The beloved V8 engine has been around for a long time, but it's sadly becoming an endangered species. As the conversation around climate heats up, manufacturers are ditching our favorite V8 engines for smaller, more fuel-efficient ones and using forced induction or electric motors to supplement the power. While getting rid of the V8 engine is probably best for the environment, it's sad for gearheads who love its balanced nature, raw power, and roaring sound, especially those who love muscle cars.
Updated February 2023: We all love the roar and might of a V8 engine, but one undeniable fact is that it's going extinct soon. If you want an affordable way to own a V8-engined car, your best bet is to find a good classic car. This updated list contains 15 excellent V8-powered classic cars you can buy today. Whether you're a fan of sports cars, muscle cars, luxury cars, or even pickup trucks, there's something for you.
Not to worry, though. Sure, it may be hard to find V8 engines in new cars, but you can still find them in classic cars. There are still many awesome affordable classic cars in 2023 with V8 engines on the used car market, and the best part is that many of them are still easily available. From elegant luxury sedans to fierce muscle cars, here are some of the best cheap classic cars with V8 engines.
15 1993 Ford Mustang SVT Cobra – $38,000
In the early '90s, Ford established the SVT division with one goal – to build high-performance versions of its popular models. One of the first cars the SVT division worked on was the fox-body Mustang, and the result – the Mustang SVT Cobra – quickly showed it meant business.The Mustang SVT Cobra had a 4.9-liter V8 pumping out 235 ponies, giving it great performance. With less than 5,000 examples made, it's no surprise that the Mustang SVT Cobra is widely considered to be one of the best special edition Mustangs ever made. When it comes to affordable muscle cars in 2023, you can't go wrong with the Mustang SVT Cobra.
14 Mercedes-Benz SL500 R129 – $15,500
If there's one thing Mercedes-Benz has a reputation for, it's building over-engineered cars. Mercedes-Benz has always paid close attention to every aspect of engineering to ensure that it creates the best and most reliable sports cars. One car that helped Mercedes-Benz earn its reputation is the R129 generation of the popular SL Class.
The R129 debuted in the '90s, and even though it faced a lot of criticism for having a boxy design, it made up for it with its powerful and reliable engine options, including a V8 and a monstrous V12. In 2023, the R129 is one of the cheapest classic sports cars with a V12 engine.
13 Chevrolet Corvette C5 – $17,900
The heavily-anticipated fourth-generation Corvette had a great start to life in the '80s, but sales were declining sharply by the mid-90s. Chevy knew it had to improve drastically to renew gearheads' interest in the Corvette, so it gave the fifth-generation model a ground-up redesign before introducing it in 1997.
The C5 was a massive upgrade over the C4 thanks to a new all-aluminum V8 engine with 350 hp on tap, an improved drag coefficient of 0.25, and active handling that gave it incredible handling. The C5 is further proof that it doesn't get better than the corvette when it comes to affordable sports cars.
12 AMC AMX – $21,500
AMC has been out of business for decades now, but true gearheads will always remember its cars. One car that makes gearheads wish AMC was still around is the AMX.
The AMX was a Javelin-based coupe that AMC built to compete with the popular Chevy Corvette. The AMX had a shorter wheelbase than the Javelin and only two seats instead of four to make it more sporty, and the icing on the cake was its 325-jp V8.
11 1995 Ford F-150 SVT Lightning – $24,400
Ford recently unveiled the insane F-150 Raptor R, showing just how insanely fast pickup trucks can be. However, this isn't Ford's first time trying to build a pickup truck that can chase down supercars. Ford's first crack was in the '90s when it built the F-150 SVT Lightning.
Ford wanted to make the F-150 look more attractive to gearheads looking for a sporty, personal-use pickup truck, so they equipped it with a 5.8-liter V8 making 240 hp. Hagerty values the F-150 SVT Lightning at around $25,000, which is quite affordable considering it's one of the greatest performance pickup trucks.
10 Mercedes-Benz 500E – $35,700
In the '90s, Mercedes-Benz needed to build a new performance sedan that could compete with the BMW M3 and other top options. However, since it was busy working on the W140 S-Class, Mercedes-Benz hired Porsche and asked them to build a high-performance version of the W124 E-Class. That's how the 500E came to be.
Porsche didn't disappoint. It modified the E-Class chassis to allow it to accommodate a massive 5.0-liter V8 engine with 322 hp on tap, making the 500E insanely fast. According to Hagerty, the 500E is currently worth just under $40,000 and prices are rising steadily.
9 Jaguar XK8 – $21,000
The XJS was a massive failure for Jaguar, as many gearheads felt it wasn't a worthy successor for the iconic E-Type. As such, Jaguar wanted to make the XJS' replacement a winner, and that's what the XK8 turned out to be.
The XK8 had many improvements over the XJS. For starters, it had a curvaceous design that looked much better than the XJS. It also had more power, thanks to a 4.0-liter V8 producing 290 hp.
8 Chevrolet Impala SS (7th Generation) – $15,900
The 'Impala SS nameplate is one that struck fear in every gearhead's heart back in the '60s and '70s, as it was among the fastest muscle cars back then. However, by the '90s, the Impala SS had lost almost all its muscle car identity.
Anyone who saw the seventh-gen Impala SS in the '90s would have easily ignored it as it had a boring four-door sedan design. Thankfully, the Impala SS still had its muscle car identity under the hood, which is why it's considered to be one of the coolest American sleeper cars.
7 1968-1970 Plymouth Road Runner – $32,7000
When asked to name a Plymouth muscle car, the first thing that comes to most gearheads' minds is the Barracuda and the legendary Hemi’cuda it spawned. However, Plymouth did have other cool muscle cars in its lineup, and the Road Runner is one of them.
In the late '60s, Plymouth noticed that many of the top muscle cars had moved away from the original formula of offering affordable performance, so they built the Road Runner to provide that. The Road Runner was essentially a lower-priced, basic version of the upscale GTX, but it still offered a mighty 6.3-liter V8 with 335 hp on tap in the base model.
6 1978-1979 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am – $24,700
In 1977, the Pontiac Firebird Trans Am gained Hollywood fame when it starred in Burt Reynolds' hit film Smokey and the Bandit. This role turned the 1977 Firebird Trans Am into an icon, which is why it's so expensive at auctions today.
Thankfully, gearheads who want a similar Firebird Trans Am to the 1977 model year can get the 1978-1979 versions for less than half the 1977 model's price. These have similar designs to the 1977 model with the famous screaming chicken hood and were the last to have big-block engines.
5 Mercedes-Benz S-Class W140 - $16,500
The Mercedes-Benz S-Class is the top dog when it comes to full-size luxury sedans. Over the years, the S-Class has continued to set incredibly high standards for luxury car manufacturers, which is why it's a symbol of opulence in all corners of the world. Mercedes-Benz has built several generations of the S-Class, and the W140 is arguably the best.
Introduced in 1991, the W140 took a decade and a reported over $1 billion to develop, but it was all worth it. The W140 has a timeless design that still looks classy today, a luxurious and comfortable cabin, and advanced technologies for the time. It has a fantastic V8 engine that packs a powerful punch, but for those who want more, it's one of the most affordable V12-powered vehicles on the market.
4 1990 Chevrolet Camaro IROC-Z - $24,000
Like many muscle car nameplates, the Camaro had lost a lot of power during the '70s and '80s and was a shadow of its former glorious self. However, Chevy still offered gearheads a special version of the Camaro with enough power to make it exciting. Dubbed the IROC-Z, this special Camaro was an optional package for the Z28 that featured upgrades like a special decal package, an upgraded suspension, larger diameter sway bars, a lowered ride height, and more.
Since 1990 was the final year for the IROC-Z, Chevrolet equipped it with a 5.7-liter V8 cranking out 245 hp, giving it great performance. With rumors flying around that the Camaro may be going out of production soon, the 1990 Camaro IROC-Z is one of the best muscle cars to invest in 2023 as prices will definitely go up after Chevy pulls the plug.
3 1990–2002 TVR Griffith - $25,000
TVR is not the first name that comes to any gearhead's mind when they're asked to name a British automaker, but the small company has built several fantastic models it can be proud of. Of all the TVR models ever built, the Griffith is probably the most famous.
The Griffith debuted in 1990 and earned a lot of praise for its sleek, curvaceous, lightweight fiberglass body, and incredible power. At the heart of the Griffith was a 5.0-liter V8 dishing out 340 hp, allowing it to keep up with the fastest British sports cars of the day.
2 1974 Dodge Charger - $14,300
The Dodge Charger needs no introduction, as it's been among the coolest muscle car nameplates since its introduction in the '60s. First and second-generation Chargers are almost impossible to find these days unless you have more than $100,000, which is why we recommend the third-gen model.
The main reason why third-gen Chargers are affordable is that, since dodge built them at the start of the malaise era, they have a lot less power than older versions. However, the third-gen charger has that classic muscle car design that gearheads love so much, and even though its V8 only makes 276 hp, there are tons of upgrades and engine swap options to turn it into a beast.
1 1967-1970 Mercury Cougar - $14,400
Mercury went out of business over a decade ago, but gearheads will always remember it for building many insanely cool cars. One of the coolest cars Mercury ever made was the Cougar - which was Mercury's version of the popular Ford Mustang and its best-selling model ever with almost 3 million examples. Mercury produced eight generations of the Cougar, but we'll only focus on the first-generation model for the purposes of this article. The first-gen Cougar debuted in 1967 and was so good that it instantly won the Motor Trend Car of the Year award. The Cougar shared its platform and engines with the Mustang but had unique exterior styling elements that gearheads loved.