Carmakers spare no expense when they are developing marquee brands – vehicles that are so unique in terms of styling and performance that they often command seven-figure sums in the market place. For these cars, it’s really a sum-total of different aspects but one of the most important elements is the powertrain they rely upon for performance.
Some favor the use of turbochargers in their setup to deliver maximum engine output while there are others that prefer the traditional naturally aspirated route. Still, there is an increasing adoption of hybrid powertrains in a bid to pack as much power as possible within the vehicle frame.
In this article, we take a look at some of the most expensive cars in the market and examine what engine type the manufacturer opted for. You may be surprised to find an abundance of naturally aspirated options; there are also a few other surprising entries that give an insight into the future of the automobile industry as far as powertrains are concerned.
15 Koenigsegg Regera – 5.0-Liter Twin-Turbo V8
Regera is a Swedish verb that means ‘to reign’ and under its carbon-fiber skin lies a 5.0-liter twin-turbo V8 engine that is supported by a duo of 215hp electric motors. Altogether, this massive powerplant can generate 1,489 hp and 1,475 pound-feet of torque. All this power is directed to the rear wheels and will propel the car to 249 mph in a scarcely believable 20 seconds.
14 McLaren P1 – 3.8-Liter Twin-Turbo V8
It’s been around for over 5 years now but there are still only a few worthy challengers that can outperform the British hypercar. It has an electric motor that boosts power output by 176 hp but the main punch comes from its 3.8-liter twin-turbo V8 engine that can produce a whopping 727 hp. The engine is an upgraded version of the one that was in the MP4-12C, significantly reworked to increase its performance and durability.
13 Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+ – 8.0-Liter Quad-Turbo W16
The savage straight-line performance of the record-breaking Chiron is down to its massive powerplant – a 16-cylinder behemoth that weighs almost 1 ton. The engine uses four turbochargers to generate 1,578 hp and over 1,100 pound-feet of torque! That power is made available to all four wheels via a super quick seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.
12 Ferrari LaFerrari – 6.3-Liter Naturally Aspirated V12
The LaFerrari launched in 2013 and held the title of the most powerful street-legal Ferrari until 2019 when the SF90 Stradale was introduced. Operating on its own, its mid-mounted naturally aspirated V12 can whip up 789 hp and 516 pound-feet of torque. A 163-hp electric motor then pushes that number to almost 1,000 hp with 660 pound-feet of torque for some mind-blowing performance on the roads.
11 Pagani Huayra – 6.0-Liter Twin-Turbo V12
The ultra-exclusive Huayra is powered by a hand-built AMG engine that has been tuned to produce 730hp and 738 pound-feet of torque. Only a small team of AMG engineers possess the skills required to build the engines – in 2016, there were only 2 trained engineers that had the technical know-how. In August 2019, Horacio Pagani stated that he would continue to use the naturally aspirated V12 AMG engines in his hypercars till 2026.
10 Aston Martin Valkyrie – 6.5-Liter Naturally Aspirated V12
The Valkyrie is a next-generation hypercar with a revolutionary engine set-up to match. The engine was built by a famed engineering outfit called Cosworth and delivers its maximum 1,000 hp at around 10,000 rpm. It can rev up to an insane 11,100 rpm before the limiter kicks in. Get ready for some high-octane symphony when this car eventually hits the public roads.
9 Koenigsegg Jesko – 5.0-Liter Twin-Turbo V8
With regular octane 91 fuel, the Jesko engine can summon about 1,280 hp; however, that number goes up to 1,600 hp when premium E85 fuel is pumped into the engine. It will need lots of it when operating at high levels; consequently, the Jesko is the first production car with 3 fuel injectors per cylinder. The engine is also equipped with a clever air-tank system to eliminate turbo lag when its turbochargers kick in.
8 Mercedes-AMG Project One – 1.6-Liter Turbocharged V6
Do not be deceived by the relatively small displacement of the Project One engine. That powerplant is derived straight from a Formula 1 car; it idles at about 4,000 rpm and when you press the gas pedal, the rev counter can go all the way to 13,500 rpm. The engine has been modified with a custom crankshaft, pistons, and overhauled electronics to make it street-legal.
7 McLaren F1 – 6.1-Liter Naturally Aspirated V12
To power the legendary F1, McLaren turned to BMW Motorsport after initially approaching Honda. The resulting product was a 627-hp naturally aspirated engine with variable valve timing – a technology that was still quite new and untested at the time. Each engine was hand-assembled and dyno-tested for the lucky original F1 owners.
6 Ferrari Monza SP2 – 6.5-Liter Naturally Aspirated V12
This Special Projects Ferrari is powered by the same engine found in the 812 Superfast. However, the use of variable inlet ducts and some ECU tweaks have bumped up the power by 10 hp, to a total of 798 hp and 530 pound-feet of torque. This makes it the most powerful V12 engine from the engineers at Maranello.
5 Lamborghini Veneno - 6.5-Liter Naturally Aspirated V12
This hypercar draws its power from the same V12 engine that drives the Aventador. The engine was first introduced in 2010 and was a completely new design at the time of launch, something Lamborghini had never done with its V12 engines since the 350 GT in 1964. For the Veneno, the V12 had been tuned to produce a total of 740 hp at 8,400 rpm and 509 pound-feet of torque.
4 Aston Martin Vulcan – 7.0-Liter Naturally Aspirated V12
The track-only Vulcan utilizes an engine that drew heavily from Aston Martin’s LeMans experience in developing engines that can withstand the rigors of endurance racing. The naturally aspirated front mid-mounted engine produces 820 hp at a screaming 7,750 rpm and 575 pound-feet of torque. For maximum effect, the power is delivered to the rear wheels by a 6-speed sequential gearbox. Now, all that’s needed is a private track day…
3 Zenvo ST 1 – 7.0-Liter Supercharged V8
The Zenvo is a Danish hypercar with a top speed in excess of 230 mph. To help it achieve this feat, it relies on a supercharged engine that can produce a maximum 1,120 hp when the ‘Race’ driving mode is selected. In the ‘Normal’ mode, the V8 lets you play with 660 hp which should still be more than enough for a noon-day cruise while a twist of the knob to the ‘Sport’ mode caps you at 860 hp.
2 Koenigsegg One:1 - 5.0-Litter Twin-Turbo V8
The Koenigsegg One:1 is so named because it has a 1:1 power to weight ratio – pretty impressive for a car that weighs 1,340 kg. The engine weighs a mere 197 kg but can produce a maximum 1,011 pound-feet of torque. Even more interesting is the fact that over 700 pound-feet of torque becomes available before you even rev up the engine to 3,000 rpm.
1 Czinger 21C – 2.9-Liter Twin-Turbo V8
Not only is this the world’s first 3D printed hypercar, its engine is also the most power-dense engine ever made. The hybrid powertrain can produce a total of 1,250 hp however the combustion engine alone makes about 945 hp – that works about to 329 hp per liter. It is a marvel of modern engineering that gives an insight into interesting times ahead for the automobile industry.