The muscle car is typically an American trend started by the moonshiners of the 1930s and 1940s, and popularized by the Plymouth Barracuda and Ford Mustang in the 1960s. While the muscle car was all the range in the US, Europe saw many vehicles which follows the same trend – even if they weren’t classified as ‘brutish’.

The European muscle car is mostly categorized as a sports or GT car, often featuring luxurious touches and fancier technologies. These attributes are combined with massively powerful engines which produce enough of a punch to give traditional muscle cars a run for their money. Older examples of these include the De Tomaso Longchamp – and the Pantera for that matter – and the more modern Aston Martin V8 Vantage and Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG with its huge 6.2-liter V8. These cars compete nicely with the likes of the Ford Mustang, Dodge Challenger, and Chevrolet Camaro, but still have a more premium feel to them – especially in terms of price.

The US may be the master of the muscle car, but Europe has produced some models which are just as good at shredding tires. Here are ten of the best muscle cars to use in a US versus Europe automotive battle.

10/10 The US – Ford Mustang GT500

The Ford Mustang is considered by many to be the best American muscle car around. Whether this is true or not, the Mustang is the model that popularized the whole idea. The various Mustang models were great, but the absolute pinnacle…