I remember reading in the early 90’s about the volvo lcp getting over 100 mpg. Does anyone know what happened to this vehicle or why they stopped production?
I assume you’re talking about the Volvo ECC (Enviromental Concept Car) from 1992. It was a diesel/electric turbine, with very good aerodynamics.
The thing was mentioned in this thread, a while back.
I can’t find any reliable quotes about fuel consumtion, but I think you’re at least a factor two too optimistic.
It was a rather heavy machine, with poor acceleration and handling. Quite interresting as a concept car, but very far from a production model. The turbine wasnät very reliable, and required quite a lot of maintenance.
Or maybe he is talking about the Volvo LCP (Light Component Project). It was a concept car in the early 80s. The link quotes gas mileage of 3 liter/100 km, which is 78 mpg. But that’s at a constant highway speed.
The hard part is designing a vehicle which is affordable and reliable in addition to being fuel-efficient. A hand-crafted concept car can have far better gas mileage than production cars. Volkswagen has even demonstrated a 1-liter car (gas mileage of 1 liter / 100km, or 235 mpg).