Time once was that a discussion about what car produces the most power per litre was one of impressive naturally-aspirated motors leaping over 100PS (73kW) per litre. Honda’s S2000, Porsche’s 911 GT3, Ferrari’s 458 Speciale – monsters of per-litre output. Now though, in 2021, turbocharging rules the roost and 100PS per litre is paltry. So we’ll be counting down the cars with 200PS per litre or more. Don’t worry, much as the breed of excessively turbocharged hypercar has proliferated in recent years, we’ve only 12 entries and not all of them are boutique unobtainium. With that in mind, we begin with a Bugatti...
The 12 cars with the most power per litre
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Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+
1,600PS (1,177kW)
200PS per litre
8.0-litre quad-turbocharged W16
Shock, horror, Bugatti, once the kings of mind-bending power figures, only just pips the 200PS per litre club. The 300mph Chiron Super Sport 300+ does so thanks to the long-serving 8.0-litre W16 quad-turbo that outputs 1,600PS in this iteration. The original Veyron, even with its 1,000PS, sported just 125PS per litre. In this company, both are unimpressive...
McLaren Senna
800PS (588kW)
200PS per litre
4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8
The twin-turbocharged V8 that’s served diligently in McLarens over the last decade is a monster powerhouse. The Senna, however, with a hopped-up version of the 720S 4.0-litre V8, only broke into the 200PS per litre club on its debut in 2017. It still matches the most powerful Bugatti ever made for per-litre output, though.
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McLaren Elva
815PS (599kW)
203PS per litre
4.0-litre twin-turbo V8
And the Elva beats it. What does what is effectively an open-topped Senna but with comparatively minimal downforce need? That’s right, more power! The Elva, pretty as it is, is an animal, with 203PS per litre, from its 815PS V8 – 15PS up on the road-hugging Senna. The most powerful ice-only McLaren and it doesn’t even have a windscreen...
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Mercedes-AMG A45S
421PS (310kW)
210PS per litre
2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
For a four-cylinder hot hatch, the Mercedes-AMG A45 is ruddy expensive. You won’t get into one brand new for under £50,000. Consider, however, that this engine is more potent per litre than any Bugatti, Ferrari or McLaren ever made. Yes, leave it to the engine masters at AMG to produce a hot hatch with 210PS per litre, thanks to a 421PS 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine. That stat alone almost justifies the price. But not quite.
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Koenigsegg CCXR
1,032PS (759kW)
219PS per litre
4.7-litre twin-supercharged V8
Of course, the tech wizards at Koenigsegg were going to make it in here somewhere. If you’ve cheated and already looked ahead, you’ll know this is the first of four entries for the speedy Swedes. With the Agera hypercar on the Horizon, the CCX went out with a bang in 2008 with the CCXR, an E85-powered 1,032PS monster. That got the 4.7-litre CCXR to 219PS per litre. Thanks to its ethanol use, it is also considered the world’s first green supercar.
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Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X FQ-440 MR
446PS (328kW)
223PS per litre
2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Back to the four-banger people’s performance machines, with the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X FQ-440. This run-out special both waved goodbye to the Evo in Mitsubishi’s line-up, after over 20 years of service, and celebrated 40 years of its presence in the UK. It made 446PS (223PS per litre) from its 2.0-litre turbo-four thanks to a new HKS turbo and a Janspeed exhaust, intake and intercooler. Only a run-out special of a Japanese tuner from almost a decade ago can best Mercedes-AMG’s latest tech in addition to a bunch of crazy modern hypercars.
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Koenigsegg One:1
1,360PS (1,000kW)
272PS per litre
5.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8
Speaking of, the Eggs are back. Of course, the Koenigsegg One:1 celebrated ratios, specifically power-to-weight. Each one of its 1,360PS corresponded with each one of its 1,360kg of weight, hence the One:1 name. In terms of power per litre, though, the One:1 also massively upped the game. It produces 272PS per litre with its 5.0-litre twin-turbo V8. The very same motor propelled the Agera RS to a world record production car top speed of over 270mph.
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Hennessey Venom F5
1,842PS (1,355kW)
279PS per litre
6.6-litre twin-turbocharged V8
That was seven years ago. Only now has Hennessey and its fire-breathing turbo V8 kin caught up. Meet the Venom F5, which features a 6.6-litre twin-turbo V8 producing 1,842PS. It’s by far the most powerful car on this list but thanks to that hefty size, only sports 279PS per litre. It’s one of the next few cars that are also vying for the 300mph-plus top speed crown, with the Bugatti we opened with.
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SSC Tuatara
1,774PS (1,305kW)
300PS per litre
5.9-litre twin-turbocharged V8
Namely, and controversially, the SSC Tuatara. Yes, it has the benefit of actually being finished and on sale, after no less than ten years in development. But a bit of a furore around a certain speed record has tarnished the Tuatara’s reputation somewhat. What can be said, given deliveries are underway, is it’s the first car on sale to reach 300PS per litre, with a max of 1,774PS coming courtesy of its comparatively small, high-revving, exotic-sounding 5.9-litre twin-turbo V8. Well in SSC! Now let’s see how fast it’ll really go...
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Koenigsegg Gemera
608PS (447kW)
304PS per litre
2.0-litre twin-turbocharged camless three-cylinder
The third Egg on this list hasn’t technically been laid yet. Koenigsegg isn’t one to not deliver on promises, however. What’s been promised for the Gemera is a 2.0-litre twin-turbo three-cylinder engine, featuring freevalve tech, that contributes 608PS to a total output of 1,724PS. Yes, that means the Gemera’s ICE engine technically produces 304PS per litre. The Tiny Friendly Giant or TFG, as it’s been named, will be one impressive unit when this car reaches customers.
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Koenigsegg Jesko
1,625PS (1,195kW)
325PS per litre
5.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8
A bit more standard fare for Koenigsegg is a big boosted 5.0-litre V8. In the Jesko, the successor to the Agera series, a flat-plane crank joins the party. When it arrives, which should be before the Gemera, it’ll deliver 1,625PS, for a 325PS per litre figure. Madness… but not the maddest on the Horizon.
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Mercedes-AMG One
759PS (558kW)
474PS per litre
1.6-litre twin-turbocharged V6
Because Mercedes-AMG has an F1-proven ace in the hole. Meet the AMG One, the hypercar we first saw four years ago, that’s been slightly overshadowed by 10,000rpm-revving V12s in upcoming Aston Martin and GMA hypercars in recent years. But the One’s F1-derived V6 moves the game of power per litre on by an order of magnitude. Hybrid systems nudge it into four figures, but the bulk of that 1,000PS-plus output comes from the 759PS 1.6-litre twin-turbo V6. To save you from stretching your brain to do the maths, that’s 474PS per litre. Wow! The caveat? This engine requires a rebuild every 31,000 miles, for something closer to a true F1 experience...
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