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Porsche 918 Spyder hybrid sports car.

Porsche 918 Spyder hybrid sports car.

Porsche 918 Spyder hybrid sports car.

Porsche 918 Spyder hybrid sports car.

Porsche 918 Spyder hybrid sports car.

With a top speed of more than 320kmh and the ability to secure a less than three litres per 100km fuel economy rating, Porsche's multi-million dollar 918 Spyder is a vehicle of precocious talent.

The 918, an experimental open-topped mid-engined supercar, does not hang around on its way to that top speed either, with a zero to "sorry, officer" time of under three seconds, which means it is quicker than Ferrari's new 458 and the Chevrolet Z07 Corvette.

It all comes from a drive system that combines a fairly conventional mid-engined, 4.6-litre, rear-drive V8 with two electric motors, one for the front wheels and the second in the driveline to assist the rear wheels. It all works via a hybrid system boosted by the car's petrol power unit, as well as by energy drawn from the Porsche's brakes when they haul the supercar down from high speed.

The V8 engine puts out about 570 horsepower and the electric motors conspire to help produce a total of 770kW, which is why the car can be so fast and yet so frugal on petrol.

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Porsche hybrid an eco rocket