These days, technological breakthroughs in automobile design and engineering continue to blur the line between sports cars and supercars. Now, we have various sports cars like the new C8 Corvette or Audi R8 that boast supercar levels of performance. This situation is not distinct to smaller cars; SUVs and even trucks are not immune to this trend.
Take the Jeep Cherokee Trackhawk for example – a comfortable family SUV with seating for up to 5 adults and yet it will accelerate from a standing start to 60 mph in just over 3 seconds. In the not too distant past, that kind of figure was reserved for supercars and high-end sports cars. It is a very interesting scenario that points to an intriguing future for the players in the automobile industry. Will we see a reclassification of the various car segments?
Today, there are people that already refer to high-performance SUVs as SSUVs, short for 'Super Sports Utility Vehicle' – because it just doesn’t seem right to refer to a jeep that can crack 60 mph in less than 4 seconds as a mere SUV.
The Trackhawk is not alone, there are even faster SUVs out there today that will embarrass most modern sports cars on the highway. You will see some of them here and just for good measure, there are a few otherworldly pickup trucks thrown in the mix.
15 Lamborghini Urus – 0 to 60 MPH in 3.2 seconds
The Lamborghini Urus set tongues wagging when it debuted in 2018; here was an incredibly potent SUV, the likes of which had never been seen before. Get the launch sequence right and you could be looking at a 3.2-second blast to 60 mph and its twin-turbocharged V8 heart won’t stop chugging until you hit a top speed of 190 mph.
14 Bentley Bentayga Speed – 0 to 60 MPH in 3.8 seconds
The Bentayga Speed weighs all of 2.5 tons but under that hood lies a twelve-cylinder engine that puts out 626 hp – that’s 26 hp more than the ‘standard’ Bentayga. However, that power increase does ensure you hit 60 mph at a blistering pace and its top speed of 190mph is not bad at all for a car whose first priority is a luxurious indulgence.
13 Jeep Cherokee Trackhawk – 0 to 60 MPH in 3.5 seconds
This American SUV was a brief record holder for the fastest production SUV when it was unveiled to the public in 2018. The 2020 model packs a fearsome 707 hp supercharged Hellcat V-8 under its hood that is capable of sports car performance levels on the roads; yet, it will seat a family of five in comfort and can tow up to 3,200 kg. That family school run just got a lot more interesting.
12 Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio – 0 to 60 MPH in 3.4 seconds
This SUV has been described as that super SUV Ferrari never built. It is not cheap at over $80,000 but what you do get is a sonorous twin-turbo V6 plaything that will put out some pretty impressive numbers on the open roads. It is also well-equipped too with some advanced driving assists and a fancy infotainment system that should make your driving experience a lot of fun.
11 BMW X6 M Competition – 0 to 60 MPH in 3.7 seconds
The BMW X6 M is a wildly impractical vehicle with its small luggage space and limited rear visibility but who cares about all that when you can mount the German beast and send it flying to 60 mph in a scant 3.7 seconds before rocketing on to a top speed of almost 180 mph. For the $118,000 price tag, you also get that solid German build reputation and some tech goodies to play around with in the driver’s cabin.
10 Mercedes-AMG GLE63s – 0 to 60 MPH in 3.7 seconds
This X6 lookalike shares more than styling similarities with the Bavarian SUV; they are also matched in terms of speed and acceleration. To make its magic happen on the road, the GLE63s possesses a 603 hp twin-turbocharged engine that’s mated to a highly responsive 9-speed automatic transmission and the obligatory All-Wheel-Drive system.
9 Tesla Model X Performance – 0 to 60 MPH in 2.6 seconds
Electric vehicles have the advantage of instant torque and the Model X is no exception. It is the only electric car on this list but also the fastest. The latest on-air updates from Tesla makes the Model X more than a match for most sports cars on the road today. That 2.6-second sprint time is hypercar territory and is almost inconceivable for this bland-looking SUV.
8 Porsche Cayenne Turbo S – 0 to 60 MPH in 3.6 seconds
There are more than a few Porsche Cayenne models (you deserve a plaque if you can identify all Porsche models!) but the most powerful is the Cayenne Turbo S E-Hybrid. The car pairs a 134 hp electric motor with a 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 engine for a total of 670 hp. That is enough to get the car to 60mph ahead of the 2020 Toyota Supra, impressive.
7 Audi RS Q8 – 0 to 60 MPH in 3.6 seconds
The RS Q8 boasts performance stats that make it a perfectly acceptable substitute for those who cannot afford the premium price of the Lamborghini Urus. It can shut down half of its 8 cylinders to save fuel but fire up all cylinders and the speedo-needle won’t stop climbing until it gets to an electronically limited top speed of 190 mph.
6 2020 Maserati Levante Trofeo – 0 to 60 MPH in 3.8 seconds
The Levante Trofeo super-fast SUV is powered by a Ferrari sourced twin-turbocharged V8 that produces almost 600 hp and 538 pound-feet of torque. That will get you flashing past 60 mph in less than 4 seconds and on to a top speed of about 187 mph. It is a performance that will almost make you want to overlook that steep $170,000 price tag.
5 Roush F-150 Nitemare – 0 to 60 MPH in 3.9 seconds
The F-150 Nitemare does not make a lot of sense as a pickup truck but who cares? Not when you can fire up the engine and be doing 60mph less than 4 seconds later. That’s quicker than the BMW M2 Competition. The Nitemare is a serious piece of equipment that you don’t want to take for granted if you happen to come across it on the highway.
4 Hennessey Venom 775 – 0 to 60 MPH in 4.0 seconds
In February 2020, Hennessey Performance struck a partnership with a Tennessee-based Ford dealer to offer the Hennessey Venom 775 – essentially, a 2020 Ford F-150 on steroids. The engine has been cranked up to produce 775 hp which will get the truck to 60 mph in 4 seconds flat before crossing the quarter-mile, 8.1 seconds later, at over 110 mph.
3 Hennessey VelociRaptor V8 – 0 to 60 MPH in 4.1 seconds
Hennessey will take anything with four wheels and try to convert it to a missile; it doesn’t matter if it’s a sedan, SUV, or truck. The VelociRaptor V8 is an aptly named pickup truck with over 750 hp under the hood. It is incredible really when you consider that the almost 2.7-ton monster will be able to keep pace with a Mustang GT.
Related: Ranked: The 10 Fastest Street Legal Supercars
2 Dodge RAM SRT-10 – 0 to 60 MPH in 4.8 seconds
The Dodge RAM SRT-10 had a short production run, from 2004 to 2006, but still remains among the fastest production pickups ever built till date. The truck is powered by the same 8.3-liter V10 engine found in the Dodge Viper and it produces a healthy 500 hp. This engine, paired with a 6-speed manual transmission, has the potential to threaten even modern-day sports cars on the road.
1 Toyota Tundra TRD Supercharged – 0 to 60 MPH in 4.7 seconds
In 2015, Toyota announced that it would no longer offer TRD supercharger assembly and component parts which was a real shame, considering the potential that lay within. Just look at the Toyota Tundra TRD Supercharged that needed only 4.7 seconds to hit 60 mph before crossing the quarter-mile 9 seconds later – and this from a perfectly practical pickup truck.