Power and adrenaline: these are the two things most commonly associated with American automakers, at least as far as specialties go.
Ford, Pontiac, Dodge, and Chevrolet, among others, built their reputations during the 1960s and 1970s by crafting brutally fast coupes that ruled the streets. But while the streets of America once served as the proving grounds for many amateur racers, the races have since moved to the track. So instead of resting on laurels and sticking with straight-line speed, automakers have had to reinvent some of their most iconic nameplates, all while making sure they stay true to their reputation. Needless to say, the results have been pretty spectacular.
We took a look at the fastest muscle cars that have graced the U.S. market in the 2010s. The list is largely the same as it could’ve been 47 years ago, with Mustang, Camaro, Challenger, Charger, and a few others, leading the lot. But thanks to huge advances in engineering, these cars are now safer, more reliable, and most importantly, more powerful than ever before. There may be some omissions, but we limited the list to cars that we could find precise and reliable test data for. Sports cars, including the Dodge Viper and Chevrolet Corvette, have also been omitted in order to stick closer to pure muscle car DNA.
We ranked this baker’s dozen by horsepower. In the event that there was a tie (and there were a few), we used zero to 60 times to settle the argument. So, without further ado, here are the 13 fastest modern muscle cars of the 2010s.
2017 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat
2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat
2014 Shelby GT500
2017 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
2015 Equus Bass 770
2017 Shelby GT350R
2014 Chevrolet Camaro Z28
2017 Dodge Challenger SRT 392
2017 Dodge Charger SRT 392
2017 Chevrolet Camaro SS