10 Of The Most Powerful V8 Engines Ever Put In A Cadillac

Cadillac is one of the oldest automakers in the United States. It began in 1902 but was purchased by GM in 1909. The brand put its stamp on the industry early, being one of the first carmakers to introduce interchangeable parts to the automotive industry. It is the first company to offer a passenger car with a fully-enclosed cabin as well as a car that featured an electronic self-starter. It is also famously the first automaker to use a V-style engine in its cars. 

Cadillac has used the V8 for most of its history, which spans over a century. As such, the company offers some of the most interesting and powerful such engines in the market. In addition, engines from Cadillac are collector's items in some of the older models. It's even put some of this technology into SUVs like the Escalade-V, which is one of the fastest on Earth. 

These days, the brand is mostly known for its luxury vehicles. The aforementioned Escalade is the crown jewel in Cadillac's lineup, but you can still find some sports cars like the CT5 Blackwing. Here, we'll talk about the tremendous and iconic powerhouses that sit in these vehicles. Cadillac, via GM, is among the last automakers to regularly make use of a V8 engine, and it uses it quite extensively even to this day. 

Despite making V8s before World War I, it took Cadillac a while to get going when it came to horsepower. The 331 cubic inch engine debuted in 1949 and continued until it was usurped by the 365 cubic inch V8 that came in 1956. Cadillac shoved this thing into basically every vehicle it made during those years, and it has since become a collector's item. It is often cited as the engine that changed everything despite its relatively humble horsepower specs. 

At the start, the 331 cubic inch V8 sported a mild 160 horsepower and 312 lb.-ft of torque as measured in the 1949 Cadillac Coupe Deville. The car achieved a top speed of 100 mph, and it was the most powerful that Cadillac ever made at the time. However, GM's luxury brand wasn't content with that and improved the engine continuously through the end of the engine's run in 1955. At its maximum, the 1955 Cadillac Eldorado had an optional four-barrel intake manifold that peaked the engine at 270 horsepower. 

The engine was legendary for several reasons. It used an overhead-valve layout, which was superior to the L-head V8 architecture. It was smaller than Cadillac's outgoing engine despite putting up similar displacement and weight 200 pounds less than its predecessor. The result was a smaller, lighter engine with lower displacement that was stronger, more efficient, and better in every other way. 

Cadillac then graduated to the 365 cubic inch V8 in 1956 and used it in all of the heavier models they built until 1959. Thus, it represents little more than a footnote in the grand scheme of the Cadillac V8. However, it still represented a stepping stone in a 1950s era that saw automakers gradually increasing the displacement and power of their V8s. So, while the upcoming engines on this list became a much bigger deal, it would be a crime to forget that the Cadillac 365 existed. 

The engine was based directly in the Cadillac 331. The brand increased the bore to four inches while the base model engine housed a single four-barrel carburetor that came as an option on the prior engine. When the engine first came out, it made 285 hp, which was already an upgrade over the most powerful variant of the Cadillac 331 engine. Cadillac increased the power to 300 hp in 1957 and then again to 310 hp in 1958. Once again, Cadillac reserved all the good options for its Eldorado, which made 335 hp. 

This engine was the second generation based on the original 331 cubic inch from 1949. There would be one more and we'll get to that in a moment. However, for a few years at least, the Cadillac 365 was the king of the luxury brand's lineup. With its beefy low-end torque, the engine had no problems moving around Cadillac's gargantuan vehicles from that era.  

The Cadillac 390 cubic inch V8 is a tale of two engines. The first was introduced in 1959 as a modification to the prior generation Cadillac 365. In fact, the only major difference was an increase from a 3.625-inch stroke to a 3.875-inch stroke. Otherwise, it's the same as the 365 in almost every way. This version of the 390 only existed for a couple of years from 1959 until 1963 when the second 390 cubic inch engine was produced. The highest horsepower the original 390 hit was 345, which was once again exclusive to the Eldorado.

However, Cadillac would go on to build a second 390 cubic inch V8 engine. The newer model shared almost nothing with the outgoing model and was its own unique product. It was 50 pounds lighter and a bit narrower than the outgoing model. However, despite the change in engine architecture, the new Cadillac 390 was just as strong as its predecessor at 325 hp. Since Cadillac stopped making special editions for the Eldorado, meaning this engine stood on its own without any special configurations for higher-end models.

The luxury automaker would then make the 429 cubic inch engine by increasing the bore and stroke on the new 390ci engine. Even with those modifications, the stock horsepower on the Cadillac 429 was 340 horsepower and 480 lb.-ft of torque. Later Cadillac would finally beat the 345 hp of the original 390 V8. 

The horsepower starts to ramp up for Cadillac again in the late 1960s with the introduction of the 472 cubic inch V8. At the time of its release, it was the largest passenger car engine in the industry, although the horsepower wars of the 1960s would wipe that title. In the meantime, the Cadillac 472 was king of the hill in terms of size while also putting out some pretty good power numbers. As per the norm, Cadillac used this engine mostly in its larger vehicles. 

The massive displacement was thanks to a 4.30-inch bore and a 4.06-inch stroke, which is quite large. Add to that a 10.5:1 compression ratio and the engine was able to output a maximum of 375 hp, which was top for Cadillac at the time. While these kinds of lists are always measured by hp, the true champion of this engine was its mind-boggling 525 lb.-ft of torque. You could probably use a car from that era to pull tree stumps out of the ground although we wouldn't recommend it. 

Unlike prior models, where Cadillac simply increased the bore and stroke of an older engine, the 472 was an all-new model. As was the tradition at the time, though, Cadillac didn't rest on its laurels with this one and immediately began work on an even bigger engine. The 472 would last as Cadillac's top engine for just two years before the next entrant dethroned it. 

Cadillac followed up the respectable 472 with an even bigger engine in 1970. The 500 cubic inch engine was very similar to the 472 with the usual increases in bore and stroke to allow for higher displacement. For metric fans, this was an 8.2-liter V8. Unlike most of its other engines, this one would end up exclusively in the Eldorado, where it would stay until 1975. Since it was used in so few vehicles, it's considered one of the rarer engines in Cadillac's history and you won't see a lot of builds with it these days. 

At its peak, the massive engine was the first from Cadillac to top the 400-hp mark, although only barely. It matched its horsepower numbers with an absurd 550 lb.-ft of torque, making the 1970 Eldorado the most powerful car Cadillac had ever built at the time. In addition to its top-notch power, Cadillac had also designed the cooling system and other components in such a way that this engine could've had even more displacement. However, things didn't turn out that way. 

As with most automakers, Cadillac was hamstrung by the Clean Air Act of 1970. The engine stayed in the roster, but the compression ratio and other parts of the engine were reduced in order to prepare them for unleaded fuel and emissions reductions. Hot rod enthusiasts still use this engine to build though, and have gotten some truly inspiring horsepower figures out of it.

The federal government couldn't keep the world's biggest V8 fan down for long and Cadillac came roaring back in the 1990s with the Northstar V8. Unlike earlier engines, which were included in the brand's top-end cars with an air of exclusivity, Cadillac put this engine in just about everything from the Eldorado to the STS and the XLR. It was also used in the Escalade and several vehicles in other GM brands, such as the Buick Lucerne Super. 

It started life as a reasonably powerful engine. The 4.6-liter V8 pushed 295 hp and 290 lb.-ft of torque in its earlier years. Improvements to the engine saw it change to 275 hp and 300 lb.-ft of torque. The second generation LH2 upped the ante to 320 horsepower, making the first V8 to do so in Cadillac's lineup since 1970. Eventually, Cadillac put another generation — the LC3 — into the Cadillac XLR-V and STS-V where the 4.4-liter V8 pumped out 469 hp and 439 lb.-ft of torque. Finally, Cadillac was back over 400 horsepower. 

Cadillac used this engine for 17 years before eventually replacing it with other, even more powerful engines. During its lifetime, it went from a moderately powerful engine to the strongest thing in Cadillac's entire lineup and it brought the brand back to high horsepower figures in its sports cars. However, most of the later engines would retain the exclusivity of Cadillac's earlier efforts, making the Northstar a unique V8 in Cadillac's lineup.

Much like Pontiac, Cadillac started leaning more on GM's engines in the late 2000s, which led to the use of the use of the 6.2-liter V8 LSA engine. The engine first appeared in all models of the Cadillac CTS-V, which included the sedan, coupe, and wagon. Cadillac would use the engine for five years. Coincidentally, this engine was also used in the Chevy Camaro ZL1 from 2012 through 2015, making it one of the most powerful engines stashed in a Chevy.

Specs on the engine do have a question mark, though. When put in the Cadillac CTS-V, it was rated for 556 hp and 551 lb.-ft of torque. However, the exact same engine was rated for 580 hp when it was installed in the Chevy. It's likely just a difference in tuning, though, so we'll give the engine full credit for the 580 horsepower. After all, Cadillac engineers have said that the car can probably pull 580 hp on a cool enough day.

Not only was the LSA engine quick, but it also marked a return to exclusivity for Cadillac. The only car from the car maker that used this engine was the CTS-V over a five-year period, so it's very much closer to how Cadillac treated high horsepower engines back in the old days rather than its "devil-may-care" attitude with the Northstar V8. It also paved the way for even stronger engines still to come. 

Cadillac kept using GM's engines for several years with the GM LT4. It's a similarly sized 6.2-liter monster, but it can go quite a bit faster. Also, it's the first engine on the list still put into cars today. Cadillac used it in the CTS-V from 2016 through 2019. Like the previous engine on the list, Chevy also used this engine in its sports cars. Notably, the engine made appearances in both the C7 Corvette and Camaro ZL1. You can still buy ZL1s equipped with this version of the engine. 

While horsepower numbers vary, this engine is best known for doing 650 hp and 650 lb.-ft of torque. It didn't matter too much which variant of the engine you got when you purchased your Cadillac. Even the 640-horsepower variant could push the CTS-V from zero to 60 mph in a brisk 3.6 seconds and zero to 100 mph in 7.5 seconds. While in use, CTS-V cars equipped with this engine were genuinely some of the fastest on the road. 

This is one of the newer engines in GM's lineup, so the history for this one goes right up through 2024. In fact, you can still buy this version of the engine today as a crate engine for between $17,000 and $21,000. Cadillac would eventually go back to the LT4 for future vehicles, albeit in a slightly modified format. 

GM and Cadillac would modify the engine again for the 2022 model year, resulting the highest horsepower V8 engine ever put into a Cadillac passenger car. It is still the trusty 6.2-liter V8 LT4, so it is technically the same as the prior engine. However, Cadillac would outfit the engine with a custom supercharger that squeezed out just a little more juice than the standard LT4. In addition, this version of the LT4 is exclusive to Cadillac so it didn't have to share with other GM brands. 

All told, the modified LT4 is capable of making a maximum of 682 hp and 653 lb.-ft of torque. It can only achieve those numbers in the 2024 Cadillac Escalade-V. The CT5-V Blackwing and older Escalades have to make do with the 662-hp variant instead. That's okay, though, since the engine can push the 2025 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing from zero to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds. Car and Driver also did a zero to 150 mph and back to zero test that showed that the Blackwing was less than half a second behind the Porsche 911 GT3 RS. In short, this engine rips. 

Unfortunately, not every car fitted with this engine is set for another generation. While the Escalade continues to put up decent sales numbers, the CT5 is not doing so hot. With the auto world starting to go all in on hybrids and EVs, the CT5-V Blackwing is expected to exist for another year or so before it's permanently put out to pasture. 

The strongest V8 engine that Cadillac has ever used is the LMC55.R V8. It's officially a race car engine and that's all Cadillac has ever used it for, so you won't find these in passenger vehicles. The engine is a 5.5-liter DOHC V8 hybrid and comes with a rear-mounted, 50kW electric motor to help give the car a little more push. Cadillac uses this motor currently as of this writing for its car in the 2024 IMSA racing season.

Nobody is quite sure how much horsepower this engine could put out. Officially, it's restricted to 670 hp as per the rules of the IMSA. Similarly, the engine weight is limited to a minimum of 1,030 kilograms. Torque figures aren't available since Cadillac changes them on a race-by-race basis depending on the track and the conditions. In terms of construction, it's technically a GM engine with the assistance of Roush Advanced Composites. Even so, Cadillac makes it look good. 

The engine is quite good at what it does. Cadillac swept the 2023 IMSA season as the winners and took second place only to Porsche as of June 2024. A big reason for that is the LMC55.R V8. While the name seems arbitrary, the "LMC" part stands for Le Mans Cadillac. The name is apropos considering this engine and Cadillac won the 24-hour Le Mans race in 2023. In short, Cadillac and GM can put together a good race engine and they have the trophies to prove it.

In the early 2000s, Cadillac embarked on a mission to build a V16 engine as an homage to the engines it created in the 1930s and 40s. The result was the Cadillac V16. While it certainly isn't a V8, it would be a criminal offense to make a list of powerful Cadillac engines and not at least mention this monstrosity somewhere. Cadillac put this engine into one concept car, the Cadillac Sixteen, and since it was a concept car, Cadillac never sold it to the public. 

One of the reasons for that is because the engine could produce 1,000 hp and 1,000 lb.-ft of torque. That puts it up there with the strongest engines made by Dodge and competes favorably with some of the most powerful engines on the market today. Unfortunately, we'll never know how fast the Cadillac Sixteen is because it was electronically limited to 40 mph as a function of it being a prototype. 

Cadillac decked out the interior as well, with some of the highest quality materials and most comfortable seats in any car at the time. Many folks wanted the car to come to at least a limited production. However, Cadillac never intended for the car to be fully released and instead used it as a show car to show off the brand's latest design language.