The German automobile industry has grown from a modest 900 cars per year in 1901, to a massive industrial sector that churned out 5.1 million cars in 2018. Today, Germany is home to some of the biggest names in the automobile world. There are powerhouses like Mercedes Benz, BMW, and the Volkswagen Group corporate behemoth that includes the Audi and Porsche brands.
German sports cars are well known for pioneering automotive technology and overall reliability. But despite relying on their image of opulence, comfort, and reliability, Germany also produced supercars capable of break-neck acceleration and top speed, if the road is long enough.
10 Mercedes Benz AMG GT63 S – 196 MPH
It’s the only 4-door on this list, but it’s one that has earned every right to be included. The AMG GT63 S can comfortably seat 4 adults and has reasonable cargo space. What’s more? The car weighs all of 2 tons. It doesn’t make sense that a car like that should be capable of top speeds just shy of 200 mph.
However, the AMG GT63 S is no ordinary car. Under the hood lies a snarling twin-turbocharged V8 engine that produces 630 hp and 664 pound-feet of torque. Combine that with a racy chassis setup and that top speed begins to make a little more sense.
9 Audi R8 V10 Decennium – 205 MPH
There is no such thing as a slow Audi R8. They are all road rockets and this special edition variant is among the quickest of the lot. The R8 V10 decennium was unveiled in 2019 to celebrate the 10th year anniversary of the supercar.
The car carries an insane $215,000 price tag, and apart from the ridiculous Audi R8 E-Tron, is the most expensive R8 ever made. That amount does get you a naturally aspirated V10 engine that cranks out 602 hp in addition to some fancy bronze-intake manifold and 20-inch rims with the same finish.
8 Mercedes SLR McLaren 722 Edition – 209 MPH
Only 150 units of this supercar were built and they were all sold out even before production commenced. Who can blame the eager customers who scrambled for allocations, despite the $500,000 price tag? The Benz SLR McLaren 722 Edition was something special indeed.
Power had been bumped up to 641 hp from 575 hp in the ‘regular’ SLR McLaren. A stiffer chassis, aluminum shock housings, and other lightweight materials combine nicely with the engine power to propel this car to a top speed north of 200 mph – don’t forget this was for a car that was first introduced in 2006.
7 Porsche 959 S – 210 MPH
The Porsche 959 S set a Porsche speed record that remained unbroken for 26 years – until a certain 918 Spyder came along. The S model is an extremely rare variant of the already bonkers 959. Porsche only made 29 959 S models out of a total 959 production run of 337 cars.
The cars were powered by a 2.8-liter flat-six engine that relied on turbocharges for a total power output officially rated at 508 hp; that’s 64 hp more than the standard 959. In reality, this output varied from car to car since the lucky owners were allowed to determine how much power they wanted in their allocation.
6 Porsche 911 GT2 RS – 211mph
The 911 series cars form the backbone of the Porsche brand and the carmaker is constantly looking for ways to make them more potent and worthy of the now-iconic model name. It was not too surprising then that when the curtains lifted to reveal the 2018 911 GT2 RS, the world was treated to what is now the most powerful production 911 car.
The car wasted no time before heading to the famed Nürburgring where it consumed the 12.9-mile circuit in a record-setting time of 6:47.25.
5 Porsche 918 Spyder – 214 MPH
Even today, the 918 Spyder continues to shine among hypercar royalty. The car debuted in 2013 and packed a pretty sophisticated hybrid powertrain that was right at the cutting edge of automotive technology.
The sleek hypercar weighed well over 1.6 tons but carrying all that weight was a power load rated at 875 hp and 944 pound-feet of torque. It is enough for a blistering 2.4-second sprint to 60 mph on the way to a top speed of 214 mph. Some reports have even claimed that the car has the capability to go faster still.
4 Mercedes Benz SLR McLaren Stirling Moss – 217 MPH
This is one of the most iconic models built by Mercedes and it is a tribute to the legendary racing driver, the late Sir Stirling Moss. There are only 75 units in existence and in November 2018, one was listed for a sale at an eye-watering $3 million.
The car features a prominent nose that hides a supercharged 5.4-liter engine that belches flame and hot gases through exhaust pipes mounted behind the front wheels. The car has a streamlined design that helps it minimize drag on its way to a 217-mph top speed.
3 RUF CTR - 224 MPH
RUF Automobile specializes in building original cars using unmarked Porsche chassis. They have also established a reputation as a car tuner, transforming ordinary-looking Porsches into something a lot more potent. The 2017 RUF CTR is one of their original creations and was first revealed to the public at that year’s Geneva Auto Show.
The carbon fiber-bodied car packs a monster 700-hp engine that transfers power to the rear wheels through a 6-speed manual transmission. It will take 3.5 seconds to hit 60 mph but the punchline here is that that speedo needle will keep climbing until the car is traveling at 224 mph.
2 Gumpert Apollo – 225 MPH
The Gumpert Apollo is right up there with the most extreme supercars. Everything about the car screams for attention, from the outlandish design to the engine under the hood. That engine is a 4.2-liter twin-turbocharged V8 that can whip up a frenzied 789 hp in the race version.
Those numbers are not just for show. The Gumpert is one of the fastest German supercars ever produced and can rocket to 60mph in less than 3 seconds before continuing on to a top speed of 225 mph. Unfortunately, this road rocket was not enough to save the company and it filed for bankruptcy in 2013.
1 RUF CTR3 Clubsport – 236 MPH
The CTR3 Clubsport is another exclusive creation from RUF Automobile. Only 7 units were ever made. The company built the car using a bespoke platform developed in partnership with Multimatic, the company responsible for assembling the Ford GT.
It represented an interesting direction for RUF since they mostly used Porsche platforms for their creations. It did not make the car any less capable though. The car packs a Porsche-derived engine that’s been boosted by turbochargers to produce 777 hp, enough to propel the car to a top speed in excess of 230 mph.