What defines a fast car in 2020?

Dominic-Toretto

Dominic-Toretto

Dominic-Toretto

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Hey, hope everyone is well. I have been pondering this question over dinner tonight. Given how fast cars have become, what metrics do people look for in cars and think "wow thats a fast car". It seems like 0 to 60 in 6 seconds or less was the metric for a long time but imo that is no longer relevant. Most cars on the road today are capable of running 0 to 60 in less than 4 seconds, and 0 to 100 in less than 10 seconds with ease.

I personally classify a car as "fast" if it meets the below criteria:
0 to 60mph in 2.9s or less
0 to 100 in 6.5s or less

Any thing slower than the above times I would class as "brisk" rather than fast.

What do you guys think?
 
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Hyburnate said:
lol. I think I disagree with your definition of most.

Fast I would consider to be roughly 7s, which is what most hot hatches hit now surely?

And then quick sub 5.

Insanely quick sub 3
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Surely quick is slower than fast? :p

meh <10.0s
nippy <9.0s
very nippy <8.0s
quick <7.5s
very quick <6.5s
fast <6.0s
very fast <5.5s
stupid fast <4.5s
pointless <3.5s
tiny willy <3.0s


Squidward said:
Most cars on the road today are capable of running 0 to 60 in less than 4 seconds
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Not sure if serious, because that is the most stupid and wholely inaccurate thing anyone has said on here for a hot minute. :p

Squidward said:
What do you guys think?
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I think this is a carbon copy of something you've already posted, that you are trolling or that you might be losing it, that 0 - 60 time isn't everything, and also that nobody cares.
 
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I'm actually surprised by my pickup - maybe because it is a pickup but 0-60 in 9 seconds standard (which is doable rather than an on paper number) and 8 seconds if you "launch" it feels surprisingly decent - I think part of it is the drama from a fairly decent sounding V6 being let out combined with the feel from all that torque.

Anything sub 6 seconds is still fast in my book and 6-7 still feels very quick even in this day and age.
 
I would say 0-100 of under 10s is fast, 0-60 is largely becoming a pointless number. a lot of small engined cars that are fast 0-60 run out of puff at that point. I do realise this is largely academic as most people won't be doing 0-60 much, let alone 0-100:p.
 
theone8181 said:
I would say 0-100 of under 10s is fast, 0-60 is largely becoming a pointless number. a lot of small engined cars that are fast 0-60 run out of puff at that point. I do realise this is largely academic as most people won't be doing 0-60 much, let alone 0-100:p.
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I'd agree with that.

Additionally 0 - 60 or 0 - 62 time on paper is dependant on gear ratios and whether or not you have to change into third before you reach that speed.

If you have to change into third at 59mph in one car and 62mph in another car, that additional shift would add a few tenths of a second. The car that can only do 59mph in second gear might be the faster of the two "in-gear" but the on paper figure would be slower.

Same goes with 0 - 100 as well but by that point the rate of acceleration has slowed enough that a quick shift into the next gear wouldn't make such a drastic difference IMO.

Although I am a child so if I'm at a set of lights with clear road ahead I might do a 0 - 60... Especially if launch control is available. :D
 
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It's completely subjective. A 17 year old in his 1.2 corsa might think it's blisteringly fast vs Lewis Hamilton who has an entirely different perception of speed. Even those 1 litre fiestas with 130bhp or so have surprised me in the past. I also think past a certain point a cars power + 0-60 becomes somewhat redundant on anything other than a straightish road. I recall reading something from EVO magazine years ago that when they were doing a supercar segment they had to call the significantly slower camera car and ask him to slow down because they couldn't keep up with it on some winding mountain road iirc.
 
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