Lambo Aventador Going Slightly Greener

Volkswagen AG's Lamborghini unit plans several fuel economy-enhancing updates to its Aventador supercar, according to Auto Motor and Sport.

Citing internal documents, the Swedish enthusiast magazine says the updated Aventador's 6.5-liter, 700-hp V-12 engine will be equipped with cylinder deactivation technology that shuts down half the cylinders during light-load conditions. The system will be a variant of the one already used in Europe by VW's Audi, Bentley and Volkswagen brands.

The updated $380,000 two-seater also will get an automatic engine stop-start system powered by a supercapacitor. Auto Motor and Sport says the system is lighter than a battery-powered alternative and can restart the engine in 180 milliseconds compared with 250 milliseconds for a standard stop-start system.

The magazine, which isn't clear when the powertrain changes will be implemented, says the updates will boost the Aventador's fuel economy about 7%, or 1 mpg. The current model has a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency city/highway rating of 13 mpg.