Have the recent concept cars, showcased at motor shows all over the world by different manufacturers, proven that ‘green’ and ‘performance’ are no longer mutually exclusive?

As I flipped through our last few issues, here are some of the cars I came across – the Ferrari 599 Hybrid, the Porsche 918 Plug-in Hybrid Concept, as well as the race ready 911 GT3 R Hybrid, the Audi R8 based e-tron Concept, the BMW Vision Efficient Dynamics Concept, and the all-electric Tesla Roadster Sport. Just to be clear, that’s various forms of alternative propulsion technology courtesy of the likes of Ferrari, Porsche, BMW and Audi – and all intended to make your heart race. If that’s not a marriage of performance and green, I don’t know what is.

To give you some sense of exactly what we’re talking about, let’s look a little closer at just two of these concept cars, the Ferrari 599 Hybrid and the Porsche 918 Plug-in Hybrid – both of which debuted at the Geneva Motor Show in March this year. The 599 uses Ferrari’s F1 inspired Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS), which essentially takes heat generated during braking and converts it into kinetic energy – and thereafter into electrical energy that powers a lithium-ion battery pack. Not only does this mean that the Ferrari can potter around town on battery power alone, but it also has a number of performance advantages as well. For instance, the electric motor produces the equivalent of 100 horsepower, which provides instant torque when accelerating from a standstill. Plus, the battery pack is positioned below the floorplan, so it actually reduces the center of gravity of the vehicle. Moreover, the additional weight of the battery pack is offset by doing away with a traditional battery and starter motor.

The Porsche, meanwhile, also has a lithium-ion battery pack, but this one produces the equivalent of 200 horsepower, which feeds two electric motors – one for each axel. The stunning 918 has four modes of operation to fluctuate between extreme efficiency and maximum performance.

At one end, it has the ability to cover about 25 kilometres on electric power alone, and achieve up to 40km/l. At the other end, the 918 can reach 100km/h in 3.2 seconds and a top speed of 320km/h. In fact, it can lap the Nurburgring Nordschleife in less than 7 minutes 30 seconds, which is quicker than Porsche’s most recent supercar – the Carrera GT.

You could argue that both these concepts, even if they do make it into production, would be extremely exclusive, low volume supercars, and would therefore be irrelevant in the real world. But remember, history teaches us that various forms of advanced technologies get developed for the most exclusive machines, only to eventually find their way into mainstream production cars. On the other hand, you could take the view that hybrid technology was actually pioneered by the likes of Toyota, with the Prius, and is only now being adopted by the supercar makers of the world because they realise that they have no other choice if they intend to remain relevant in tomorrows’ world.