British sports cars are among the best and weirdest on the planet, ranging from traditional Jaguars, Aston Martins, and Bentleys to the strange TVR, Morgan, and Lotus models.
There has been a whole history of decision-making between choosing an American muscle car or a British sports car. Muscle cars are usually big, showy, and leave every set of lights in a puff of smoke. The British sports car, on the other hand, is calm, collected, and poised to strike as soon as the muscle gets slightly out of line. This is still true today, even though the muscle car has turned more into a sports car than it cares to admit. As such, British automakers have had to up their game, with some resorting to blending the two classes together. An example of this marriage is the Jaguar XE SV Project 8, which is both flashy and precise – all while making a glorious grumbly V8 noise.
So, while the line between a muscle car and a sports car has been getting thinner and thinner over the last couple of decades, there are still some cars we prefer over others. Here are five British sports cars we’d buy over any muscle car, with five others which just don’t quite cut it.
10 Would Buy Over Muscle Car – Jaguar XE SV Project 8
The Jaguar XE may not have been the most exciting vehicle out there, but the top-of-the-line XE S version certainly gave the BMW 335i a run for its money. Jaguar’s engineers then upped their game and took all the information they learned from the beautiful Project 7 F-Type, and created the Project 8.
The XE SV Project 8 featured the 5.0-liter supercharged V8 out of the F-Type SVR, which produced 592 hp and sent all of those angry British horses to all four wheels via an 8-speed automatic transmission. The XE Project 8 was and still is one of the greatest sports sedans ever built, exuding both brutal performance and comfortable cruising.
9 Wouldn’t Buy Over Muscle Car – MG MGB GT
The MG MGB was a relatively small British sports car, which later turned into a GT car in the form of the hardtop MGB GT. The MGB GT was originally fitted with a 2.9-liter Rover straight-six, which was cast iron and extremely heavy.
In the early 1970s, the MGB GT received an update that ditched most of the chrome accents and added a boring, black plastic front bumper. The other major improvement was the addition of a 3.5-liter Rover V8. This V8 was actually lighter than the engine before it, thanks to its aluminum construction. While the MGB GT is a great car, it has some serious reliability issues, and acquiring parts may be quite difficult. It would be easier to just get a muscle car instead.
8 Would Buy Over Muscle Car – Noble M600
The Noble M600 is an awesome car. Built in a shed somewhere in Britain, the M600 is a blend of British engineering, Italian-inspired styling, and a modified Swedish/Japanese V8. The M600 is fitted with the 4.4-liter V8 out of the Volvo XC90 SUV – which was a collaboration between Volvo and Yamaha – but modified with two turbochargers and other performance-increasing technology.
The M600 has a Gumpert Apollo-style switch on the dashboard, allowing the driver to choose between three different power outputs, namely Road (450 hp), Track (550 hp), and Race (650 hp). The car was available with a choice of two transmissions, either a standard 6-speed manual or a 6-speed semi-automatic. The M600 is one of the coolest supercars out there, even if the clutch destroys itself after a few pulls on the highway.
7 Wouldn’t Buy Over Muscle Car – TVR Tuscan
TVR is one of those automotive companies which produce weird cars. While most of them are brilliant, there is no way to get around the – let’s call it ‘interesting’ – looks. From the Trident and Vixen all the way to the Sagaris, Cerbera, and the current Griffith, all TVRs are strange.
Then there is the Tuscan Speed Six from 2006. It was fitted with a 4.0-liter straight-six producing 400 hp and 315 lb-ft of torque. It had no traction control and on multiple occasions tried to make Jeremy Clarkson have an accident.
6 Would Buy Over Muscle Car – Lotus Exige
The Lotus Exige has always been the thinking alternative to sheer power. The first Exige was based on the Elise and features a 1.8-liter Rover 4-cylinder, which produced just 177 hp. The second generation gained a supercharger and a lighter engine, which resulted in 240 hp.
The last Exige was a model all on its own and had a modified version of the 3.5-liter V6 found in the front of a Toyota Camry, but with a supercharger on the top, resulting in 350 hp and 295 lb-ft of torque going to the rear wheels only, via a 6-speed manual transmission. The Exige may not be the fastest or most complicated sports car out there, but it is one of the best.
5 Wouldn’t Buy Over Muscle Car – Caterham R500
The Caterham Seven was one of the original small, light, and quick British sports cars, using a low-powered engine to out-perform dedicated sports cars. The R500 was a version of this ethos, more tuned for track use rather than on the road.
The R500 version was on sale between 2008 and 2014. It was powered by a 2.0-liter Ford inline-4, producing 263 hp going to the rear wheels only via a 6-speed sequential gearbox. The R500 weighed only 1,140 lbs, which resulted in a 0-60 mph time of just 2.8 seconds. While the R500 is a fantastic track car, it would be difficult to use in daily driving.
4 Would Buy Over Muscle Car – Aston Martin V8 Vantage
The current Aston Martin V8 Vantage is among the best ever created. Where the previous V8 Vantage was considered one of the best sports cars on the market, the current one builds upon that statement, adding more luxury touches and better technology.
The best part about the current V8 Vantage is its engine, which is an AMG-sourced 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8, producing 503 hp and 505 lb-ft of torque. The AMR version of the Vantage has the option of a 7-speed dog-leg manual, which became the standard transmission choice in 2021, but sadly won’t be available after 2022.
3 Wouldn’t Buy Over Muscle Car – Ariel Atom
The Ariel Atom is one of the best-known track-focused British cars currently on sale. Initially started as a university project, the Atom grew into a proper car and has featured on various world-famous motoring shows, such as Top Gear and Fifth Gear. Ariel even stuffed a V8 in the exoskeleton of a car, creating the lunacy which is the Atom V8.
The current Atom 4 uses the 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-4 out of the Honda Civic Type R, which produces 320 hp. The engine is mated to either a 6-speed manual or a 6-speed sequential gearbox, sending power to the rear wheels only. The Atom is fantastic, but using it as a daily driver can get quite annoying.
2 Would Buy Over Muscle Car – Morgan Plus 8
Morgan is a British company that is still stuck in the 1940s – visually. Mechanically, they are modern and up-to-date – bar the use of wood in the bodywork supports. The Morgan Plus range of cars includes the base model Plus 4, which is fitted with a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-4 from BMW, and the Plus 6 which has a 3.0-liter turbocharged straight-six, also from BMW.
The Plus 8 was sold between 1968 and 2004, with the updated version being sold between 2012 and 2018. The car was fitted with the Rover V8, with the usual displacements as time went on, being a 3.5, 3.9, and 4.6-liter capacity. Luckily, this was updated with a 4.8-liter BMW V8, mated to either a 6-speed manual or automatic. The Morgan Plus 8 is a beautiful blend of classic styling and modern technology, still being able to compete with sports cars of today.
1 Wouldn’t Buy Over Muscle Car – Lotus Evora
The Lotus Evora was designed to be the more luxurious, more comfortable version of the Exige. As such, it had a more subtle body, a softer suspension and was generally more user-friendly. It was also used as the introduction of a new platform on which new Lotus products would be built – including the last Exige.
The Evora used the 3.5-liter Toyota V6 as its powerplant, with the Evora S gaining a supercharger. Power stood at 350 hp going to the rear wheels only via either a 6-speed manual or a 6-speed automatic. The Evora was discontinued in 2021 and while it was a great car with amazing handling, we’d still have the tail-happy antics of a muscle car to keep us busy.