Your latest bonus just landed in your bank account, so you decide to treat yourself to that Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG you’ve been eyeballing since you were 12 years old. Congratulations on getting your hands on one of the gnarliest and most powerful AMGs ever built, but it wasn’t the best of that era. The less-powerful SL55 – a brilliant used bargain – was much easier to live with, sounded better, and was just as fast (both cars were limited to 155 mph, with no option to remove the speed limiter).

While exploring the wild AMGs of 20-odd years ago, we started wondering if there are more recent examples of cars where the smaller, less powerful engine is the better option? The answer is most definitely yes, and we easily found nine vehicles where we’d opt for the less powerful model because it provides a better overall experience.

The cars we chose are listed alphabetically below.

Audi R8 V8 Manual

2009 Audi R8 Coupe	Engine	Power	Torque	0-60 mph	Top Speed
4.2-liter NA V8
420 hp
317 lb-ft
4.4 seconds
187 mph

Yes, the howl of that V10 is intoxicating, but Audi’s 4.2-liter NA V8 is also an engineering masterpiece and will happily rev to 8,000 rpm all day long. And when you aren’t enjoying the sound of the V8, the clickety-clack of the gated manual shifter will arouse your soul. It’s an experience that simply isn’t available on the new market anymore.

We’ve been around for every generation of the R8, and this remains the one that stands out. The Audi R8 V8 is a brilliant daily car, and it toes the line between sports car and supercar perfectly.

It’s powerful enough to be fun, but not enough to be intimidating. But the biggest reason you should consider the V8 over the V10 is price. A V8 manual in good condition is less than half the price of a V10 manual. Decent used examples of the latter are already selling for more than $140,000 on the used market. A V8 manual of the same model year and in the same condition can be purchased for $60,000...

Bentley Flying Spur

2024 Bentley Flying Spur	Engine	Power	Torque	0-60 mph	Top Speed
4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8
542 hp
568 lb-ft
4.0 seconds
198 mph

The current Bentley Flying Spur and Continental GT are only available as hybrids, and that’s not a bad thing. The new so-called High Performance Hybrid produces 670 hp and 685 lb-ft of torque, and 771 hp and 738 lb-ft if you opt for the Speed Model.

As you might know, previous Bentleys made use of the famous W12 engine, which was killed in 2024. While the 626-hp W12 was an engineering masterpiece, the lesser V8 had more character. It also made a much dirtier sound, which matched the “thug in a perfectly tailored suit” image much better. The W12 was also only 0.3 seconds faster to 60 mph, and its 207 mph top speed trumped the V8’s 198 mph. These figures are utterly meaningless, and not something the average owner will ever feel or even be aware of.

Ferrari GTC4 Lusso T

2020 Ferrari GTC4Lusso T	Engine	Power	Torque	0-62 mph	Top Speed
3.9-liter twin-turbocharged V8
602 hp
561 lb-ft
3.4 seconds
199 mph

The GTC4 Lusso was Ferrari’s last-ditch effort to get out of making an SUV. Essentially a heavily facelifted FF, it’s an all-wheel drive hot hatch with space for four people. It was the daily Ferrari before the Italian brand caved and built the Purosangue. The FF has also lost a lot of value over the years, which makes it a decent used buy.

In 2018, Ferrari introduced a V8 GTC4. Along with the smaller engine, Ferrari also dropped the complex all-wheel drive system, which meant it was only rear-wheel drive. In the process, it also lost 200 lbs. Yes, the twin-turbocharged V8 wasn’t nearly as charismatic as the naturally aspirated V12, but the stuff that Ferrari took out actually improved the driving experience.

Jaguar F-Type Supercharged V6

2014 Jaguar F-Type Convertible V6 S	Engine	Power	Torque	0-60 mph	Top Speed
3.0-liter supercharged V6
380 hp
339 lb-ft
4.8 seconds
171 mph

The Jaguar F-Type arrived in 2014 with two engine options. You could either have a supercharged V6 or V8, both sending all their power to the rear wheels. Jag eventually added AWD to the V8 model to tame it a bit, but the V6 was perfectly balanced. Not enough power to scare the average driver, but still enough to provide a thrilling driving experience.

The V6 was also the only engine you could mate to a manual gearbox, but finding one of those on the used market is nearly impossible, but certainly worth the effort.

Finally, and this is a contentious opinion, the supercharged V6 sounds better. Jag tuned it to sound like the classic E-Type inline-six, and it sounds glorious.

Lotus Emira

2025 Lotus Emira V6	Engine	Power	Torque	0-60 mph	Top Speed
3.5-liter supercharged V6
400 hp
310 lb-ft
4.2 seconds
180 mph

The Lotus Emira above is not equipped with the smallest engine, but the least powerful. The AMG-sourced turbocharged four-cylinder produces the same power, more torque, and is mated to an extremely quick-shifting eight-speed dual-clutch transmission. Mercedes-AMG and Lotus sounds like a match made in heaven, but as we found out after a week-long test drive in the UK, it doesn’t actually work that well.

Lotus tried very hard to make the Emira as user-friendly as possible, but it’s still nowhere near as good at the daily grind as a Porsche 718. In our opinion, if you’re going to buy a Lotus, you should buy it for the right reasons. A Lotus should be an engaging car, equipped with a manual gearbox. In this case, the manual can only be mated to the V6, and the car is all the better for it.

Porsche 911 Carrera T

2025 Porsche 911 Carrera T	Engine	Power	Torque	0-60 mph	Top Speed
3.0-liter twin-turbo flat-six
388 hp
331 lb-ft
4.3 seconds
183 mph

The 2026 Porsche 911 Turbo S is the most powerful 911 ever made thanks to the German brand’s latest turbocharging technology. The twin-turbocharged 3.6-liter flat-six now produces 701 hp, which helps it get around the Nürburgring in 7:03.92. The question is whether you really need all that power, as Porsche has already proved that you can do a lot better with 500 horses and a manual transmission.

Obviously, the 911 everyone wants is the GT3, but getting your name on the list means selling your soul and those of your next five generations to the nearest Porsche DP. For normal folks, there’s the Carrera T. It’s the only standard production 911 available with a six-speed manual, and has been widely praised for becoming the go-to 911.

The output figures aren’t that impressive, but as we’ve seen with Porsche so many times before, the car is more than the sum of its parts.

2026 Ram 1500 V8

2026 Ram 1500 5.7 V8	Engine	Power	Torque	0-60 mph	Top Speed
5.7-liter NA V8
395 hp
410 lb-ft
6.30 seconds (tested)
N/A

Objectively, the Ram 1500 with either the Standard or High Output Hurricane inline-six is a better truck. We did instrument testing on all versions of this truck, and have proof that the V8 is slower and less practical.

Do we care? A little bit, actually. Especially since Ram charges you more money to rebel against a decision they made, but we’re willing to look the other way because V8 noises.

Volkswagen Golf GTI

2026 Volkswagen Golf GTI	Engine	Power	Torque	0-60 mph	Top Speed
2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder
241 hp
273 lb-ft
5.5 seconds
155 mph (est)

You must be wondering what we’re smoking at this point, because obviously the more powerful Golf R is much better than the lesser GTI. But is it really? Not if you look at what hot hatches used to be, and what they’ve become. Because of the power wars, most automakers have had to include an AWD system as standard. It also needs to function as a daily car, with a compliant suspension, and a large trunk. And be affordable.

If you take the above into account, the FWD GTI is a much better car than it’s faster big brother. We love the playfulness of a FWD car, and there’s no way the Golf R is roughly $15,000 better than the standard GTI. Yup, that’s the price gap between them these days.

Actually, you can save yourself even more money and spend $10,000 on the best GTI ever made.