An Ode to the V8

The Ferrari 360 CS will go down in history as being the first V8 engined car I ever liked, soon the GT40 followed and the list of V8 engined vehicles I like kept on growing. I think the key thing that pushed my V8 love even further was an issue of Motor Trend wholly dedicated to the V8, it opened my eyes to the Corvette, the Saleen S7 and the Mossler MT900. There is some logic attached to my V8 addiction:

1. The V8 is flexible: I have seen a V8 stuffed into any and everything imaginable from racing cars to bar stools. V8s come in a wide range of sizes and characteristics from the tiny 3.6L high compression Ferrari 360 V8 up to the torquey 7.0L V8 found in the Saleen S7, and the sizes don't stop there, if you're pockets are deep enough, companies such as Radical offer custom built 2.8L V8s based on 2 motorcycle engines where as GM can sell you a 9.4L V8 and then you can go smaller or larger than that if needs be.
   
   
   


2. Racing: The V8 is the number one engine configuration used in racing and [unofficially] the most successful. F1, Indy Car, NASCAR, NHRA and DTM all hail the V8 as their engines of choice. V8s have also seen success in 24 Hours of Le Mans, JGTC and F1 [back in the days when engine layouts were open]. The fastest cars in the world, Koenigsegg and SSC both use V8s where as Bugatti [the fastest] uses a unique twin V8 layout.
   
   
   


3. Affordable: The greatest thing the Americans ever brought to the automobile world aside from mass produced vehicles, was produced V8s. This brought power to the modern man, a tradition American car companies still continue today. Want a lot of horsepower but little money? Instead of tuning the daylights out of your 4 cylinder, buy a V8
   
   
   


4. The sound: Fact: almost every time a magazine or a show tries to declare what is the best sounding engine, 90% of the time it will be a V8. The Ferrari 360, Aston Martin V8 Vantage and many others contribute to that listing. Some vids of V8 sounds [Ford GT40] [Ferrari 360 CS] [an F1 car] and a [NHRA Top Fuel Dragster]

So onwards to the meat of the matter, my favorite V8 engines:

10. Rover 3.5L V8 [found in the MGB GTV8]: mainly because it was one of the first aluminium V8s, it was significantly lighter than its 4 cylinder counterpart making the already featherweight MG even lighter

9. Chevrolet 572 [can only be purchased by itself from GM]: The biggest commercially available V8 ever. 720hp stock with a limit of probably 11ty billion.

8. Ferrari Dino Engine [found in the 360, 355, 308, 388 GTO and F40]: This extremely flexible engine is responsible for carrying road cars to 200mph.

7. BMW S63B48 [found in the X6M and X5M] BMWs quirky little V8 found in their quirkiest cars is actually quite innovative. By mounting the turbochargers inside the V of the engine, the engine is more compact.

6. Chevrolet LS [found in the Corvette C6]: The replacement for the #3 engine in GMs mainstream line up. The entire LS line-up is good but the LS3 shines with 420hp and 30mpg, the best of both worlds.

5. Ford Modular Engine 5.0L "Coyote" [Found in the Ford Mustang 5.0]: The greatest engine for sale now, best bang for buck. Taking muscle cars to the 21st century with DOHC and Aluminium construction.

4. Rolls-Royce/Bentley 6.75L V8 [found in the Bentley Brooklands]: The second oldest V8 in the world. Even the rich needed V8 grunt.

3. Chevrolet 350ci Small Block [found in everything]: The engine that made the V8 famous. Quite possible the #1 selling V8 in the world and longest running.

2. Whatever magical V8 is powering the Porsche 918 Spyder: a 3.4L 500hp V8 sounds improbable for production, but the real powerplant shouldn't be far off

1. Cosworth DFV [found in the Lotus 72, 49 and eventually most F1 cars]: this was an engine full of win. It defined all the principles of a V8 I loved: cheap, flexible, powerful, nice sounding and reliable.

Future???

The V8 is a dying breed with most being replaced by twin turbo V6s, eventually we may reach a point where crate retailers will be the only place where one can purchase a V8, that's unless the Porsche 918 fixes everything

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