10 Fastest V-8 Powered Cars Ever Built

Why is everyone so obsessed with speed? While this question has no clear answer, automakers – especially those who specialize in building exotic supercars like Bugatti and Koenigsegg – make it their mission to provide the world with the fastest, most extravagant, and most expensive cars the world has ever seen. From the McLaren F1 to the Bugatti Veyron, and the current world’s fastest car, the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+, the boundaries of what defines a fast car get redefined on a never-ending basis.

Aerodynamics, forced induction, hybrid assistance, and cylinder count all play a pivotal role in a car’s overall performance capabilities, and even some electric cars like the Rimac Nevera proved you don’t need an internal combustion engine to reach ungodly speeds as this hyper EV has a top speed of 256 miles per hour driving forwards and 171 miles per hour in reverse. That said, many automakers still choose the traditional V-8 engine as their weapon of choice when building high-speed machines.

This list will cover the fastest cars ever built that house a V-8 engine. Also worth noting is that faster V-8 cars do exist like the Koenigsegg Jesko Absolut, but for the time being, its 330 mile-per-hour top speed remains a theoretical number.

In order to give you the most up-to-date and accurate information possible, the data used to compile this article was sourced from various manufacturer websites and other authoritative sources, including Robb Report, and J.D. Power. Models have been arranged from slowest to fastest.

10 Porsche 918 Spyder

Top Speed: 218 MPH

Although the Porsche 918 Spyder is the spiritual successor to the V-10-powered Porsche Carrera GT, the 918 ditches the V-10 engine in favor of a heavenly-sounding flat-plane crank V-8 with a redline at 9,150 rpm and two electric motors. Mated to its mighty powertrain is a lightning-fast seven-speed PDK transmission that allows the 918 Spyder to achieve a zero to 60 MPH time of just 2.2 seconds.

Performance Specifications

(Specs sourced from Porsche)

Built between 2013 and 2016, the 918 Spyder didn’t have a long production run, and only 918 examples exist. When new, a Porsche 918 Spyder had an MSRP of $845,000, but because of its high demand and low production volumes, prices skyrocketed over the years. According to Classic.com, the Porsche 918 Spyder sells on the used market for an average of $1.7 million.

Pros

• 12 miles of electric driving range
• Hot Lap driving mode
• 9.8-second quarter mile

Cons

• 3.7 cubic feet of cargo space
• 3,601-pound curb weight when fitted with Weissach package

9 Noble M600

Top Speed: 225 MPH

Noble is a small British automaker that hand-builds sports cars. Although Noble has a new model set to debut soon called the Noble M500 that features an EcoBoost V-6, the brand’s M600 remains one of their most popular models, and the M600 CarbonSport is the most powerful version thereof. Powering the Noble M600 is a 4.4-liter twin-turbo V-8 built in collaboration between Volvo and Yamaha, and it’s also found in cars like the first-gen Volvo XC90 and second-gen S80.

2013 Noble M600 CarbonSport Performance Specifications

(Specs sourced from Car.info)

Mated to a six-speed stick shift, the Noble M600 CarbonSport’s V-8 pumped out 669 horsepower and 604 pound-feet of torque to the rear wheels only. On top of everything the Noble M600 CarbonSport will reach 60 mph in three seconds flat too.

Pros

• Does zero to 120 miles per hour in 8.9 seconds
• 2,755-pound curb weight
• Different drive modes alter the amount of power available

Cons

• No ABS
• Approximately 30 examples ever made

8 Koenigsegg CCR

Top Speed: 242 MPH

The Koenigsegg CCR is a hotter version of the Koenigsegg CC8S and paved the way for other Koenigsegg hypercars. The Swedish supercar maker, always aimed to bring the market the lightest and most powerful hypercars the world has ever seen, therefore the V-8 of the Koenigsegg CCR weighs just 215 kilograms (474 pounds), and its carbon fiber-infused semi-monocoque chassis results in a curb weight of just over 2,700 pounds.

2005 Koenigsegg CCR Performance Specifications

(Specs sourced from Koenigsegg)

Albeit not as hardcore as the Koenigsegg CCXR, the CCR still boasts a mighty mid-mounted 4.7-liter V-8 engine that benefits from having two superchargers. In turn, the CCR has nearly 800 horsepower on tap and 678 pound-feet of torque that’s controlled via a six-speed gearbox.

Pros

• Broke the 8-year-old top speed record set by the McLaren F1
• 0.297 drag coefficient
• the body consists of a mix of carbon fiber and Kevlar

Cons

• 4.2 cubic feet cargo capacity
• only 14 examples exist

7 Saleen S7 Twin Turbo

Top Speed: 248 MPH

Despite the Saleen S7 LM having more power than the S7 Twin Turbo, the latter recorded a top speed of 248 miles per hour, making it one of the fastest V-8 cars in the world. While Saleen specializes in crafting suped-up Ford models like the Saleen Mustangs, the S7 is one of the company’s most noteworthy models of all time.

2007 Saleen S7 Twin Turbo Performance Specifications

(Specs sourced from Car.info)

The base model Saleen S7 housed a naturally aspirated 7.0-liter engine that produces 550 horsepower. Whereas the S7 Twin Turbo (as the name suggests) added two turbochargers into the mix resulting in 200 extra horsepower. In ideal conditions, the Sasleen S7 Twin Turbo will run down the quarter-mile drag strip in just 10.9 seconds at a speed of 140 miles per hour.

Pros

• quarter-mile time of 10.9 seconds at 140 miles per hour
• obnoxiously wonderful V-8 noise

Cons

• Lack of airbags
• 6,500 rpm redline

6 Koenigsegg Regera

Top Speed: 255 MPH

Contrary to popular belief, the Ferrari SF90 Stradale isn’t the fastest plug-in hybrid supercar; that title goes to the Koenigsegg Regera. Behind the driver sits a twin-turbo 5.0-liter V-8 engine that’s assisted by three electric motors total, and depending on what fuel it’s fed, it has different power outputs.

2021 Koenigsegg Regera Performance Specifications

(Specs sourced from Koenigsegg)

On premium gasoline, the Regera’s puts out 1,100 horsepower, and when fed E85, it generates 1,500 horsepower. The Koenigsegg Regera also holds the record for the fastest production car to go from zero to 400 kilometers per hour (248.548 miles per hour) back down to zero. The Regera completed this feat in only 28.81 seconds.

Pros

• dihedral synchro-helix doors
• active hydraulic engine mounts
• 22 miles of electric range

Cons

• 31.7 cubic feet of cargo space
• more than double the price of a Bugatti Veyron

5 SSC Ultimate Aero

Top Speed: 257.44 MPH

Back in 2005, Bugatti shook the world when the Veyron broke the fastest production car’s top speed record with 253.81 mph. That said, only a few years thereafter American automaker, SSC (Shelby Super Cars) stomped on the Veyron’s time with their V-8-powered Ultimate Aero which hit 257.44 miles per hour.

2007 SSC Ultimate Aero Performance Specifications

(Specs sourced from Supercars.net)

SSC utilized GM’s Small Block V-8 engine, and because it was twin-turbocharged, it produced 1,183 horsepower. Eventually, Bugatti came along and dethroned the SSC Ultimate Aero once again, but it still was the fastest V-8-powered car for quite some time.

Pros

• fastest production car between 2007 and 2010
• one of the “cheapest” hypercars money can buy
• 0.357 drag coefficient

Cons

• barebones interior
• approximately 24 examples exist

4 Zenvo TSR-GT

Top Speed: 263 MPH

The 1,360-horsepower unicorn Zenvo TSR-GT shares the same platform as the eye-catching Zenvo TSR-S, a road-legal version of the Zenvo TSR race car that sported a massive active rear wing. The TSR-GT features a high-revving twin-supercharged V-8 engine, as well as a fixed rear wing to aid in its goal of being the fastest Zenvo ever created.

2023 Zenvo TSR-GT Performance Specifications

(Specs sourced from Zenvo Automotive A/S)

With its revised aerodynamics, the Zenvo TSR-GT has a top speed of 263 miles per hour, which is more than 60 mph faster than the Zenvo TSR-GT. Unfortunately, all the TSR-GT models already have allocated owners, just in case you want to remortgage your house.

Pros

• 13 miles per hour faster than a McLaren Speedtail
• 183 horsepower more than the Zenvo TSR-S

Cons

• only three units made
• last TSR that Zenvo will make

3 Hennessey Venom GT

Top Speed: 270.49 MPH

In 2014, the Hennessey Venom GT broke the record for the world’s fastest car by achieving a top speed of 270.49 miles per hour at the Kennedy Space Center. The twin-turbocharged 7.0-liter V-8 engine thrusting the Venom GT to these heights put out a whopping 1,244 horsepower and 1,155 pound-feet of torque.

2014 Hennessey Venom GT Performance Specifications

(Specs sourced from Hennessey Venom GT)

Despite being rear-wheel-drive, the Venom GT managed to accomplish a zero to 60 mile-per-hour time of only 2.7 seconds as well. If you wanted this level of performance, you’d have to open our wallet wide enough as a Venom GT carried a price of $1.2 million.

Pros

• fastest road-legal car from 0 to 186 MPH at 13.63 seconds
• 9.92-second quarter-mile time at 163 miles per hour
• completes the standing mile at 253 miles per hour

Cons

• technically not a production vehicle in the eyes of Guinness World Records, as less than 30 examples exist
• based on the Lotus Exige

2 Koenigsegg Agera RS

Top Speed: 277.87 MPH

For the time being, the Agera RS was the fastest V-8-powered Koenigsegg in the world with a recorded top speed. The Agera RS is an engineering Marvel considering its 3,000-pound body reached 60 mph from a dig in three seconds flat – all thanks to its 5.0-liter twin-turbo V-8 engine that produces 1,116 horsepower and 944 pound-feet of torque.

2018 Koenigsegg Agera RS Performance Specifications

(Specs sourced from Koenigsegg)

On top of that, the Agera RS benefited from more than 1,000 pounds of downforce – a third of its curb weight – when traveling 155 miles per hour. In 2017, the Koenigsegg Agera RS took the title of the fastest road-legal car in the world when it achieved an average top speed of 277.87 miles per hour down U.S. Highway 160 in Nevada.

Pros

• the engine weighs 417 pounds
• active wing and front flaps
• zero to 400 kilometers per hour (248.548 miles per hour) time of 33.29 seconds

Cons

• 5.3 cubic feet of cargo space
• only 25 models exist

1 SSC Tuatara

Top Speed: 295 MPH

As of writing this article, the SSC Tuatara is the world’s fastest car that features a V-8 engine. The twin-turbo 5.9-liter V-8 engine strapped to the Tuatara’s mid-section generates up to 1,750 horsepower. Combining this power with a seven-speed electronically-controlled transmission and a drag coefficient of 0.279, the Tuatara reached a top speed of 295 miles per hour.

2023 SSC Tuatara Performance Specifications

(Specs sourced from SSC North America)

When SSC first tested the Tuatara, the automaker claimed it achieved a top speed of 331 miles per hour, but after some debunking and a second attempt, the official top speed read as 295 miles per hour. Until the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+ came along, the SSC Tuatara reigned supreme as the fastest production vehicle.

Pros

• goes from 60 miles per hour to 120 miles per hour in 2.5 seconds
• reaches 295 miles per hour in 2.3 miles
• drag coefficient of 0.279

Cons

• $1.6 million MSRP
• 331 mile-per-hour controversy won’t be forgotten about anytime soon