QUOTE : "So there we were in Qatar. This small emirate is reputed to have a per-capita GDP that ranks among the highest in the world. It has energy to spare, with plenty of oil and the world’s third-largest reserves of natural gas. The population produces three times as much carbon dioxide per person as does that of the United States. Premium gas costs the equivalent of just a dollar per gallon—and that’s after a recent 25-percent increase in the government-subsidized price, which caused serious consternation among the country’s V-8–packing drivers. The capital city of Doha is gridded with wide and heavily policed streets that run among seemingly endless construction sites, all adding to a Manhattan-like skyscraper forest.
It was in this environment that we were introduced to the hyperefficient Volkswagen XL1."
" Why would Volkswagen even think about launching its most frugal car in a land where no one gives a second thought to saving energy? Simple: 17 percent of Volkswagen, Germany’s biggest car company, is now owned by Qatar Holdings, a part of the company’s sovereign wealth fund. It happened on the heels of Porsche’s failed bid to take over VW."
Volkswagen XL1 Concept First Drive – Review – Car and Driver