Winning’s Winning: 12 Cars With the Quickest Quarter-Mile Times
Here are the reigning champs in MotorTrend quarter-mile acceleration testing thus far.
A quarter mile is a traditionally excellent way to measure a car’s speed and acceleration. Immortalized by both drag racing and The Fast and the Furious, it’s one of the stats that gets repeated in car-centric conversation. But here at MotorTrend, it’s more than just a talking point. As part of our thorough instrumented testing, we measure each and every car’s quarter-mile time.
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“We typically switch off traction-control systems and experiment with launch-control systems when so equipped,” this vehicle testing story explains. “We do not pull fuses to deactivate any such systems if there is no standard way to do so. We run from zero to the maximum practical speed increment above the quarter mile. As does the NHRA, we subtract a ‘1-foot’ (about 11.5 inches in reality) rollout from the launch to replicate dragstrip time measurement equipment. We want our numbers to match those acquired in this way. We experiment with launch techniques (brake torquing automatics to fully energize the torque converter, varying the launch rpm and amounts of wheelspin on manuals, etc.), then shift as quickly as possible while depressing the clutch and lifting off the throttle in three-pedal manuals. If there's a sport/sport plus mode, drag race mode, sport drive, or any other performance-enhancing setting, we'll start with those and work backward to see if it indeed helped. They often do not. We don't ‘speed shift’ manual transmissions. To date, only two manufacturers (select Chevrolet and Porsche vehicles) have a ‘no-lift-shift' protocol that allows the driver to keep the throttle fully depressed while momentarily pressing the clutch and shifting to the next gear at or near the tachometer's redline. We do use this standard performance-enhancing feature with these manufacturers.
“We record data to an SD card with Racelogic's Vbox satellite data-acquisition system, sampling at either 20Hz or 100Hz (meaning 20 or 100 data points per second),” the story reads on. “Because the test driver can view/review each quarter-mile pass and iterate techniques to arrive at the best result, the number of runs varies. In the end, we typically select a vehicle's single ‘best’ acceleration performance (or best pair of passes on a windy day), but sometimes that's a judgment call. Why? One pass might have the quickest 0–60 time and another might have the fastest quarter-mile time or speed. They're usually the same run. However, there are times when we need to pick one over the other, and we never blend two different runs.”
And, yes, to reiterate: We do quarter-mile testing on every car we test. That includes economy cars and luxo-barges and minivans. But this story is about the 12 fastest quarter-mile times we’ve ever recorded up until this point. Sometimes, you just want to sort the data by fastest and see what’s at the top. Turns out, it’s a great mix of Porsches, Ferraris, and high-performance EVs—but minivans? Not so much.
12. 2021 Porsche 911 Turbo S (Lightweight) | 10.0-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
Kicking off this list is the 2021 Porsche 911 Turbo S Lightweight—one of the go-to cars when trying to shave tenths of a second off of quarter-mile times. For the past few years (at least until high-performance EVs came along) the Turbo S was the acceleration king this side of a Ferrari. This particular Turbo is the Lightweight version, which is a special package that cuts curb weight by more than 65 pounds. Power comes from a 3.7-liter twin-turbo flat-six that produces a claimed 640 hp and 590 lb-ft of torque.
“By the time 100 mph whizzed by, the 2021 Porsche 911 Turbo S Lightweight was 0.4second ahead at 5.2 seconds,” Chris Walton wrote. “Crossing the finish line of the quarter mile, the standard car made the trip in 10.3 seconds at 132.3 mph to the Lightweight's 10.0-second, 137.8-mph best. Close, indeed, but we're a bit perplexed by the 5.5-mph speed differential. Just for fun, in a 0–100–0 contest, the Lightweight won by a tenth at 9.3 seconds.”
Power is great and everything, but sometimes all you have to do is rely on good, old physics to be quick.
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11. 2022 Lucid Air Grand Touring Performance | 10.0-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
Seeing as it’s 2025, you’re probably unsurprised to see a high-performance EV appear on this list. The 2022 Lucid Air Grand Touring Performance achieved the quarter mile in 10.0 seconds, and for a car that weighs 5,256 pounds, that’s not shabby at all. Part of what makes it possible is the 1,050 hp, 921 lb-ft of torque, and all-wheel drive.
“It does the electric vehicle ‘super quick in a straight line’ thing, of course, ”Scott Evans wrote. “We clocked this 1,050-hp cruise missile at 2.7 seconds to 60 mph followed by a 10.0-second quarter-mile trap at 145.3 mph.”
It’s not just that the Air GTP accelerates, though. It’s also how.
“More than winning bracket races and showing off to your friends, though, that accelerative acumen is life-altering on a mountain road,” Evans went on. “We've driven a lot of high-horsepower supercars on Angeles Crest Highway, and none of them has shortened the time between corners like this one. None of them has required us to back up our braking points as far as this one, and not just because it's heavy. The rate at which this car gains speed and the incredibly short distance needed to do it has you arriving at every corner much sooner and much faster than any other car we've driven. Critically, it doesn't slack off as you approach or exceed triple digits. It just keeps pulling like crazy up to at least 150 mph (where we ran out of test track, not power).”
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10. 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder | 10.0-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
In 2015, when V-12s, V-10s, and V-8s were all still fairly commonplace, Porsche did something different. Alongside McLaren and Ferrari, it produced a hybrid supercar in the 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder. The 918 flexed a 4.6-liter flat-crank V-8 with two electric motors beneath its smooth and spacey looks, capable of producing a claimed 887 combined hp with all-wheel drive. There was a dedicated EV mode, too, for stealthier prowling.
The quarter mile came and went in 10.0 seconds at 145.2 mph. But we’ll just include this passage from the car’s first test that concerns the feel of its acceleration: “Remember when we all thought no acceleration curve would ever be steeper than the Bugatti Veyron 16.4's? The McLaren P1 and the Porsche 918 almost run away from our original Veyron's test numbers, though its latest versions might match them. To 60 mph, the AWD Porsche is quickest (2.4 sec); beyond that, the mighty P1 (2.6 sec) edges away. The Bugatti? A yawning 2.7 seconds.”
While it’s no Carrera GT—and no car ever will be—the 918 Spyder is as worthy a successor as any.
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9. 2022 Ferrari SF90 Spider | 9.8-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
There are several top-tier automakers that boast “race cars for the road” production cars, but few do it as well as Ferrari. The 2022 Ferrari SF90 Spider offered both mind-blowing performance and top-down comfort in good weather. And they say you can’t have it all.
A hybrid 4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8 engine put out a claimed 986 combined hp and completed the quarter-mile run in 9.8 seconds at 146.0 mph.
“Like the Terminator, the SF90 Stradale is quicker than you, stronger than you, and—thankfully for me—smarter than you,” Joe Berry wrote in 2023. “Never in a vehicle have I felt so willingly out of control and yet so firmly in control. So ready to give myself over to a machine, and push it well beyond my own skill and comfort level. To trust that the hybrid system, in conjunction with the spectacular suite of driver aids, will not only keep me from meeting an untimely end but indeed have me exiting the corner feeling the kind of chemical high usually felt only by those who race professionally. The power delivery, downforce, grip, and steering are each more impressive and confidence-inspiring than the last. The SF90 Stradale Spider truly is a pleasure to push hard.” At the time, it was the quickest gas-powered car we'd ever tested at MotorTrend.
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8. 2014 McLaren P1 | 9.8-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
As a follow-up to the long-departed McLaren F1, the 2014 McLaren P1 was a hell of a second act. Its exterior was shaped by airflow, its insides engineered to break the space-time continuum. Specifically, it used a 3.8-liter twin-turbo V-8 hybrid powertrain and rear-drive setup to produce a claimed 904 hp. Its quarter-mile time is the same as the SF90 Spider’s above, but the trap speed was a little higher, at 148.9 mph.
Although this puts the P1 at No. 6 on our list today, that wasn’t the case back in 2014. Eleven years ago, those figures made the P1 MotorTrend’s quickest production car.
Regarding setting that record, Carlos Lago wrote, “Here's what I do remember: At the end of our day, when no one was looking, I hopped in the P1 with our Vbox data recorder. I slowly drove out of view to the far end of the runway (nothing to see here, folks), activated race mode, waited the required 40 seconds for the suspension to lower 2.0 inches and wing to rise 11.8 inches, and then activated launch control. Then I was going 160 mph.
“Here's what happened: The P1 took 2.6 seconds to reach 60 mph, 4.7 to 100, 6.3 to 120, and then passed the quarter mile in 9.8 seconds at 148.9 mph. Forget the Veyron. The P1 is [again, was] the quickest production car tested in MotorTrend's 65-year history.”
Dang.
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7. 2015 Ferrari LaFerrari | 9.7-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
There hasn’t been a trinity of supercars holier than the LaFerrari, 918 Spyder, and P1 in at least 10 years—and Ferrari stans will be pleased to know we have the empirical data to crown the 2015 Ferrari LaFerrari ruler of the three. At least when it comes to setting the fastest quarter-mile time. Does it have something to do with having a V-12? Maybe. Probably. We like to think so.
The LaFerrari uses a hybrid 6.3-liter V-12 and makes a claimed output of 950 hp. From the first test story: “It also shows 0–60 mph in 2.4 seconds, the quarter mile in 9.7 seconds at 148.5 mph, and 0–150 mph in 10.0 seconds. That 0–60-mph time matches the 918's, and the quarter-mile result is a tenth quicker than the P1, though the McLaren swaps that result at 150 mph. The numbers are astounding, but so was the consistency. I did four acceleration runs back to back, and they varied by hundredths. By the fourth, I was simply having fun. ... The Ferrari LaFerrari, McLaren P1, and Porsche 918 Spyder reach that fabled mark with alarming ease. ... Despite routing the most power through two driven wheels, the LaFerrari displays the fastest and hardest launch, showing a gap until 55 mph.”
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6. 2023 Ferrari 296 GTB (Assetto Fiorano) | 9.6-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
Although it has no V-12 between its axles, the 2023 Ferrari 296 GTB Assetto Fiorano is still a force to be reckoned with. Utilizing a 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged (gasp!) V-6 (gasp!!) plug-in hybrid (gasp!!!), the 296 is as sacrilegious as they come. But who are the so-called purists to deny the results? It’s quicker than the LaFerrari in every category we’ve listed here.
“Let's skip the pleasantries, shall we?” Evans wrote in 2023. “The 2023 Ferrari 296 GTB Assetto Fiorano is the quickest rear-wheel-drive production car MotorTrend has ever tested. Each of the six quicker cars we've tested relies on all-wheel-drive traction to save a precious tenth or two in the 0–60-mph sprint, and only two cars, each making more than 1,000 hp, can beat the rear-drive Ferrari in a quarter-mile drag.”
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5. 2021 Ferrari SF90 Stradale Assetto Fiorano | 9.6-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
In fact, we suspect that should the 296 GTB have had all-wheel drive, it might very well have beaten the 2021 Ferrari SF90 Stradale Assetto Fiorano to a quarter mile instead of merely tying with it. And this is when you consider the SF90’s 986 hp versus the 296 GTB’s 818 hp. Power solves a lot of things, but traction cleans it all up.
Anyway, we digress. The SF90’s 4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8 also benefits from hybrid power and all-wheel drive. “The SF90 Stradale Assetto Fiorano hits 60 mph from a standing start in 2.10 seconds,” Evans wrote in 2021. “It runs a standing quarter mile in 9.6 seconds at 145.2 mph. This makes it the second-quickest car we've ever tested, the quickest hybrid we've ever tested, and the quickest gasoline-burning car we've ever tested, taking those honorifics from the LaFerrari.”
As of today’s publish date, the SF90 is still the quickest gasoline car we’ve tested, and in all likelihood, that’s an achievement it’ll keep. Because after this? Everything goes pure electric.
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4. 2022 Tesla Model S Plaid | 9.3-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
The quickest and fastest quarter-mile gasoline-driven cars on this list are largely midship Ferraris equipped with the most cuttingest-edge race technology. But the top spots are devoted to neck-snapping EVs that can comfortably seat five and haul your groceries around, too. Like it or not, these are the cars that have won the practicality and performance upper hand here.
We were the first independent outlet invited to test the 2022 Tesla Model S Plaid ahead of its first customer deliveries a few years ago. Power output was (and remains) insane: 1,020 hp and 1,050 lb-ft of torque. Three motors. All-wheel drive.
However, in exchange for the access, Tesla wanted us to test on a prepped surface in addition to an unprepped surface, which is what we test everything else on. To make a long story short, we have both of those numbers but are reporting the unprepped ones only for consistency’s sake.
Here’s how it went down: “The next day at our usual Fontana stomping grounds, we performed our braking and skidpad testing and repeated all but one of the acceleration tests we ran at Famoso. We were unable to run the full quarter mile again, as Fontana requires us to hire EMTs and rescue personnel when our testing might reach high speeds. They also require two weeks' notice to do so, which we didn't have. Even so, using our Vbox data from both the prepped surface at Famoso and the unprepped asphalt at Fontana, we could stitch together a reasonable estimate of what the Model S Plaid is capable of in a non-VHT-aided quarter mile.
“Once ready and in its cheetah stance, the Model S Plaid's launch is drama-free, even without the added advantage of VHT. The electric car accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in just 2.07 seconds, more than 0.2 second quicker than our previous record holder. Eliminate the customary 1-foot of rollout, and the Plaid accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in 2.28 seconds, matching the previous record holder with rollout. And if we could have kept going, our data says it's capable of running through the quarter mile in 9.34 seconds at 152.2 mph.”
At the time, this made the 2022 Tesla Model S Plaid the quickest production car we'd ever tested.
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3. 2025 Porsche Taycan Turbo GT | 9.3-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
At this point, seeing “Porsche” and “Turbo” should elicit a Pavlovian response to expect physics-defying acceleration. Throw in a BEV’s instant torque and, well, are you surprised to see a Taycan this high up on the list? We’re certainly not.
The 2025 Porsche Taycan Turbo GT achieved the quarter mile in 9.3 seconds at 148.7 mph, putting it slightly ahead of the Model S Plaid and with a legitimate, sub-2.0-second 0–60 time.
But just wait. If you think this is Porsche’s crowning moment, keep reading.
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2. 2024 Lucid Air Sapphire | 9.3-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
Because Lucid already had a winning formula in the Air Grand Touring Performance above, it only made sense to add more of that magic sauce. See also: power.
The 2024 Lucid Air Sapphire is the “hot rod” Air, boasting 1,234 and 1,430 combined hp and torque, respectively. You can see the car’s acceleration figures in the table below, but note that it achieved the quarter mile in 9.3 seconds. This puts it just ahead of the Model S Plaid above, because the unrounded time for the Lucid is 9.269 seconds and 9.343 for the Tesla. (We’re not counting the prototype figure for this list and instead are using the production one.)
“That prototype Air Sapphire laid down some impressive performance bogies—2.2 seconds from 0 to 60 mph and a mind-boggling 9.2 seconds to cross the quarter mile, the quickest quarter-mile time on record in MotorTrend testing history,” Erick Ayapana wrote. “Matching that 0–60-mph time with the production-spec Sapphire was a breeze, but the best it could do in the quarter mile was 9.3 seconds (with a trap speed of 156 mph). Impressive nonetheless, but it means the production Lucid must share the quarter-mile record with the Tesla Model S Plaid (which is quicker to 60 mph by 0.1 second).”
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
1. 2025 Porsche Taycan Turbo GT Weissach | 9.2-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
These are numbers that barely seem real, but they are. According to MotorTrend testing, the car with the quickest quarter-mile time as of this writing is none other than the 2025 Porsche Taycan Turbo GT Weissach. With a whopping 1,019 hp and 914 lb-ft of torque, the thing is a certifiable neck-snapper.
“In the quarter mile,” Christian Seabaugh wrote, “the Taycan Weissach hangs on to post the quickest time we’ve ever recorded, blowing through the lights in 9.23 seconds at 150.1 mph, just a tick ahead of the non-Weissach Turbo GT (9.34 seconds at 148.7 mph) and a hair ahead of the more powerful Air Sapphire, the production version of which does the deed in 9.3 seconds at 156.0-mph run.
“That a production Taycan Turbo GT Weissach posts these acceleration figures repeatedly without an elaborate song and dance like some of its rivals is even more impressive—just twist a dial into Sport Plus, mash the brake, flat-foot the gas, let go of the brake, and launch control takes over from there.”
Until something else comes along to steal the crown—which, at this point, seems only to be a matter of time—feast your eyes on the current quarter-mile king.
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Quickest Quarter-Mile Times: Tested by MotorTrend
- 12. 2021 Porsche 911 Turbo S (Lightweight) | 10.0-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
- 11. 2022 Lucid Air Grand Touring Performance | 10.0-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
- 10. 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder | 10.0-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
- 9. 2022 Ferrari SF90 Spider | 9.8-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
- 8. 2014 McLaren P1 | 9.8-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
- 7. 2015 Ferrari LaFerrari | 9.7-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
- 6. 2023 Ferrari 296 GTB (AssettoFiorano) | 9.6-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
- 5. 2021 Ferrari SF90 Stradale Assetto Fiorano | 9.6-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
- 4. 2022 Tesla Model S Plaid | 9.3-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
- 3. 2025 Porsche Taycan Turbo GT | 9.3-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
- 2. 2024 Lucid Air Sapphire | 9.3-Sec Quarter-Mile time
- 1. 2025 Porsche Taycan Turbo GT Weissach | 9.2-Sec Quarter-Mile Time
I got into cars the way most people do: my dad. Since I was little, it was always something we’d talk about and I think he was stoked to have his kid share his interest. He’d buy me the books, magazines, calendars, and diecast models—everything he could do to encourage a young enthusiast. Eventually, I went to school and got to the point where people start asking you what you want to do with your life. Seeing as cars are what I love and writing is what I enjoy doing, combining the two was the logical next step. This dream job is the only one I’ve ever wanted. Since then, I’ve worked at Road & Track, Jalopnik, Business Insider, The Drive, and now MotorTrend, and made appearances on Jay Leno’s Garage, Good Morning America, The Smoking Tire Podcast, Fusion’s Car vs. America, the Ask a Clean Person podcast, and MotorTrend’s Shift Talkers. In my spare time, I enjoy reading, cooking, and watching the Fast & Furious movies on repeat. Tokyo Drift is the best one.
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