Is there a production car which exceeds not just 600hp but even 700hp?

A few years ago 500hp was the magical figure which set really powerful cars apart.  Nowadays this 375kW is not enough, as more and more cars exceed an engine power output of 400kW (about 540 horsepower).  Even sedans now boast more than 400kW.

With so many new entrants, the goal posts had to be moved higher.  The new much more exclusive membership is the 600hp (around 440kW) club!

You pay for this kind of power.  Only the most expensive cars make the cut – pay from R2.8 million upwards to experience 440kW and more.

We’re only looking at new cars currently available in South Africa, which means the exclusion of the new breed of hypercar hybrid such as McLaren P1, Porsche 918 Spyder and Ferrari LaFerrari.

So who’s the outright power leader?  Is there a production car which exceeds not just 600hp but even 700hp?  Yes!  There are 2!  Ferrari F12berlinetta wins, with its 6.3 V12 quoted at a truly massive 545kW, which is 740hp!  The Lamborghini Aventador is a beast, having worn the crown for a while, with the 700 in its name indicating its horsepower output, which calculates as 515kW.  Its 6.5 V12 can be fitted to either the coupé or roadster.  Worth mentioning is that the 2 power leaders are not turbo or supercharged cars, but pure V12… high-revving Italian V12s.

Ferrari then takes 3rd slot again, with the 4-seater 4-wheel-drive FF.  Another V12.

Then the turbo engines kick in – McLaren says its 3.8-litre V8 turbo produces a maximum of 478kW, again indicated in its name expressed as 650 horsepower.

Rolls-Royce has tweaked its 6.6 V12 turbo to 465kW as used in the fastback-coupé Wraith, making it the fastest and most powerful production Rolls-Royce, and perhaps an surprise member of this supercar club.

Then Mercedes-Benz AMG steps in with their well-known V12 turbo of 6.0 litres.  This engine was in fact one of the very first to break through the 600hp barrier, with the original 65 AMG cars pushing out 450kW and 1000Nm… and that’s after torque had to be restricted!  This understated engine is currently available in the SL65 AMG big roadster, S65 AMG L long-wheelbase sedan, and the just-launched S65 AMG coupé.

Bentley has its own blown 12 – the W12 (yes, a pair of V6 engines joined to make a W12), again used now in the 2nd generation Continental GT range, produces 460kW in the Speed coupé and convertible models, and the same output for the Flying Spur sedan.

Rounding it off we’ve come full circle to Ferrari and Lamborghini.  The newly-launched Huracán has 610hp which equates to 449kW from its 5.2 V10, while the 4.5 V8 of the 458 Speciale makes 445kW.  Both these are naturally-aspirated engines.

Also look at the torque outputs, which shows there is no substitute for cubic inches, as the Americans would say about their big-block muscle V8s.  The 6.0 / 6.6 V12s and the 6.0 W12 have the most torque, with 800Nm from the British (though both German owned) Bentley and Rolls-Royce, and 1000Nm for the AMG German.

Car	power (kW)	torque (Nm)	engine	cylinders
Ferrari F12berlinetta	545	690	6.3	V12
Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4	515	690	6.5	V12
Ferrari FF	485	683	6.3	V12
McLaren 650S	478	678	3.8 turbo	V8
Rolls-Royce Wraith	465	800	6.6 turbo	V12
Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG
Mercedes-Benz S65 AMG L	463	1000	6.0 turbo	V12
Mercedes-Benz S65 AMG coupé
Bentley Continental GT Speed W12
Bentley Flying Spur W12	460	800	6.0 turbo	W12
Lamborghini Huracán LP610-4	449	560	5.2	V10
Ferrari 458 Speciale	445	540	4.5	V8