There are two distinct eras when to comes to Australian Muscle Cars. We covered the ‘classic’ era in part one of this series with all the well-known homegrown heroes, but as promised here is the more recent dectet. 

Delineating the two eras is the relative paucity of high performance machinery in the late-1980s and early-1990s (though the emergence of Holden Special Vehicles was a bright light). Momentum began to build again around the turn of the millennium and from there the hits kept coming all the way to the cessation of local manufacturing. 

In chronological order, here are our Top 10 modern Aussie muscle cars. 

1990 Holden VN SS Group A 

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The VN Group A marked the end of the Australian homologation special. With the impending switch to V8 Supercars, there was no longer the need to produce a set number of road-going examples. 

But while the VN was the closing chapter in Holden’s Group A story, it opened another with the return of Peter Brock – for so long the man responsible for those homologation specials – to the Lion fold, much to the joy of his devoted fans. 

The bodykit was toned down from the wild excesses of the VL, the 5.0-litre V8 got a comprehensive overhaul for improved power and reliability producing 215kW/411Nm along with the six-speed manual from the Corvette ZR-1. Just 302 were built. 

2000 HSV VT II GTS300 

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If you’re an extrovert you might want the lurid VS GTS-R in this spot, but the VT II GTS vaulted HSV into the big leagues. The installation of the 300kW/510Nm Callaway-tuned 5.7-litre V8 meant it could now go toe-to-toe with the very best fast four-doors from Europe. 

MOTOR magazine did just that, sending a GTS to Germany to tackle the BMW E39 M5 and Mercedes-Benz W210 E55 AMG on their home turf, the Nurburgring, and gave the nod to the Aussie for its driving dynamics.  

It set a performance standard that would not be surpassed for almost a decade and if you found the sedan a bit pedestrian in the looks department, there was even a GTS Coupe. 

2002 Ford AU Falcon TE/TS50 

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Ford couldn’t match the heady heights of the HSV GTS but it wasn’t for a lack of trying. Thanks to its relationship with Tickford it continued to tweak the talented-but-unloved AU platform, culminating in the TE and TS50. 

While it didn’t have the HSV’s headline power figure, nor did it have the price tag, the TE50 costing almost $40K less. And you still got a thumping 250kW/500Nm 5.6-litre stroked Windsor V8, while Koni shocks (standard on the TS50) and Brembo brakes could be optionally added to further enhance the chassis. 

Time has been kind to the AU shape, but there’s no doubt the Supercar-style bodykit sharpens up the taco-like profile without the quad-headlight treatment of Ford’s XR models. 

2002 Ford Falcon XR6 Turbo 

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With the AU’s successor Ford was back with a capital BA. A new 5.4-litre quad-cam V8 in the XR8, the creation of Ford Performance Vehicles and revival of the iconic GT badge, but it was the XR6 Turbo that really set the cat amongst the pigeons. 

Or should that be the fish? For the key to the XR6 Turbo’s success was the new boosted Barra, a twin-cam 4.0-litre straight-six with a Garrett turbo whispering sweet nothings into the cylinders. 

Combine this with a balanced, accurate chassis and you had a new Aussie muscle car hero. Only the recalcitrant five-speed manual held it back, making the four-speed auto the pick, but this quickly changed with the arrival of the six-speed Tremec T56 for BA Mk II before the XR6T really hit its stride thanks to the installation of the ZF six-speed auto with BF.  

2008 HSV W427

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The HSV W427 was a flop. Commercially, at least. HSV initially announced 427 would be built, wound that back to 200 but ended up producing just 137, which of course now only adds to its allure as one of the rarest Aussie muscle cars. 

Its lack of sales success was no reflection on the car. A 7.0-litre dry-sumped V8 with 375kW/640Nm, 380mm front brake discs with six-piston calipers, magnetorheological dampers like those in a Ferrari 599; like the GTS 300, it had a spec list that could match any four-door in the world at the time. 

Sadly, one thing it couldn’t outrun was the global financial crisis, the worldwide meltdown severely shrinking the pool of buyers for a $155,500 (almost $250,000 in today’s money) Aussie muscle car.  

2013 HSV Gen-F GTS

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By the early-2010s Australia’s performance car oneupmanship was on an exponential trajectory. Having traded kiloWatts for years Ford attempted to put the whole thing to bed with the supercharged 335kW/570Nm 5.0-litre ‘Miami’ V8. 

HSV’s response was brutal. It’s first VF-based flagship scored a 430kW/740Nm 6.2-litre supercharged V8, immediately vaulting local muscle car performance into a different league. 

What was most remarkable, however, was that the outrageous power was arguably the least impressive aspect of the GTS. The way it could deploy all of its reserves on road or track yet commute with comfort made it one of the biggest step changes in local production history. 

2014 FPV GT-F 

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To say goodbye to Ford Performance Vehicles, the GT-F development team knew it had to deliver something special, so it pulled every thread available to it within a very limited budget. 

Putting the Prodrive-developed 5.0-litre supercharged Miami V8 into the aging FG Falcon platform was like sticking a bomb in a wooden crate; left to its own devices it would blow its surroundings to smithereens. 

The new Bosch 9.0 ECU allowed for greater control of the grunt, which increased to 351kW/570Nm – in the worst possible circumstances. In most instances it would be cranking out closer to 400kW/650Nm thanks to the overboost function. 

Controlling this was the R-Spec suspension package, with 30mm-wider rear tyres, and the premium brake package from the GT-P so the GT-F had a fighting chance of taming the fury under the bonnet. A fitting farewell. 

2016 Ford FG X Falcon Sprints 

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With the end of Falcon production looming, Ford could have rolled the arm over. A few badges, perhaps a colour or two, but a small, dedicated team within the company were determined to send the old girl off in style. 

In contrast to the stripes-and-spoilers FPVs, the XR6 and XR8 Sprints (yes, we’re cheating by including both) were subtle in their looks, but there was nothing subtle about their performance. The XR8 Sprint was relatively similar to the GT-F, albeit with new Pirelli tyres necessitating a total suspension overhaul to take advantage of the extra grip. 

The Sprint program, however, allowed the XR6 Turbo to shine. In layman’s terms, the Sprint engine combined the higher compression XR6T engine with F6 ancillaries, but the result was more power everywhere – officially 325kW/576Nm, but at least 10 per cent more than that in most scenarios thanks to the overboost function. 

2017 Holden VF II Commodore Motorsport Edition

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When Holden introduced the ‘Redline’ variant to the SS range with the VE II, it finally produced a Commodore that was comfortable on track. With the VF there was a great chassis somewhat in need of an engine, while the installation of the 6.2-litre LS3 for VF II created one of the all-time great Aussie sedans. 

But Holden had one more hand to play and it was a Royal Flush. The Motorsport Edition scored Magnetic Ride Control dampers from the HSV GTS (albeit retuned), two-piece, cross-drilled front brakes, lightweight 20-inch wheels and a driveline cooling package that earned this final fling GM’s Level Three track-readiness rating. 

All this for $61,790 (plus on-road costs) for the manual, about what you’ll pay for a decent hot hatch these days. Sigh. 

2017 HSV GTSR W1 

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While this list is in chronological order, it’s fitting that the HSV GTSR W1 occupies the final spot on our two-part list: the fastest, most powerful, most extreme and most expensive muscle car Australia ever produced. 

The standard GTS wasn’t exactly demure, but from the moment you set off in a W1 it made its intentions explicitly clear. The LS9 V8 from the Corvette ZR1 was more eager, more ferocious, the ride from the fixed-rate SupaShock dampers was unforgiving and the Pirelli P Zero Trofeo semi-slicks were uninterested in grip until they were warmed through. 

Just 300 were built, far fewer were driven and almost none driven in the manner its makers intended, for while the experience wasn’t without compromise, fully lit the W1 offered the greatest driving thrills of any Australian muscle car. Ever.