The Best V10 Engines Ever

In search of a unique and exotic power plant for your next sports car? We’ve got the low down on the most iconic high-revving V10 engines ever produced.
Written by Elaine Duvet
Reviewed by Kathleen Flear
The awkward middle child,
compact V10 engines
are often overlooked compared to their just-as-spirited V8 and super rare V12 siblings. It’s time to give V10s the attention they deserve.
Jerry
, the
car ownership super app
, checks out the rare breed that is the V10 engine.

What’s so special about a V10?

Not quite as smooth as a V12, but more complicated than a V8, the V10 engine does have its benefits. 
According to
CarBuzz
, “Their relative compactness compared to inline six-cylinder and V12 engines is a plus point, and they can also rev higher than similar capacity engines with fewer cylinders, which makes them ideal for the tight confines of a mid-engined supercar where a V12 may be too tight a fit.”
The V10’s unique layout actually gives it a one-of-a-kind sound that you could recognize from a mile away. While it doesn’t cost as much as a V12 engine, you still won’t find one of these bad boys in a budget-friendly American hatchback or sedan. You will, however, find it in a Dodge.
The Dodge Viper was no ordinary highly-strung exotic. The auto was first introduced in 1991 as a low-revving 8.0-liter V10. While drivers only received 400 hp, this meant the Viper’s large 465 lb-ft of torque was always on call. The track weapon was a monstrous straight-line car. 
Americans love their pickups, and the Dodge RAM SRT-10 was no exception. A ridiculous performer, the Ram pickup truck sported an 8.3-liter Viper V10 engine with 500 hp. 
The truck could accelerate just as fast as modern performance cars, with the ability to hit 60 mph in just 4.9 seconds and reach a top speed of 154 mph. Only 10,000 units were built over the course of two years.
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V10 Engines: German sports cars

The VW Phaethon was on the more affordable side, and an attempt to compete with the Lexus LS and Mercedes-Benz S-Class. Unfortunately, the 309 hp V10 turbo diesel its gas-powered counterpart didn’t rake in the cash Volkswagen was hoping for. 
The VW Touareg V10 TDI is a diesel-powered SUV. The Volkswagen incorporates a twin-turbocharged 10-cylinder engine with 309 hp and 553 lb-ft of torque at 2,000 rpm. While it was quick, it proved to be unreliable.
“This Frankenstein-ish power plant would only feature for a couple of years before the whole Dieselgate fiasco, and had it not been for the calamity which ensued, it surely would have garnered more recognition than it has mustered to this day,”
Supercars.net
notes. 
The BMW E60 M5 was the only one of its kind, featuring a high-revving and powerful V10 engine. The high-performance M5 offered a 5.0-liter naturally-aspiratedengine that shared the same amount of cylinders as the Formula 1 engine from the BMW Williams F1 team. 
The second-generation Audi RS6 features a 5.0-liter V10 engine supported by two turbos. It pumped out 579 hp and 479 lb-ft of torque. The engine was more powerful than most supercars, even the naturally aspirated BMW M5.
MORE: Top AWD Sports Cars

V10 Engines: Exotic sports cars

The Japanese supercar Lexas LFA took over a decade to develop. After a full design, it was finally introduced in late 2010. The LFA featured an excellent chassis and an advanced carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer body. Under the hood was a 4.8-liter V10 engine with 552 hp. From a distance, its high-pitched, guttural sounds remind us of a '90s F1 car.
One of the fastest Italian cars ever made, the Lamborghini Huracán Performanté features a naturally aspirated 5.2-liter V10 engine. Drivers get to experience 640 hp at 8,000 rpm and 443 lb-ft of torque at 6,500 rpm. 
According to Supercars.net, “Augmented with the greatest technologies available today, the motor produces its power more efficiently than ever before as well, with more than 70% of its torque already available as early as 1,000 rpm.”
There’s nothing like the sounds of the V10 supercar Porsche Carrera GT. While its handling can be tricky at times, the GT was equipped with a 5.7-liter V10 with 603 hp, modern tires, and an entertaining birchwood-covered manual shifter. Only 1,270 were made.
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