Vauxhall Ampera road-trip

Spy shots show hybrid ahead of 370-mile road trip to Geneva

Vauxhall's Ampera is taking the scenic route to Geneva! First unveiled in concept form at last year's Geneva Motor Show, these pictures show the petrol-electric hybrid in training for its grand entrance in Switzerland this year.

Vauxhall bosses will drive a prototype model of the car from their headquarters in Russelheilm, Germany to Geneva just in time for it to take its place on the Vauxhall stand.

The Ampera uses a hybrid set-up that means it is driven by the 150bhp electric motor at all times. When the battery runs out of charge- after around 40 miles- a 1.4-litre petrol engine kicks in to act as a generator and recharge the battery.

All this means that the 370-mile journey from Germany can be completed while producing around 40g/km of CO2 and managing 176mpg economy.

These pictures are also the first that show a production prototype Ampera out in the open and, thankfully, the original concept's brave design has not been dulled down. There's a few mild tweaks to the nose and rear bumper but the futuristic looks are mostly intact.

Bosses revealed that the Ampera is scheduled to begin production at the end of 2011. When it goes on sale early in 2012 it's expected to cost around £30,000.