In a announcement which apparently underscores the potential for small cars to deliver over 80 mpg sans batteries, French automaker Peugeot-Citroen has revealed that, in the coming three years, it intends producing compact hybrid cars which will capable of running on a combination of gasoline and compressed air.

According to European news reports, a prototype of such a car was recently exhibited by Peugeot-Citroen; with the automaker also disclosing in a post on its website that it may begin selling air-hybrid cars in Europe by 2016.

Going by the details shared by the automaker, the air-hybrids which it plans to build would largely run on compressed air, using its Hybrid Air system; thereby bringing about an up to approximately 80 percent reduction in the use of gasoline, as well as the costs.

Adding that it has taken on "the challenge of creating an environmentally friendly vehicle," Peugeot-Citroen also said that the Hybrid Air system will initially make its way to the current subcompact models; before eventually expanding to include almost all sizes of vehicles.

With Peugeot-Citroen pointing out that its air-hybrids will end up in potential savings for its customers as their expected costs would be nearly $1,500 less than typical hybrids, the news reports quoted a company spokesman as saying that the automaker was "not talking about weird and wacky machines;" and added that Air Hybrid system will ultimately come aboard "everyday cars."