Standing at a red light next to a boring car and feeling smug before it gaps us the moment the light goes green is a tale as old as time. That's what sleeper cars do, after all. They make you assume they are simply boring duds based on how they look, and yet when pushed, these cars can outperform and outrun even the sportiest of cars out there. This is because these cars pack heaps of power underneath their hoods, and the packaging on the exterior isn't the snazziest, which often makes people either pass on them at dealerships or take them lightly on the roads.
Nevertheless, these cars do come a little cheaper than their fancier-looking cousins. Then there's always the added benefit of knowing the cops would flag down the clear supercars more often since nobody expects these sleeper cars to do anything other than mundane commuting. Fancy designs and looks don't make a car perform impressively, but only what lies under the hood. That said, here are ten sleeper cars that make truly realize that one should never judge a book by its cover.
10 Mazda 6
The Mazda 6, at first glance, seems like a rather stately and subdued mid-size sedan. One could be forgiven for thinking it's a car meant specifically for those who don't care about specs and simply need a mildly executive-looking sedan to travel to their job. However, upon revving the throttle, one would soon realize that there's nothing remotely subdued about the Mazda 6.
The AWD sedan houses a 2.3-liter inline-four turbocharged engine which cranks out 274 horsepower along with 280 lb-ft of torque. With Mazda's Active Torque Split at work along with the AWD system, the car is way more effective than its rivals at sending the torque to the wheels which require more power. Even when pushed, the car remained quite the smooth driver on the roads, and with just its driving dynamics, could easily punch above its weight class.
9 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8
Jeep Grand Cherokees are quite popular cars, and the brand has a cult following of its own. A fairly capable SUV that is the quintessential off-roader and urban cruiser, the Jeep Grand Cherokee is, by all means, impressive. However, move over to the Grand Cherokee SRT8, and you'd think it looks the same. The difference? The SRT8 packs far more power.
In 2011, Jeep launched the second generation SRT8 and equipped the SUV with a huge 6.4-liter Hemi V8 engine which churned out 470 horsepower. Even though the first generation of Grand Cherokee SRT8 vehicles had 50 less horsepower, they could still reach the 60 mph mark in under 5 seconds. For such a big SUV, those are mighty impressive numbers. While not a textbook sleeper car, there's a surprising amount of people who simply don't realize the true power the SRT8 packs under its hood.
8 MG Maestro Turbo
Here's a sleeper car that most certainly looks the part. The MG Maestro Turbo looked like a vehicle you would get yourself for the money you saved until you turned 18, or a small family car that did nothing but go from A to B. However, it was powered by a 2.0-liter engine that was turbocharged.
Thanks to the Maestro Turbo's light weight and small size, the 150 horsepower it made was sufficient in making the car go from 0 to 60 in just 6.7 seconds back in 1991. It even had a maximum speed of 132 mph, which could easily have left any other GT car of its era in the rearview mirror. This sleeper car's looks were so dull, however, that sales never took off.
7 Volvo 850
Volvo's station wagon looked very much like a station wagon did back in 1995. It was elongated, roomy, and definitely dull. Anyone looking at the car would then think that the car did what any other station wagon would, which wasn't more than 100 mph. However, only a few gearheads knew that the Volvo 850 R and the 850 T-5R could go over the 150 mph mark.
This surprisingly impressive power came thanks to Volvo's collaboration with Porsche, which resulted in the station wagon producing a whopping 300 horsepower. The power under this car's hood put sportier cars of the decade to shame.
6 Chevrolet Super Sport
The Chevrolet Super Sport is a car that is missed even today. One of the best and most powerful daily driving sedans of its time, the Chevy SS housed an LS3 6.2-liter V8 engine under its hood, which it borrowed from its cousin, the Corvette C6. Quite deservedly, the SS was known as the ultimate Chevrolet sedan.
The car cranked out 415 horsepower with 415 lb-ft of torque and came loaded with features like auto-park assist. It even had driver assistance systems like lane-departure warning and blind-spot monitoring. Sadly, 2017 was the last year for the Chevy SS, owing to inadequate sales figures.
5 Ford Taurus SHO
Although it was pronounced the 'Taurus show', the acronym in the Ford Taurus SHO stood for 'Super High Output'. Built by Ford between 2010 and 2017, the Ford Taurus SHO was quite the high-performance sedan. It housed a 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6 EcoBoost power unit under the hood, mated to an all-wheel drivetrain.
The Taurus SHO produced a massive 365 horsepower, along with 350 lb-ft of torque. In fact, it was so popular, that the third Men in Black movie featured a 2012 Ford Taurus SHO as well. After all, there was no better car to exemplify the Men in Black either. Stealthy and unassuming on the outside, but massively powerful once the covers come off. The SHO could do 0-60 in just 5.1 seconds, but it never found enough takers, remaining an underrated gem throughout its lifespan.
4 GMC Syclone
When GMC made the decision to bring in a small truck, plenty were on the fence. The choice to name it the 'Syclone' didn't help initial doubts either. This was a small pickup that looked decent for its time, at par with contemporaries in the styling department. Little did anyone know that the GMC Syclone would go on to become one of the best pickup trucks ever.
It was when the truck launched that it blew everyone and their (low) expectations away. The Syclone housed a turbocharged V6 engine which made 280 horsepower and 350 lb-ft of torque. In fact, the truck reached the 60 mph mark from idle in just about 5 seconds, which even led to auto magazines comparing the truck's acceleration to that of a Ferrari!
3 Buick Regal GS
The Buick Regal GS was never a new car by any means. People knew the Regal GS to be a re-badged Opel Insignia, which is why there was never too much of a hoopla around the car. Making things worse, the car never had an X-factor of its own in the design department either and looked just like the Insignia, which was a modern but boring, run-of-the-mill design.
However, underneath the hood, the Buick Regal GS carried a 2.0-liter high-output inline-four engine which was turbocharged. This resulted in the car making 270 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque. The car's AWD drivetrain and the redeeming engine propelled it from 0 to 60 in just 6.2 seconds. Even though the engine was remarkably impressive, the Regal's sales never were.
2 Mercury Marauder
There is no denying that the '60s were the best time for the Mercury Marauder. However, it was in the early 2000s that the Marauder began being known as the ultimate sleeper car. The Marauder, at the very beginning of the century, became a sister car to the Crown Victoria police car.
This car came off the assembly line with the massive V8 engine borrowed from the Ford Mustang Mach 1. Despite its 300-horsepower engine, the car never really took off. Ford even fitted it with mechanical components from the Victoria police interceptor, but it never generated much interest. Looking at the car, nobody could have imagined it to house such a powerful engine and actually be sporty in its performance, and they couldn't really be blamed either. Sadly, though, just a decade into the new century, Ford decided to shut down the Mercury brand altogether.
1 Infiniti Q50 Hybrid
Another sedan that looks every bit of an office commuter, the Infinity Q50's hybrid variant never looked all that different from the gas-powered Q50. For many, this was a reason to not get the car, since its gas-powered sibling could always be purchased for less.
However, the Q50's redeeming quality was its power unit, which was a 3.5-liter V6 gasoline engine combined with a 67-horsepower electric motor. This resulted in a whopping 360 horsepower and 402 lb-ft of torque. Those numbers are mighty impressive even for a dedicated sports car, let alone a hybrid car that is easier on the environment. With a 0-60 time of 5.2 seconds, the Q50 Hybrid is one of the best sleeper cars out there, which manages to look modern, house tons of power underneath, and take care of the earth while it's at it.