We know that diesel vehicles are efficient and generally have a long service life allowing for several years of use while still maintaining great overall mileage. Today we see newly designed diesel engines running cleaner and more efficiently than ever before. The same goes for hybrid technology as we see vehicles becoming more efficient and with longer lasting batteries we get more life out of hybrid battery packs. In fact, battery packs are becoming so durable that companies like Hyundai offer a lifetime warranty on the battery packs in their hybrid vehicles. So it’s only a matter of time before someone tries to meld a diesel and hybrid powertrain to produce a highly efficient vehicle.

At the 2012 Geneva Auto Show, Volkswagen presented its concept off-road vehicle that used a diesel-hybrid powertrain. The vehicle had a 1.8 L turbocharged diesel engine mated to an electrically assisted motor, and together, Volkswagen claims up to 131 miles per gallon. They also claim that the 4,000-pound vehicle can go from 0 to 60 in 6.5 seconds. Those results are pretty amazing, and since this was a concept, you could pretty much say what you wanted about your product because no one could drive it. However, Volkswagen has already been caught testing another diesel hybrid but in car form, more or less.

Volkswagen has been working on a diesel-hybrid car under the name XL1. The 2014 Volkswagen XL1 uses an 800cc Turbo-diesel engine to produce less than 50 horsepower but around 89 pound-feet of torque. Then the 27-horsepower electric motor assists the diesel engine by helping push the 1,749-pound car. Volkswagen claims up to 235 miles per gallon with this ultralight and aerodynamic vehicle. With so little power, it looks like the car won’t win any races unless you’re going for extreme distances. But what’s great about these Volkswagens is the fact that the company is working on developing highly efficient vehicles by using off-the-shelf technology. So if we can get Americans to start buying diesel vehicles, we should see other manufacturers push for diesel-electric vehicle development.

We see today’s trains offer incredible efficiency thanks to diesel generators that produce electricity to power the locomotive. So why couldn’t we do this with heavy trucks as well as commercial grade vehicles, therefore producing much better fuel efficiency and saving the business owner a fortune on fuel bills? Either way, it looks like Volkswagen is moving ahead with the technology, and hopefully we’ll see other companies catch up and start producing hybrid diesel vehicles. By 2013, we will start to see diesel vehicles in US markets, but it still all depends on whether or not the vehicles are sold.