Is Judd F1 Engine the All-Time Best-Sounding V8?

Judd F1-powered W201 hill climber makes a sound argument.

While the United States owns the world’s most impressive one, hillclimbing remains a staple of European racing. As one of few racing styles with nearly open rule books, hillclimbs attract some bonkers machinery. Retired GP2 and other formula cars turn up regularly. In addition, totally insane tin-top builds, like this W201 Mercedes-Benz 190E, are not uncommon. This Mercedes, run by Swiss racer Reto Meisel, touches all bases with its insanity. Underneath the hood of the super-lightweight W201 lurks the shrieking 3.5-liter Judd V8 from a 1980s Formula 1 car.

Judd got their start building junior-formula engines in the 1970s and 1980s, but they soon partnered with March Engineering and Brabham to build F1 engines to the 3.5-liter, naturally aspirated formula. The version in Meisel’s Merc may sound better than just about any other engine in the world. Natural aspiration means no turbos to muffle the sound, and the tone lives perfectly between grunty muscle and banshee-wailing machines. That exhaust just rings true of everything a V8 should be.

CHECK OUT: What Forum Members Are Saying About This Glorious Noise

The engine doesn’t just sing pretty songs, either. In hillclimb trim, Meisel extracted at least 550 horsepower from the F1 engine. In a chassis that weighs just over 1,800 pounds empty, that flings the carbon Merc up mountains with wild abandon. You don’t require an engineering degree to understand how Reto Meisel has won so many hillclimbs. This thing is an utter beast, with big aerodynamic elements, gobs of horsepower, and a driver who knows a thing or two about scampering up European mountain roads.

Judd’s F1 programs didn’t last particularly long, although the service life of the engines has proven significant. Some of the engines were repurposed for sportscar prototypes. Judd even designed a clean-sheet 3.4-liter V8 for Le Mans Prototypes (LMP) as recently as 2007. The last pair of Judd V8s, both BMW-based 3.6-liter engines, in front-line service just completed the 2016-2017 Asian Le Mans Series season. One of the cars, a fittingly older open-top Oreca, scored one final win in the 4 Hours of Fuji before the series changes engine formulas for next year.

Enjoy this 3.5-liter Judd V8 singing through the forest hills in Switzerland from 2013, then let us know if you think it’s the best-sounding V8 ever.