Best Musical Instruments - Sports Cars

Something has been lost in the sports car world, and that something sings variety.

I don't want to always sound melancholic, but I would like to go back 10 years and analyze the situation: Clio Rs 182 hp. with naturally aspirated engine 2.000 cc, Subaru Impreza STi turbocharged 2.500 cc. wonderful 2.000 V32, Alfa 3.200 GTA always with 6 V147. And then the Honda S3.2 (with the acclaimed V-Tec), the TVR Sagaris with the 6cc inline-six. See, BMW M2000 E4.000 - naturally aspirated - and M3 with V46 engine, always naturally aspirated. These are just a few examples of increasingly rare "musical instruments" to be seen (and heard) and I can't even imagine such a concert anymore.

Today you can choose between a 1.6 turbo, a 2.0 turbo, a 3.0 turbo if everything is in order, and a V8 strictly turbo if everything is in order. They can run the exhaust as much as they want, study the best airflows, run the engine sound through the speakers, but they will never be able to achieve the singing skills of the good old days.

The fault lies not only in the turbines, which soften the sound, but also the catalysts, exhaust valves and "sport" buttons. For this reason, the 488 GTB will never sound like an F40.

To give credit to the cars with the best singing skills, I'll rank with an escalation that starts from four to twelve, not counting the "sad" three and the exaggerated 16 (Veyron).

Four cylinders: Honda Integra Type R.

The four-cylinder engine has to sing, and for that, it has to see the needle reach the top of the tachometer. There is nothing better in this area than the "old" V-TEC. 190 h.p. at 8.000 rpm, infinite zoom in a thrilling crescendo with an exciting last 500 laps. The best "four" in the world.

Five-cylinder: Audi Sport Quattro street.

We all sat on YouTube for hours, watching videos of the legendary Group B, admiring incredible cars and letting Walter dance through the crowd at breakneck speed in his Audi Quattro. The in-line 5-cylinder engine of the road version with a volume of 2.133 cc developed 307 hp. at 6.700 rpm, plenty for a turbo, and its melody was a mixture of sibilance, hiss and impressive highs. Epic.

Six cylinders: Porsche 911 GT3 4.0

It was difficult to choose. In a 6-cylinder engine, the variety is so great that it took hours to comb through it. After a deadly battle with the M3 E 46, GT3 version 4.0 (the last one to install the legendary Metzger) is victorious. Its throaty, metallic bass is nuanced and subtle, and in the red zone of the tachometer, it explodes with a wild and unmatched racing scream. Pure joy.

Eight Cylinders: Ferrari F355

Why she? We assume there is no V8 with a bad sound, especially a Ferrari. But the F355 has a few more arrows in the bow: it is one of the last Ferrari V8s with 5 valves per cylinder (the latter was on the 360) and, thanks to the relatively modest engine size, the shrill scream produced by its engine. the engine has never been equal to the following V8 engines from maranello. Listen and listen endlessly.

Ten Cylinders: Porsche Carrera GT

There are not many ten-cylinder cars, and the sweetness of the sound makes it one of the most pleasant and melodic to listen to with a truly unmistakable timbre. But the Carrera GT is something else. his 5.7, derived from a Le Mans race car, has no inertia; rises and falls at an alarming rate and the high frequencies can give you goosebumps. The barking it is capable of is sensational and it only inspires fear in the way that a racing engine can.

Twelve cylinders: McLaren F1

Six liters, twelve cylinders, 600 hp: the perfect engine. McLaren F1 earns the title of best sound for a V12, even if all credit goes to BMW (engine, not car). It is difficult to choose when the best V12 Ferrari and Lamborghini will be among the contenders, let alone Aston Martin and Pagani; but the endless nuances of the "twelve" F1, its thirst for revs and its roar in front of the limiter are unmatched. Legendary.