Green hybrid supercar zooms with jet turbine

LONDON - A new 200 mph-speed supercar that merges sporty looks with the latest “green” technology from the Jaguar stable is set to rock the prestigious Paris Motor Show when it is officially unveiled Thursday.

The new two-seater Jaguar C-X75 is a 200,000-pound electric hybrid vehicle which uses high-tech jet-turbine knowhow to zoom from rest to 62 mph in just 3.5 seconds and up to 100 mph in just 5.5 seconds.

The new Jaguar dispenses with the conventional internal combustion engine.

Instead, powered by a lithium ion battery charged from the domestic mains, the new Jaguar can run with zero-emissions for up to 68 miles on four electric motors - one of which drives each of four wheels, reports the Daily Mail.

Then it can harness two rear-mounted super-efficient gas-turbines to generate the extra electric power it needs to give it an extended range of 560 miles - enough to get it from London to Berlin on a single 60 litre tank-full.

And that is with minimal emissions of just 28gram per km of carbon dioxide - the greenhouse gas blamed for global warning and against which all UK cars are now taxed.

The car featured at the Paris show has the electric hybrid and gas turbine generator as its power source. But Jaguar says it could also run on a conventional petrol engine.

Jaguar said: “It demonstrates that it is possible to retain Jaguar’s core values of performance, design, and luxury using technology that will make environmentally responsible.”

A Jaguar spokesman said: “A six-hour plug-in charge of the lithium-ion batteries allows an electric-only range of 68 miles.

“But the innovative twin-turbines can either charge the cars batteries, allowing the supercar to travel 560 miles between fill-ups, or it can automatically provide supplementary power directly to the electric motors to allow the car to top 205 mph.”

The Jaguar spokesman said turbines gave advantages over conventional piston engine: “With fewer moving parts, turbines do not need oil lubrication or water cooling systems, which offers considerable weight saving.

“They can also be run on a range of fuels including diesel, biofuel, compressed natural gas and liquid petroleum gas.”