World's first air-powered car

13 February 2008

French-designed engine
No emissions, 67mph top speed, 125-mile range
Being put into production by Tata Motors

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The world's first air-powered car could be on sale by the end of this year.

The French-designed engine is powered by compressed air. It has a range of 125 miles on a £1 charge, and a top speed of 67mph.

It is being put into a fibreglass-bodied car called the Mini-CAT or City Cat by Tata Motors company, and will be sold in India and around Europe later this year.

As there is no combustion, there are no emissions. In addition, the exhaust is cool enough to be used for the car's air-conditioning system.

However, it is currently unclear what crash test regulations the car has been built to.

Tata Motors has a history of building vehicles powered by gases: it has been selling compressed gas-powered buses since 2000.