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1. Anything from Ferrari or Lambo
2. Most anything with an LS
3. ’61 Morgan Plus 4 (a sentimental favorite for me)
4. Current Mustang GT
5. Weird as it may be to include in the company of Ferraris and Lambos, I love the sound the 2.0T in my GTI makes. The intake resonance they pipe in to the cabin is perfect, and the little “burp” on full throttle upshifts is pure ear candy.
The good:
– Italian cars – Ferrari and Lambo
– LS V8’s – Corvette, GTO, Camaro
– Mustangs
– Porsche – a unique sound also
The bad:
– Japanese cars – all sounded like sport bikes – nothing exciting here (WRX’s were the closest to being a least a little entertaining)
– Mercedes – all you could hear was the rubber disappearing from the tires
– Aston Martin – sounded like a tractor compared to the LS’s
1. Audi Sport Quattro S1 – hard to understand unless you’ve been out watching one.
2. BMW S54 (E46 M3 and others, CSL intake even better).
3. Toyota 2JZ-GTE in an understated Supra.
4. Any 911 Turbo.
5. Having now driven a GT-R, Nissan’s 3.8L V6.
1959 Vauxhall Victor….makes you want to cry.
JR
– anything from TVR
– Honda NSX (at least from inside)
– AM V8 Vantage
– Gallardo (never really heard a Murcielago at full chat)
– C63AMG
Now there is plenty of US V8 stuff that sounds sublime, of course, so doing a top 5 is limiting in a way :)
Any 12 cylinder Italian
F1 cars
Can-Am cars from the 1970’s
Air-cooled Ducatis
American V8s with hot cams
Twotone
I liked the sound of that Aston, it had a throatiness that the Ferraris lacked. I’m a fan of a V8 with a nice burble to it that opens up with a throaty roar as opposed to the high strung barking engines that the Italians tend to engineer.
A current Mustang GT or an ’08/’09 Bullet has a great sound.
Everyone has some good answers, but I’ve gotta add the E39 M5 and the small-block Ford V8 too.
Top five Sonic favorites:
1) Cherry Coke
2) Chili-cheese Coney
3) Chili-cheese Tater Tots
4) Cherry Limeade
5) Cherry Slush
Old American Iron.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wx3WB39NYao
1951 technology.
Plus the guy is safe in the dyno shop and not endangering others as some of these guys on the big video clearly are.
It’s all music to those who love cars, I guess.
This works…
1. Ferrari F355
2. Ferrari Enzo
3. BMW S65
4. BMW S52 with AA gen III exhaust and Cosmos CAI (as heard every day in my car).
5. Tie – Audi RS4 with Tubi exhaust, Honda CBR600RR.
-Aston Martin V8 Vantage
-Mercedes C63 AMG
-Dodge Demon 340 (1971)
-Pontiac Grand Prix 421ci-4bbl (1964)
-Stanley Steamer Steam Car (1919)
Steam cars sound awesome.
Ideally the way to best judge these sounds is to NOT see the car making them, as that affects one’s judgement. The best sound was never played in this video though. (and I think RF would agree)
There is nothing so wonderful to hear than a big-bore, long-stroke, multi-carbed, straight-piped, British Straight Six being driven in anger. Be it an old Bentley, an XK Jaguar, or an Aston Martin racing engine from the 50s. The note is so balanced and true, like a V-12, and unlike the lumpy note of a V-8 or 4-banger. Clarkson called it “like the God of Thunder, gargling nails!”
It is unfortunately a rare sound these days, but every gearhead should hear one in person before they decide what sounds best.
–chuck
Chuck,
I’m with you on big bore, long stroke, but I had something a little different in mind:
Here is the closest I could find to reality on the Internet, though you’ll have to skip to the middle to hear it roar. An old Jaguar in a Vintage Race at the ‘Ring in very wet conditions.
Or you can settle with my lame attempt.
Neither is as good as hearing, and feeling it in the flesh.
–chuck
Damn, hard to choose just five…
1 – The BRM V16 Grand Prix engine. There simply is nothing, and will never be anything, like it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZMPDCNyQxE
2 – any properly-built small block Chevy, but if I had to pick a particular one, it’d be the solid-lifter L79 327. At 7000 RPM. Or, if it’s in a race car, the LS3-based V8s in the SPEED GT Cadillac CTS-V.
3 – Solid-lifter 427 big block in any form of racing Corvette (LeMans Owens-Corning Vette, anyone?)
4 – Any post-turbo-era Formula 1 cars, particularly the Ferraris from 1988 to 1991 or so.
5 – Cosworth DFV.
I’d also put basically any other smallblock V8 high on the list, as well as any overhead cam 4 cylinders in sporty car in the 60s (Lotus Cortina, Ferraris, the original Mini, Abarth Fiat…)
List of NON-good sounding engines? Every Honda ever made except the NSX… Just about every Japanese car, with a few exceptions… All diesels. ALL.
And my vote for the worst-sounding engine ever is the 2.8/3.1 GM V6. Especially with aftermarket exhaust. Just awful.
Poor man’s fun? My 12 yr old VW Cabrio with a Borla muffler and otherwise 100% stock. Sounds pretty good for a grocery getter while not being loud and obnoxious. Does not sound like the typical fart can. I need to install the new stock downpipe and gasket to eliminate some leakage near the manifold. Perhaps this weekend.
Favorites? Aircooled flat-six engines. Porsche first of course but I have heard some really nice Corvairs over the years with a little intake upgrades and exhaust upgrades. Even aircooled flat-fours sound good with the right turbo mufflers.
Second favorites? Watercooled flat-sixes.
Third favorites? European inline DOHC six cylinders. Have not heard an Asian or American inline six that I get too excited about. REALLY DON’T like GM underwater sounding V-6 engines. Glug-glug-glug-glug on takeoff. Especially with after-market exhausts.
Honorable mentions? Small block V-8s (when set up for rumble and not shear noise). Anything turbo including four banger diesels with large diameter exhaust systems. Again not loud, just low.
The dual locomotive/marine turbo diesel engines we had on the USS Ashland. When going to full speed from some low speed the wail of the turbos and the exhaust was awesome. I enjoyed standing on the deck more or less centered between the exhaust stacks for full effect. Another favorite was standing right next to one when they went full throttle.
We also had a group of SEALs onboard way back when running patrol boats to Haiti and back. Those boats were incredible. I stuck around in the well-deck just to hear them run the boats from time to time. Nice echo effect.
And lastly – radial engines from the WWII era. Gives me chills every-single-time… If I fall into a time machine and go back to WWII I hearby volunteer to be an airplane mechanic. Don’t want to shoot at anybody or fly the damn things but I do want to work on them.
Even though I’m not the biggest Mustang fan, it’s hard to deny the awesome sound that car makes. Year in year out… Even stock… Once upon a time I had a 1989 Mustang GT with an Ford Motorsport crate SVO 302 (hot cam/heads, headers, and flow master exhaust). Made about 350HP, and sounded sooooooooooooooooo mean! Too bad in didn’t handle as well as it sounded. Or brake.
Side notes:
1.) 2:27+ in video. I think I threw up in my mouth a little bit…
2.) 3:35+ in video. Wow! I was pleasantly surprised by the sound of that Porsche Boxster? Sounded great….