid’s gasoline engine is stopped when the car comes to a halt in city driving or stop/go traffic situations. When the driver kicks down, or the lever is in the S position or in the manual shift gate, the drive system combines the power of the electric motor and gas engine to provide a peak output of 170 hp.
The Jetta Hybrid is reported to be the quietest car that VW has ever produced in the compact sedan class, weighs less than 3310 pounds (1501 kg) and includes Bluetooth technology, LED taillights and a SiriusXM satellite radio as standard. Safety features include six airbags, Electronic Stability Control, and anti-lock brakes.
Source: Volkswagen
When Chrysler offered the Jeep Liberty with a diesel they were never even advertised yet they were back-ordered... yet what was perhaps their best seller (as considering percentage of production) at that time was discontinued?
If anyone builds a diesel-electric mini-truck that can also make 110V electricity when needed they will sell them faster than they can build them as long as they are rugged,efficient,reliable and serviceable.
Automotive manufacturers have alienated their customers by building vehicles that even their dealers often cannot repair!
Remember the original Beetle: go modular and make the car's components more modular! EVERY part of the original Beetle was ALWAYS available at the dealer- the entire engine could be swapped out in an hour or less! A constant-run diesel-electric would be ideal for modular "plug&PERFORM" serviceability.
Anyone who breaks stride with all this insane building of cars & trucks that have become too expensive & complicated to continue to service & operate past a certain point (planned obsolescence) will gain MAJOR MARKETSHARE!
I'm not going to buy a new vehicle if it costs me more to operate with less driver satisfaction- why should I?
Why do so many minivans & SUV's get almost the same mileage, DESPITE vast disparities of size, shape & power? If cars were built to continue to be properly serviced at appropriate intervals like aircraft, there wouldn't be all this wasted junk laying around.
It's not just about mileage & emissions- there are other forms of waste&pollution that are just as serious, if not more so.
So, make more money on parts&service and gain marketshare.
AT LEAST build a good rugged little diesel-electric hybrid that can generate 110V electricity when on site! Every true worker would be interested! Would that not be the TRUE "People's Car"... or Truck?
Hybrid enthusiasts want efficiency- sports car enthusiasts want speed. Who comes up with such silly stunts?
Diesel while it uses less fuel but does not burn as clean as regular gas which is why they are prohibited from sale in California, New York, Massachusetts, Maine and Vermont which puts a damper on introducing Diesel models in the US.
The Hyundai i20 that you linked that gets 76.3 MPG only weighs 1,073 lbs and has a 1.1 liter engine. For comparison it is about the weight and engine size of a Harley Davidson. A Ford Taurus is over 4000 lbs.
It isn't a conspiracy, it is an engineering trade-off. People in the US just prefer bigger and faster cars and safety requirements demand they protect the occupants well in an impact.
Demanding 100 and 200 MPG out of a full sized automobile using an internal combustion engine is completely unrealistic when you consider even the most efficient motorcycles and scooters are barely near 100 MPG. The 2009 Honda CRF230 is one of the best available and it gets only 85MPG. The Yamaha XT250 is also known to be good on gas and it's just ~73 MPG.
They make 50 cc scooters that post higher MPG numbers but they don't do highway speeds well.