Making its European debut today, the sports car that only needs refuelling once a year.

The makers of the Fisker Karma say that unheard-of level of fuel efficiency is entirely possible if you only drive the car up to 50 miles a day, using just the battery, and remember to recharge it at night.

The car can go from 0-60mph in just six seconds and has a top speed of 125mph - although only in "sport" mode, when the juice kicks in to help power the engine.

The four-door plug-in hybrid, launched today at the Geneva Motor Show, features a small petrol engine and a lithium ion battery pack which work in harmony to power the car using technology developed for secret US military reconnaissance vehicles. It also has an optional solar panel roof that helps charge the car and provide cooling for the interior cabin.

Henrik Fisker, the chief executive of Fisker Automotive told Times Online: “It is a plug-in hybrid so you can plug it in at home like you plug in a cellphone or any electrical device and charge it overnight. Then you can drive the first 50 miles without using any gas. After that there is a gasoline engine that turns the generator that charges the lithium ion battery.”

Mr Fisker, a Dane who designed the Aston Martin DB9 and BMW Z8, also claimed that his lithium ion battery used "different chemistry" to its rivals, giving it a much longer lifespan.

"We’ve solved the overheating problem and also the lifespan of the battery is over ten years. We’re going to be the first ones on the market with a plug-in hybrid with this configuration," he said.

"It is a rear wheel drive, the car is always being pushed by the rear wheels and the electric motor so the gasoline engine never drives the car, which is the big difference to the normal hybrid of today.”

The “Q DRIVE” hybrid technology that powers the car was developed by Quantum Technologies, which had developed a similar technology for the US military’s Delta Force as part of a vehicle designed to move silently and with maximum fuel efficiency behind enemy lines.

According to Mr Fisker, other manufacturers passed over the hybrid drive train because it was too big to fit in a normal car, so together with the CEO of Quantum he founded a new company and built the Karma around the drive train.

The proprietary design will make the car emission-free for the first 50 miles driven before recharge, except for a tiny amount on ignition. Fisker Automotive says that this technology will provide a base for all future derivatives.

The premium sports sedan will have a starting price of $80,000 (with an estimated cost of approximately £55,000 when it is made available in the UK) and initial deliveries of the Karma will commence towards the end of 2009 with annual production projected to reach 15,000 cars. The car is already sold out for 2009.