Why does sports cars with V6 and V8 engines not have more horsepower?

Question

I’m always wondered. Since a V8 engine from 20 years ago makes rougly the same as a I4 can produce today, how come we aren’t seeing more 500+ hp sports cars?

In: 0

Answer 1

Generally speaking, sports cars aren’t really about pure HP numbers, not in the same way pony or muscle cars are. They’re about twists and turns, agility and precision of handling, not about straight line speed. Cars with 700, 800, 900 HP tend to be heavier, which makes handling worse. All in all, I’d say it’s mostly because people buying those cars don’t necessarily want or need that much HP.