The 10 Quickest Forced Induction Muscle Cars Ever Made – CarBuzz

Some say the days of the good old American muscle car are numbered. To a degree, they may be right. The fully electric, 2025 Dodge Charger Daytona Scat Pack replaced the Charger SRT Hellcat and its meaty 6.2-liter supercharged V8.

The new Dodge Charger Daytona has lots of volt-y horsepower, all-wheel-drive, and even a (patent-pending) exhaust speaker system, where speakers emit fake, car-like sounds from an exhaust-like add-on at the back of the vehicle.

As marvelous and as fast and amazing as these new-generation EVs may be, nothing beats the drama of a blown muscle car, shredding tires on the way to the quarter-mile mark, scaring old ladies and small children along the way. In honor of all that drama, we give you 10 of the fastest blown muscle cars ever made.

10

Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 LE

Quarter mile: 11.7 seconds @ 124 mph

There was a time, not so very long ago, when 650 hp was the reserve of only the fastest, most amazing racing cars. Today, the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 LE’s 650 hp pales in comparison with some of the pony cars on this list. But the ZL1 will still blow your socks off as it rockets from 0-60 mph in less than four seconds, and goes on to a top speed of 191 mph.

Part of the ZL1’s allure is the supercharged 6.2-liter V8 engine’s 650 lb-ft of torque. That number ensures that no matter the speed or gear, when you floor the Camaro, it goes like a bat out of hell. You used to be able to order the ZL1 with an optional six-speed stick shift (in place of the 10-speed automatic gearbox). A rarity in a modern 650-hp muscle car, the stick-shift adds a different dimension to the driving experience. Now the Camaro V8 is no more.

9

Dodge Charger Hellcat Redeye

Quarter mile: 11.5 seconds @ 126 mph

It’s easy to lose track of all the different performance variants of the Dodge Charger Hellcat. You get the Widebody, the Redeye Widebody, and the Redeye Jailbreak. And then a few more options for those respective derivatives, worked over by tuning companies. For this test, we focused on the four-door Charger Hellcat Redeye Widebody. It is powered by the familiar 6.2-liter supercharged V8, producing a real handy 797 hp.

The practical four-door Redeye has an eight-speed automatic transmission, driving the rear wheels, and with extra track afforded by the widebody design, the Hellcat remains (mostly) planted when you give them ponies free rein. Left unchecked, it will run all the way to 203 mph. Your four passengers and their luggage in the trunk will really enjoy that.

But with around 60,000 Hellcats running around, it’s lost some exclusivity in the process. It is still stupendously fast though.

8

Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing

Quarter mile: 11.1 seconds @ 141 mph

The Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing is also a four-door muscle car, which means you have enough space to take your mother-in-law, a few kids and some groceries along for an 11.1-second quarter-mile run. A real practical solution then.

The Blackwing’s 6.2-liter, supercharged V8 engine delivers 668 hp, and is combined with high-performance Brembo brakes, an advanced electronic driving mode system and a sport suspension setup. This good-looking Caddy is not only fast, it is also practical with a trunk. With Cadillac stepping up to the Formula One plate in 2026, you can bet your bottom dollar there are more cool Cadillac performance cars on the horizon.

7

Hennessey Super Venom Mustang Dark Horse

Quarter mile: 10.9 seconds @ 133 mph

So the pesky neighbor has a new Ford Mustang GTD on order, and your stock Mustang Dark Horse now seems, well, just not perky enough. Fear not… Hennessey has a remedy. By adding a high-performance supercharger, a new fuel pump and various other performance bits, the Hennessey Super Venom delivers 850 hp – 35 ponies more than the GTD.

If you want to show up your neighbor some more, you can also add Hennessey’s bespoke carbon fiber package, which adds parts like an active hood vent, rear wing, front splitter and more.

For the record, the Super Venom completes the quarter mile 1.1 seconds faster than the run-of-the-mill Dark Horse.

6

Chevrolet Corvette Callaway Sledgehammer

Quarter mile: 10.7 seconds @ 146 mph

In 1977, a young advanced driver instructor created a custom turbocharger system for a BMW. A motoring magazine ran a short story on the car, singing the praises of the modification. The rest is history, as Reeve Callaway continued to develop turbocharger systems for a range of performance cars, with several car companies coming onboard as partners, including Chevrolet. Callaway offered a mild turbo upgrade for the Corvette, available directly from Chevrolet dealerships.

But the Sledgehammer version would be a defining project. The 1988 Chevrolet Corvette C4, with a 5.7-liter V8 engine, was given the full Callaway twin-turbo treatment, upping power to a staggering 880 hp. The Sledgehammer went on to set a new speed of 254.76 mph – a remarkable feat at the time, and a record that put Callaway on the world performance map.

5

Ford Mustang Shelby GT500

Quarter mile: 10.6 seconds @ 133 mph

With a rich history of making Fords go very, very fast, Shelby has created several go-faster options for the latest Mustang. This is the GT500, which was the most powerful street-legal Ford ever built before the new Mustang GTD spoiled its party. It is powered by a supercharged Predator 5.2-liter V8 engine that produces a handy 760 hp and 626 lb-ft of torque. A seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox can shift gears as quickly as 80 milliseconds, and it sends power to the rear wheels via a carbon fiber driveshaft and a Torsen limited slip differential.

The result is a performance car, covered by Ford’s original warranty, that can complete the 0-100-0 test in just 10.6 seconds.

4

Chevrolet Corvette ZR1

Quarter mile: 9.6 seconds @ 150 mph

The new Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 is the fastest and most powerful production-based Corvette ever produced. With a staggering 1,064 hp of power, the twin-turbocharged ZR1 has smashed several track records around the USA… it is clearly not just made for straightaways, it likes corners too.

You can drive this Corvette straight off the dealer floor, complete the 0-60 mph dash in 2.3 seconds on your way to work while cocooned in the lap of luxury. And then, on the weekend, you can take it to your local racetrack, and blow the socks of almost everything else. This is the MacGyver of this list. It can do a lot of things, really well. And fast too.

For the record, the 5.5-liter twin-turbo V8 engine revs happily to 8,000 r/min, thanks to its flat-plane crankshaft design. Power is sent to the rear wheels via an eight-speed dual clutch transmission.

3

Hennessey Exorcist Camaro ZL1

Quarter mile: 9.5 seconds @ 147 mph

American tuning company Hennessey’s Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 LE is called the Exorcist. And for good reason. With 1,000 hp and a stupendous 966 lb-ft of torque, the Exorcist can complete the 0-60 mph sprint in just 2.1 seconds.

To hit the big numbers, Hennessey replaced the engine’s puny stock supercharger with a new high-flow unit, combined with a new high-flow induction system. There is also a custom HPE camshaft, ported cylinder heads, upgraded… well, upgraded everything really. The Exorcist also comes with a three-year/36,000- mile warranty, adding peace of mind to the performance deal.

Born and developed in Texas, the 1,000-hp Exorcist’s production run is limited to 57 cars to commemorate the 57 years since the Chevrolet Camaro first went into production.

2

Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170

Quarter mile: 8.9 seconds @ 151 mph

A humdrum Dodge Challenger Hellcat makes over 700 hp. Dodge decided that was just not good enough, and its engineers took to the 6.2-liter V8 engine. They changed up innards like the pistons, connecting rods, crankshaft and other vital parts to handle more power. Then they added a 3.0-liter supercharger to the deal.

Now the Demon 170 makes 1,025 hp, enabling it to complete the 0-60 mph dash in just 1.66 seconds (in ideal conditions on a drag strip surface), and the quarter mile in just 8.9 seconds. You could buy this muscle car ‘as is’ from a Dodge dealer, use it as a daily driver with a plush cabin with amenities like climate control and a quality sound system, and also head to the drag strip over the weekend and run a 151 mph quarter mile.

One day in the very distant future, when the internal combustion engine is relegated to the history books, people will still talk about the Hellcat Demon 170.

1

Shelby GT500 Code Red

Quarter mile: 8.5 seconds @ 161 mph

1,300 hp and 1,000 lb-ft of torque. Shelby American did not spare a single cent on the creation of this monster, the GT500 Code Red. Only 30 cars will be built at a cost of $225 000 (conversion only), and apparently all the units have been snapped up already.

Designed for a drag strip, and not for road use, the Code Red’s 5.2-liter V8 engine is highly modified with almost every part upgraded with only the biggest and fastest bits. Fathouse Performance’s twin-turbocharger upgrade represents the last word in performance upgrades, with items like custom Manley pistons, titanium turbo blankets, MoTeC engine management upgrade… it’s got every trick in the book. Accordingly, the brakes and all other elements have been updated. The result is a Mustang that completes the quarter mile in a staggering 8.5 seconds.

Nuff said. Just watch (and hear) it here:

Sources: Hennessey, Bring A Trailer, Chevrolet, Ford, Dodge, Cadillac.