Nearly
a year ago, the Volkswagen Group purchased Italian superbike maker
Ducati for then unknown reasons. Then it became known that Audi
purchased the brand on behalf of Lamborghini, which is also a part of
the VW empire. But still, no one was entirely sure what VW needed from
Ducati. Today, however, it appears we have our answer. A German
publication is claiming that VW is prepping a sports car version of its
uber efficient XL1 two-seater, which can reportedly return 261 mpg.
While that stunning example of efficiency is powered by a
diesel-electric motor combo, it appears now that VW is working on
something called the XL1 Sport. It’ll supposedly be powered by a 190
horsepower V-twin taken directly from the Ducati 1199 Panigale superbike
instead of the aforementioned powertrain. VW chairman Ferdinand Piech
reportedly just showed a group of Austrian technology students a photo
of the car at a recent lecture, but the German automaker itself has so
far yet to disclose the car’s existence. Photo courtesy of Emil
Pamlitschka
