16-cylinder Engines Are Extremely Cool, But Only A Few Production Cars Have Used Them

Bugatti

Obviously, nan bigger nan number nan better, and that goes for engines. As enthusiasts we emotion huge engines, whether they beryllium immense successful size aliases immense successful powerfulness (or both), and 1 of nan astir evident ways to measurement that metric is by looking astatine cylinder count. V8s are great, V10s are moreover better, and a V12? Well, those are conscionable incredible. An motor doesn't person to usage a V configuration to beryllium cool, either — we emotion inline-8s, flat-twelves and W12s.

But passim history location person been a fistful of cars pinch cylinder counts that almost defy belief. Today we're talking astir sixteen-cylinder engines and each of nan cars that person utilized them, some past and present. As you tin imagine, engines pinch sixteen cylinders are typically immense and complicated, and nan cars they're recovered successful person been exclusive and expensive, each either high-end luxury machines aliases utmost supercars.

For this roundup of sixteen-cylinder engines we're focusing strictly connected accumulation cars that were really sold to nan public, arsenic location person been excessively galore one-off prototypes and title cars pinch sixteen-cylinder engines for this database to enactment brief. Also, we've organized this database by make, and kept it successful alphabetical order. Without further ado, these are each of nan accumulation cars that person utilized sixteen-cylinder engines.

Bugatti

Bugatti is nan only institution that presently produces a sixteen-cylinder engine, the bonzer quad-turbocharged 8.0-liter W16 that was first introduced successful nan Veyron 2 decades ago. Overengineered to nan constituent of absurdity, nan W16 is for illustration 2 narrow-angle V8s stuck together, pinch 4 valves per cylinder but only 2 overhead camshafts per cylinder bank. In nan original Veyron nan W16 put retired 987 horsepower and 922 pound-feet of torque, but consequent models brought that up to 1,183 hp and 1,106 lb-ft, sent to each 4 wheels done a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic. The W16 was 1 of nan main reasons nan Veyron was capable to execute a record-breaking apical velocity of 253 mph, and it sounded dissimilar immoderate different engine (and still does).

The Veyron's replacement, nan Chiron, kept nan W16 but boosted output to 1,479 hp and 1,180 lb-ft successful modular form. Then location was nan Chiron Super Sport, which became nan first roadworthy car to deed 300 mph acknowledgment to improved aerodynamics and 1,578 hp. Other limited-run Chiron-based Bugattis for illustration nan Centodieci, Divo and Mistral person besides utilized that aforesaid loop of nan W16, arsenic does the track-only Bolide.

For the caller Tourbillon, which will service arsenic nan Chiron's replacement erstwhile it goes connected waste adjacent year, Bugatti has travel up pinch a wholly caller sixteen-cylinder engine. The Tourbillon uses a people aspirated 8.3-liter V16 that was developed pinch nan thief of Cosworth and makes 1,000 horsepower and 664 lb-ft of torque connected its own, and it'll rev to 9,000 rpm. That evidently wasn't enough, truthful nan Tourbillon besides has a 24.8-kWh artillery battalion and 3 electrical motors (two connected nan beforehand axle and 1 astatine nan rear) for a full of 1,800 hp. It'll moreover person an electric-only scope of 37 miles! Now that's progress.

Courtney Frisk / RM Sotheby's

The aptly named Cadillac V-16 was nan first accumulation car to usage a sixteen-cylinder motor erstwhile it debuted successful January 1930. Developed successful concealed to compete pinch nan V12 that Packard already offered, nan 7.4-liter V16 was fundamentally 2 Buick inline-8 engines stuck together, pinch each slope operating separately from each other. The motor had a constrictive 45-degree angle, a counterweighted crankshaft, overhead valves (a Cadillac first) and hydraulic valve accommodation (an manufacture first). In nan early V-16 452 models (named for nan 452-cubic-inch displacement) nan motor made 165 horsepower, which was accrued for later variants. Despite nan V-16's monolithic size and weight, they had apical speeds of complete 80 mph, and nan motor was praised for its unbelievably soft and quiet operation.

Though the V-16 was an first occurrence pinch 2,500 being sold successful nan first year, arsenic you tin ideate fixed nan onset of nan Great Depression, it didn't stay that measurement for long. Every car was custom-built and highly expensive, and income sharply fell by nan extremity of 1930. By nan mediate of nan decade Cadillac was only trading astir 50 V-16s a year, and nan exemplary was discontinued successful 1937 aft astir 4,000 had been built.

But that wasn't nan extremity of nan Cadillac V16. In 1938 nan marque debuted nan Series 90, which utilized a caller 7.1-liter type of nan V16 motor pinch a overmuch wider 135-degree angle. While not rather arsenic royal arsenic nan earlier cars nan Series 90 was still elephantine and costly arsenic hell, and less than 1,000 were sold complete its three-year run. In 2003 Cadillac released nan phenomenal Sixteen concept, but it ne'er came to fruition.

Patrick Ernzen / RM Sotheby's

In 1 of nan top link-ups successful history, erstwhile Lamborghini technologist Claudio Zampolli teamed up pinch legendary euphony shaper Giorgio Moroder to create a caller supercar designed by Marcello Gandini. The Cizeta-Moroder V16T was launched successful 1988, though only nan first of nan 11 cars built would deterioration Moroder's sanction arsenic he withdrew his engagement successful 1990.

Unlike astir different mid-engine supercars, nan Cizeta's 6.0-liter V16 was mounted transversally, portion of nan logic why nan car was truthful dang wide. The motor was fundamentally two Lamborghini Urraco V8s mated together, pinch 2 crankshafts, 2 Bosch K-Jetronic substance injection systems, 2 overhead cams per cylinder bank, and 64 valves. But nan motor shared 1 aluminum block, and nan gearing for nan five-speed manual transmission was recovered successful nan halfway of nan cylinder banks. Output was 540 horsepower and 400 pound-feet of torque, and it had an 8,500-rpm redline. In a play review, Car and Driver described nan motor arsenic "growling menacingly," and praised its low-end torque. And pinch styling for illustration that and quad pop-up headlights, really could you not emotion it?

Darin Schnabel / RM Sotheby's

You'd beryllium forgiven for ne'er having heard of nan Marmon Motor Car Company before, arsenic nan Indiana-based automaker was founded successful 1902 and went nether successful 1933 (though the Marmon sanction continued arsenic a truckmaker). While Marmon made a fewer different models, including nan Model 32 that won nan first Indianapolis 500 successful 1911, we're present to talk astir nan Marmon Sixteen. Work connected Marmon's V16 motor began successful 1926, earlier Cadillac had started activity connected its V16, but nan Marmon wasn't fresh for accumulation until 1931.

Marmon's 8.0-liter V16 utilized an all-aluminum creation that made it overmuch lighter than comparable engines, though it did person alloy cylinder liners. Like nan Cadillac engine, nan Marmon V16's had a 45-degree V-angle. Thanks to an output of 200 horsepower, Marmon Sixteens were capable to scope speeds of complete 100 mph, and though they were smaller and little imposing than nan Cadillacs, nan Marmons were still rather large and had handsome designs. Fewer than 400 Marmon Sixteens were produced, and little than a 4th are thought to still beryllium today.