Elio: A 100 mpg car that costs £4,500

America is the home of the gas guzzling car, so in the face of record-breaking petrol prices it is perhaps no surprise that it is giving birth to the Elio – a super-efficient, three-wheeled car that squeezes 100 miles from a gallon of petrol and costs the equivalent of only £4,500.

The Elio uses a 900cc, 3-cylinder, fuel-injected and liquid-cooled petrol engine that enables the car to deliver over 58 mpg in town and 100 mpg on longer runs.

Small, safe and cheap

There is no shortage of similar-looking concept cars, but Paul Elio is insistent that his creation is more than a novelty.

Prospective customers in America more used to larger, heavier cars will be reassured by the Elio’s reinforced roll-cage, ABS and best-in-class crumple zone, which are expected to earn a 5-Star safety rating, but it is the low purchase price that is likely to arouse the most interest.

At $6,800, the two-seater car costs less than most motorcycles and there are plans to sell in Europe. The equivalent price in Britain would be £4,500.

Car models, like people, tend to put on weight over the years. Compare the Ford Fiesta and VW Polo of today with their original incarnations and the difference in size and weight is remarkable.

However there has been a recent trend towards a new breed of city car. The Smart, Toyota iQ and Fiat 500 TwinAir have proved popular here in Britain, whilst severe congestion in Japan has seen the rise of the micro car.

The Kei class of car in Japan is restricted in size, engine displacement and power in order to avoid taxation and the requirement in some areas that a motorist has parking space of their own before they are able to buy a car.

In America, the Edison 2 Very Light Car uses a rear-mounted, single-cylinder motorcycle engine running on a blend of 85 per cent ethanol and 15 per cent petrol to produce 40 horsepower. The design scooped $5m in The Automotive X Prize, a competition to find the best vehicles capable of 100 mpg (or energy equivalent).

In order to qualify for the main prize, vehicles had to have four wheels and be capable of carrying four people a distance of 200 miles on one load of their chosen fuel. In addition, they had to be capable of accelerating from 0 to 60 mph in 12 seconds and reaching a top speed of 100 mph.