The Loudest Cars That Car and Driver Has Ever Tested (2024)

The Ferrari F50 is essentially a street-legal race car, so it shouldn't come as much of a surprise that its high-revving 513-hp 4.7-liter V-8 is practically as loud as a race car at wide-open throttle. If you're going to risk your hearing, then you might as well do so in a 12-cylinder Ferrari.

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The 2016 Porsche 911 GT3 RS is a thing of beauty. Whether your thing is carving apexes or you're tickled by design, the RS is a winner. Aurally, it's in a different league. At idle, the Porsche makes a discordant cacophony of sounds, but with its gas pedal smashed to the floor, we measured an earplug-worthy 108 decibels inside the car. Its 4.0-liter flat-six is not to be trifled with as the RS approaches its 8800-rpm redline. But it is something you'll want to experience in person.

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The distinct warble of a Porsche flat-six engine is like nothing out there. And if you really want to experience this aural sensation, then there are few better options out there than the mid-engine 718 Cayman GT4 RS.

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Lamborghini's LM002 isn't exactly the first vehicle that comes to mind when you think of a "pickup truck." But if an open bed defines these haulers, then the LM002 fits the bill. That area aft of the cabin may be small, but what this Lambo lacks in cargo-hauling capabilities, its 12-cylinder engine makes up for with its loud but beautiful song.

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The 2015 BMW M3 ditched the rev-happy V-8 of its predecessor and replaced it with a smooth forced-induction straight-six. Though the six-pot lost some of the charm of its eight-cylinder forebear, it brought about a notably louder song at wide-open throttle.

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The Audi RS3's five-cylinder engine is one of our favorite powertrains of all time. Credit its charming character and rowdy sounds.

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As goes the BMW M3, so goes the M3 Competition. Both let out an 88-decibel wail at wide-open throttle.

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When you imagine a loud and quick small sedan with a transverse-mounted engine, you probably don't think of a vehicle bearing the Mercedes badge. Well, maybe you should. The first-gen CLA45 may not have been a looker, but its forced-induction four-cylinder engine brought plenty of power—and—noise to the sport (sub)compact car table.

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BMW may call it a Gran Coupe, but this 840i's rear doors say sedan. This car's sound comes from a turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six that makes 335 horsepower. At wide-open throttle, it makes as much noise as a lawnmower or a subway car, and it'll get you to 60 mph in 4.7 seconds. There are more powerful 8-series variants—the M850i models have a 523-hp twin-turbo V-8—but this one is the loudest of the bunch.

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The Mercedes-AMG C43 is the lesser of the AMG C-classes but it makes a big showing on this list. The 2019 C43 has a turbocharged 3.0-liter V-6 engine making 385 horsepower; it drives like a dream and made 60 mph in 4.1 seconds during our testing. The 503-hp C63 S reached 60 in 3.7 seconds, but, from our spot nestled in the cabin, its 4.0-liter V-8 engine was much quieter than the C43's V-6. It's all about priorities.

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The Mercedes-AMG CLA35 may lack the power of its CLA45 kin, but it packs just as much noise. Even better, the second-gen CLA-class looks far less awkward than its predecessor.

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The Audi RS3 may look far different than its forebear, but the subcompact sports sedan still packs the same noise and powerful five-cylinder under its hood.

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The Chrysler 300C went out with a loud bang. The special edition C marked the 300's end with the brash power afforded by Stellantis's sweet and noisy 485-hp 6.4-liter V-8 engine.

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It's a matter of opinion whether you think the Land Rover Range Rover Velar is a station wagon or not. But it's an indisputable fact that the Velar sounds incredible in this SV Autobiography Dynamic trim, which gives it a supercharged 5.0-liter V-8 that burbles with the best of them and helps the Velar reach 60 mph in a stunning 3.8 seconds. If all station wagons were like this, more people would buy them.

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