Ten of the Fastest American-Made Cars

Source: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

Speed is as American as the Constitution, Taco Bell, and the Super Cup. It’s in our DNA – in fact, put any American, regardless of age, behind the wheel of a quick car and see their face light up with unspoiled, unadulterated joy as they stomp the gas. It’s just who we are. Sure, Europe may lay claim to the supercar, but they could never in their wildest wishes begin to match the unspoiled hooliganism of a big V8, a lead foot, cheap gas, and hundreds of miles of straight, vapid highway.

And with technology raising horsepower and top speeds, while emissions and prices fall, American automakers are in the middle of a golden age that harkens back to the days of prompt and powerful muscle cars in the 1960s and ’70s. Only now, we’ve figured out how to treat the Europeans, and as a result our now finest spectacle cars also happen to be among some the best cars on the entire planet.

Not only have Americans been able to hold their own on the international stage when it comes to speed, it can also lay claim to the fastest cars in the world. And after generations of design and engineering tweaks, speed has been democratized, and is now available to almost everyone with a driver’s license. And while our daily drivers have gotten swifter, our spectacle cars have become downright insane.

These ten fastest American-made vehicles are a glance to behold, and are a rarity in their own right. If you happen to catch a glance of one, be sure to have the camera ready, as they’ll most likely be gone in the blink of an eye. For reference, we’ve compiled them right here in an easy-to-read list.

Ten. Tesla P90D (155 miles per hour)

Yes, the P90D is limited to a top speed of “just”155 miles per hour, just like a full-size SUV from Mercedes. But unlike other cars in the one hundred fifty five club (a common top speed for limited cars), the P90D has seven hundred sixty two horsepower and can sprint from zero to sixty in an eye-watering Two.8 seconds. Top speed be damned, the P90D is just plain quick.

9. Ford Shelby GT350 (180 miles per hour)

Unlike Shelby Musangs of yore, the GT350 is no straight-line rocket. I mean, it is that, but unlike its predecessors, this ponycar can actually take a corner too. In fact, the fresh GT350 carves corners about as well as Europe’s best, and is rapid shaping up to be one of the most formidable track fucktoys in the world. Zero to sixty comes in around Trio.7 seconds, and with five hundred twenty six horsepower and four hundred twenty nine pound-feet of torque coming from a Ferrari-inspired Five.Two liter flat-plane crank V8, it sounds unlike anything to ever come from the US of A. For drivers who view things like air conditioning and sound deadening as excess weight, they can opt for the even more track-focused GT350R (pictured above).

8. Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 (184 miles per hour)

With an all-new Camaro on the way, the current ZL1 is a lame duck, a fact Ford is all to glad to exploit with the GT350. But the current ZL1 is far from dead; it’s still available from Chevy, and with a five hundred eighty horsepower, 6.Two liter V8, it’s still one of the most formidable cars on the road. And while Ford has Chevy hammer in the top end of the muscle car market for now, a next-generation ZL1 has just been spotted at the Nürburgring, and should hit the streets in 2017. Expect it to be lighter, meaner, and quicker.

7. Chevrolet Corvette Z06 (185 miles per hour)

Source: General Motors

Like the Camaro, when the C6 Corvette was substituted by the infinitely better C7 in 2014, it lost its top-dog ZR-1. While that car could break the significant 200-mile per hour mark, today’s Z06 tops out at 185. Still, the fresh ‘Vette is more refined in virtually every way, and with six hundred fifty horses taking the car from zero to sixty in Two.95 seconds, it’s slew quick for most. For the few that are still unconvinced, rumor has it that Chevy is working on a next-gen ZR1 for 2017, and it may even be – gasp!– mid-engined.

6. Dodge Hellcat Challenger (199 miles per hour)

Source: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

Frankly, we’re still getting over the fact that the mad geniuses at FCA found a way to legally sell a seven hundred seven horsepower car that can go from zero to sixty in around three seconds and top out at one hundred ninety nine miles per hour for under $60,000. If you ever needed a reason to love American cars, here it is.

Five. Equus Bass seven hundred seventy (200 miles per hour)

Source: Equus Automotive

What do you get when a shadowy European businessman determines to build a six hundred forty horsepower, $200,000-plus sportscar that can hit the magic two hundred mile per hour mark? Something as American as baseball, hot dogs, apple pie, and Chevrolet, that’s what. Unveiled at the two thousand fourteen Detroit North American International Auto Display as a two thousand fifteen model, the Detroit-built the Bass seven hundred seventy is the most classic-looking muscle car to come out of the Motor City since the GM A-Body left production in ’81. Largely composed of carbon fiber and aluminum, and it borrows its 6.2-liter supercharged V8 engine form the Chevrolet Corvette.

Four. Cadillac CTS-V (200 miles per hour)

The last CTS-V was one hell of a performer. For 2016, Cadillac has made it even better. Car and Driver calls it the “four door Corvette,” and they’re not exaggerating. It shares its six hundred forty horsepower supercharged V8 with the Z06, and astonishingly, Cadillac has found a way to make the engine even sexier. Zero to sixty comes in Trio.7 seconds, on its way to a top speed of an even two hundred miles per hour.

Trio. Dodge Hellcat Charger (204 miles per hour)

Source: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

Like the CTS-V, Dodge’s big four-door shares its powerplant with a smaller coupe, and also like the Caddy, this sedan is swifter. In fact, it’s the fastest production sedan in the world. For under $64,000, fortunate Hellcat owners get a zero to sixty time of around Trio.7 seconds, that seven hundred seven horsepower supercharged 6.Two liter V8 from the Challenger, and an incredible top speed of two hundred four miles per hour.

Two. Dodge SRT Viper (206 miles per hour)

Source: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

It’s no surprise that the boys and ladies at Mopar all but own the top of the horsepower list, and the Viper is one of the largest reasons why. Dodge’s long-serving halo car employs an 8.Four liter, six hundred forty horsepower V10 engine, capable of going from 0-60 in around three seconds. With a price that starts $97,000, the Viper hardly seems like a bargain, but with that massive V10 and a top speed of two hundred six miles per hour, you’re talking about Ferrari spectacle for Mercedes S-Class prices.

1. Hennessey Venom (270 miles per hour)

More mythical animal than full-fledged production car, it would be a crime to put the Hennessey Venom GT anywhere but at the top of the list. Capable of speeds of up to two hundred seventy miles per hour, the Venom GT has hammer out the Bugatti Veyron to become the world’s fastest production car. It practically leaves blisters on the asphalt, leaping from 0-100 miles per hour in Five.6 seconds thanks to its 1,244 horsepower 7.0-liter Twin Turbocharged V8 engine. Manufactured in Texas, the $1.Two million Venom GT is lightly the fastest road car to ever come from America.

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