6 Cars That Lied About Their Power Outputs

BMW M5 (F10)

While it was jolly exciting when the M5 broke the 600hp (592bhp) mark with the 30 Jahre version of the F10, it perhaps wasn’t as big a deal as it might have otherwise been. Why? Because the standard car was already hitting that figure. Lord knows how much the special edition was actually putting out.

Various dyno tests have put standard F10 M5s around the 600 mark, well in excess of the official figure of 552bhp. We still feel sad about the death of the V10 version, but that power is one hell of a way to make up for it.

Nissan Skyline GT-R (R34)

When looking at a lot of Japanese performance cars from the 1990s and early 2000s, a figure will come up quite frequently: 276bhp. Allegedly, it’s all part of a gentleman’s agreement that saw the major Japanese car manufacturers producing cars with bang on that figure on paper, but the reality is many were putting out over 300bhp.

In the case of the R34, the actual power output from its twin-turbo RB26 straight-six is more like 322.

Toyota Century

It wasn’t just performance cars that had some less than realistic power figures in the 1990s. The V12-powered Toyota Century officially made - you guessed it - 276bhp, when it actually developed over 300bhp. So this 5.0-litre lump was still producing a fairly modest, understressed output for such a big engine - just one that was slightly higher than advertised.

Porsche 959

One of the most exciting and technologically innovative supercars of the 1980s was the legendary Porsche 959. It had four-wheel drive, active suspension, and even active tyre monitoring.

With 450bhp developed from its turbocharged flat-six, it was no slouch either. However, rumour has it the cars left the factory with closer to 500. There isn’t quite as much solid info on the veracity of the claims compared to other cars here, but it’s a rumour that persists.

Ford Mustang Cobra Jet

There was a period during the 1960s and 1970s when muscle car engines were given hilariously understated power outputs. The biggest liar of them all? That’d be the Mustang Cobra Jet.

It came packing a performance version of the Blue Oval’s 428 cubic-inch big-block V8, officially making 335hp. In reality, it made 410. Yep, an additional 75 horses Ford neglected to mention.

Chevrolet Camaro (fourth-gen)

Stock LS1-powered Chevrolet Camaros from the car’s fourth generation are supposed to make 305hp at the crank. The reality is most put out around that figure at the wheels.

The same goes for the Pontiac Firebird, which used the same LS1. The same LS1 was used in the C5 Chevrolet Corvette with some very slight differences, but that time a more accurate official power output of 350hp was given.

What other understated engines can you think of? Let us know in the comments!