American cars have been known as powerhouse lifters in car culture, especially in the 1960s, '70s, and today. They hold the power to churn out 1/4 mile times quicker than 2 seconds in some cases. In the '80s and '90s when the Mustang and Camaro started lagging a little, and Japanese cars were there to pick up the slack. Maybe they weren't the fastest in a straight line, but cars like the famous rotary RX-7, turbocharged Mitsubishi Starion, and the twin-turbo all-wheel-drive Mitsubishi 3000GT were certainly more interesting. Japanese cars in America cemented their legacy with cars that could turn and were technologically more advanced and exotic for low prices.
10 Nissan GTR
In all fairness, Nissan's titan GTR is hard to beat, especially considering how much car it is for the money. Its twin-turbocharged 3.8-liter V6 rockets the car to 60 mph with 485 horsepower to all wheels in just three seconds.
Its MSRP lies at $113,540, which is where the Cadillac CT6-V comes in. At about $100,000, the CT6-V uses a twin-turbocharged V8 that produces 550 horsepower to all four wheels, which should make it a contender against the GTR. Unfortunately, all that power drags the car to 60 mph in 3.8 seconds.
9 2019 Toyota Supra
No one forgets where they were when they heard that the fifth-generation Toyota Supra was going to break ground in 2019. It had been a long wait, nearly 17 years since the MKIV Supra left the lives of JDM-obsessed gearheads around the world before Toyota decided to bring the name back.
Going by sheer numbers, not a lot has changed. It still uses a turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six making about 330 horsepower, but underneath it's all BMW. BMW or not, that power gets this Toyota-emblem-laden beast to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds and costs around $40,000. The Mustang GT costs only a little bit less and has much more power, but gets to 60 in 4.6 seconds.
8 2020 Honda Civic Type R
The Honda Civic has been through quite a transformation in recent years. Even its base model has decent torque, the interior is large and comfortable, and there's plenty of cargo space. It's also packed with features previously found only on luxury vehicles, all included.
The Type R though is what happens when the Civic is bullied into the gym and comes out looking like it's hopped up on steroids. It uses a dinky 2.0-liter engine, but with a turbocharger produces 306 horsepower and gets the car to 60 mph in a blistering five seconds, all for just $38,000.
7 2017 Acura NSX
Acura revitalized the NSX in 2016. It was a beloved '90s rear-wheel-drive Honda that scraped at the heels of supercars, but never quite made it. They are extremely rare and expensive, at over $100,000. It's come back with a vengeance, with a 3.5-liter V6 and electric motors it makes 573 horsepower and gets to 60mph in 3.0 seconds.
The 2015 Viper, on the other hand, uses its tried and true 8.4-liter V10 monster engine that makes 645 horsepower, but that gets the car to 60 in 3.2 seconds. It's not a big difference, but considering the Viper is slower with almost twice the displacement, it's a clear win for the NSX.
6 2011 Nissan 370z
It's wonderful that Toyota and Subaru made the 86 and BRZ respectively, and that Toyota brought back the Supra and that Honda brought back the NSX. However, in all this time there was a Japanese manufacturer that never stopped making a proper rear-wheel drive sports car to hold down the fort (except from 2000-2002) for the JDM world.
That was the Nissan Z series. The 2011 370z with its 3.7-liter V6 could hit 60 mph in 4.8 seconds, while the 2011 Chevrolet Camaro V6 could hit 60 almost a full second later at 5.6 seconds.
5 Subaru BRZ
The Subaru BRZ is known for its upper-end horsepower and lack of low-end torque. Owners express remorse at having to peg the rev limiter to get all 200 horsepower out of the 2.0-liter H4. For track driving it's perfect, but for straight-line speed, it's not exactly ideal.
One thing the BRZ does better than any other American car provides a platform that is perfectly in sync. It might be underpowered compared to the Dodge Demon, but there's no question on which car is more balanced.
4 Lexus LC 500
Toyota makes Lexus an impressive brand for entry-level luxury cars. It's like having a Mercedes but everything works, at least for a longer period of time. The LC500 starts at a heaping $93,000 and can come with a 5.0-liter V8 that produces 471 horsepower.
Though the car is reportedly not as aggressive or violent as an American muscle car, or its Audi or BMW counterparts, as it stands it is a performance luxury coupe which puts it in a class of its own, where the competition hasn't yet caught up. An LC500 is going to be slower than a Mustang GT, but a lot more comfortable.
3 Mazda MX-5
Mazda's long-lived MX-5 Miata has been around for a long time but has stayed mostly the same. It has gained 40-odd horsepower since its genesis in 1989, but really the core values haven't been compromised. The car is still convertible, holds a 50/50 weight distribution, and uses a very small inline-four.
Much like the BRZ, the Miata offers something no American car can at the moment, and that is balance. A Camaro can swing its tail end around a corner, but a Miata can do it on purpose, with composure and tranquility.
2 2016 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X
The day Mitsubishi stopped making the Lancer Evolution was the end of an era. Since the early '90s, Mitsubishi has made the turbocharged inline-four with all-wheel-drive a powerhouse, not just on the street but in competitions as well. It even used the same iron block until Evolution X came about.
Its swan song, the 2016 model, could hit 60 mph in just 5.1 seconds, while its closest West rival, the Cadillac ATS 3.6 AWD, managed to clock 60 in 5.5 seconds. Mitsubishi by that time knew what it was doing with the Lancer Evolution.
1 Honda S2000
Honda has made very few rear-wheel-drive sports cars, one of them being the famous S2000. It uses a Vtec-equipped 2.2-liter inline-four that produces 240 horsepower and weighs about 2,800 pounds.
Its American counterpart is sometimes said to be the Pontiac Solstice, even though the S2000 has one hundred more horsepower and is more reliable. The Honda reaches 60 mph in 6.3 seconds, while the Solstice takes an entire seven seconds. The speed, reliability, and style all lie peacefully with the S2000.