Top 20 Best Exotic Supercars 2020
The best supercars for 2020 and over the next few yearsIn the past few years alone, we’ve seen more supercars come out than we did during the 80s and 90s combined. More to the point, with all these new hypercars like the McLaren P1 and the Ferrari LaFerrari, it seems that the line between supercars and hypercars has grown much thinner. People thought hybrids and the electrification of the motor car would mark the end of the performance car, but so far, it’s proving to be the complete opposite. If anything, innovative use of electric motors have made for quicker supercars than ever before, even though most people still prefer internal-combustion engines. That being said, here are our favorite top 20 supercars you can look forward to in 2020, and over the next few years.
Ferrari F8 Tributo
What better way to kick off this list than a 710 horsepower, 568 lb-ft of torque, rear-wheel drive Ferrari. Although Ferrari claims the F8 Tributo is the successor to the 488 GTB, we’re here to tell you it’s merely just a heavy facelift. Nonetheless, seeing as how the new F8 makes do with plenty of goodies found in the 488 Pista and the 488 Challenge racecar, you won’t see us complaining. Since the twin-turbocharged V8 found in the 488 was never quite as vocal as the naturally-aspirated unit in the old 458, Ferrari decided to install a Hot Tube Resonator in the F8 to spice the sound up a little bit.
McLaren 720S
It doesn’t get much more supercar than the 720S, does it? It’s the very essence of what a supercar is, both fast and striking, with a design that embodies the ‘form follows function’ philosophy. With the 720S, McLaren built upon the original MP4-12C and its successor, the 650S, to make a much more complete package. The 720S is so fast it can hardly be classified as a supercar. It’s been found that McLaren is severely underestimating its power rating, as most 720S examples are putting down 700 and even 710 horsepower to the wheels, which equates to roughly 750+ horsepower at the crank. On a lot of tracks, it’s faster than its bigger brother, the P1, which should give you some reference as to just how crazy this exotic supercar really is.
Lotus Evija
Lotus’ philosophy of ‘adding lightness’ doesn’t bring a whole lot of meaning in the world of heavy, battery-laden EVs. So, rather foolishly, none of us thought Lotus would ever enter the EV market with a supercar entry of their own. Turns out, Lotus found another way of electrifying a supercar and still grabbing headlines, except this time their jaw-dropping figure isn’t curb weight, but rather horsepower. Their all-new EV supercar, dubbed the Evija, will produce an astonishing 2,000 horsepower and, presumably, at least 2,000 Nm of torque. It’s the first production car ever to break the 2,000 hp barrier (provided it enters production, which it should). Top speed is quoted as well over 200 mph, and it’ll sprint to 60 mph in under 3 seconds. Even more shockingly, however, it’ll get up to 186 mph in around 10 seconds, or, in other words, about as quickly as it takes your family sedan to get to 60 mph. Truly breathtaking.
Chevrolet Corvette C8
In an effort to include a couple of budget, affordable supercars on this list, we’ve decided to include Chevy’s brand-new C8 Corvette. Although a lot of you might argue that the Corvette is more of a sportscar rather than a muscle car, the latest C8 generation seems to tick all the supercar options. It’s mid-engined, it has a glorious-sounding V8 engine, it develops near-as-makes-no-difference 500 horsepower, and it’ll sprint to 60 mph in 3 seconds dead. Plus, it has the killer looks to math. With a price tag of ~$60,000, it puts all other supercars to shame, but then again, Corvettes have always had a tradition of slaying much more expensive machinery. If you want a genuine supercar killer for under $100,000, you won’t do better than the new C8 ‘Vette.
Ford GT
Less of a supercar and more of a racecar for the road, the Ford GT was built with one thing in mind: speed. Make no mistake, this is a genuine racer built to conquer LeMans and nothing else. Sure, it has headlights and it wears a set of number plates, but that’s about it as far as creature comforts go. It doesn’t have a V10 or even a V8 under the hood like the last GT, but its Raptor-derived 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 is good for a mighty 647 horsepower. The engine howls and rasps just like a racecar, even if it doesn’t sound quite as sweet as the second-gen GT’s V8. This is probably the only car on this list that can pound around a track for 24 hours straight, mostly because it does so every year at the 24 hours of LeMans.
Aston Martin DBS Superleggera Volante
Meet Aston’s most powerful roadster they’ve ever made: the DBS Superleggera. That long, sweeping bonnet hides a 5.2-liter twin-turbo V12 with 715 horsepower and 664 lb-ft of torque. The DBS Volante is a heavy GT car, but even so, with that much firepower under the hood, it’s properly rapid. The sprint to 60 mph takes just 3.4 seconds, and flat out, it’ll top out at 211 mph. It’s the fastest way to cover ground in the real world, and the only way for intercontinental travel if you enjoy road trips. It also helps that it’s as elegant-looking as anything else you’re bound to see on the road too. The DBS Superleggera Coupe and Volante offer the ultimate super GT experience
Lamborghini Huracan Evo
From a front-engined GT car with class and elegance to a fire-breathing Italian supercar that looks like it wants to tear your face off. The Huracan Evo is the hardest, most aggressive version of Lamborghini’s ‘baby’ model, but it just so happens to be one of their fastest as well. Its naturally-aspirated V10 develops 631 horsepower as it screams all the way to 8,000 rpm. The Evo is the swansong for the current Huracan, as Lamborghini is set to replace it with something entirely different really soon. Still, with more downforce than any other Huracan before it and rear-wheel steering, it’s a fitting send-off to Lamborghini’s most profitable model to date. Let’s hope its replacement sets a new benchmark for all exotic supercars to follow.
Porsche 911 GT3
Although it’s the epitome of a sportscar, the 911 GT3 has always punched well above its weight. With the new 992-gen 911, Porsche outdid themselves yet again. The standard Carrera S is so sweet to drive, it’s probably all the car you’re ever going to need for the road. This is a supercar article though, so we have to talk about the inevitable GT3 variant that’s coming soon. Porsche said they’re sticking with the naturally-aspirated formula, for which they deserve a massive pat on the back, but here’s hoping they offer a variant with manual transmission too. Most supercars can’t be specified with a good-old manual transmission, so if Porsche sees this gap in the market and they want to exploit it, it’s theirs for the taking. Otherwise, we’re expecting roughly 500 horsepower and a superb-handling chassis to match. Expect a GT3 RS further down the line.
McLaren GT
The name says it all, doesn’t it? It’s McLaren’s most compliant car to date, a genuine road cruiser designed to eat up miles unlike anything else they’ve ever made. Don’t be fooled into thinking this is some soft, spongy marshmallow of a car though. Underneath, the GT is very much a McLaren. It uses a mid-mounted 4-liter twin-turbo V8 producing 612 horsepower and 425 lb-ft of torque. It’ll max out at over 200 mph and 0-60 is dealt with in just 3 seconds. If you want the most comfortable yet ferocious McLaren ever built, look no further than the GT. Mind you, you’ll have to shell out a scorching $210,000+.
Tesla Roadster
I still don’t think Tesla will manage to put this thing into production this year, but let’s wait and see. If they do, the stats look mighty promising. A top speed of 250 mph, 0-60 mph in 1.9 seconds and 0-100 mph in 4.2 seconds. Apparently, it’ll also do the quarter-mile in a ridiculous 8.9 seconds. See, I told you the future doesn’t look so grim, didn’t I? Let’s just hope they sort out cooling issues so you don’t get performance degradation after continuous hard use like you do with the Model S. Check out Tesla.com/Roadster
Hennessey Venom F5
Remember the Hennessey Venom GT? Who can forget that Lotus-based ‘kit car’ built by aftermarket tuner Hennessey, which turned out to be the fastest production car of 2014. Six years down the line, and we’re now blessed with this. It’s called the Venom F5, and it has one simple goal in mind: be the first car to breach that magical 300 mph barrier. To do so, it employs a V8 with 1817 horsepower and 1193 lb-ft of torque. If it didn’t have wings, it would probably take off. It’s still not in production per se, but should everything go according to plan for Hennessey, we’ll be seeing it hit the streets (and track) in the next couple of years. The sheer fact that a tuning company built it and not a car manufacturer means it deserves a spot in our top 20 supercars list.
Rimac Concept Two – A pure electric GT hypercar
Richard Hammond famously crashed a Rimac Concept One on the Grand Tour, but not before demolishing a Lamborghini Aventador and a Honda NSX in a drag race. That car had over 1,400 horsepower, but their new model, called the C Two, is even more ridiculous. Thanks to four electric motors, one mounted on each wheel, the Concept Two develops 1,914 horsepower and 1,696 lb-ft of torque. Rimac claims it’ll accelerate to 258 mph top speed, but we’re more interested in how usable it seems for an electric car. Apparently, it’ll do 403 miles on a single charge should you not drive it like an absolute hooligan. I have a feeling this will turn out to be one of the best supercars ever built. A car we’ll be talking about in years to come. Rimac-automobil.com
Pininfarina Battista
Over the years, Pininfarina has helped design some of the most gorgeous cars to come out of Italy, but this is their first solo venture into the automotive world. The Battista is, effectively, a reshaped Rimac Concept Two underneath, so it has the same 1,900 horsepower and 1,670 lb-ft of torque. It’ll scoot up to 60 mph in a face-melting 2.0 seconds, and probably go on to 258 mph (as much as the Rimac). Why would you buy this instead of the Rimac, I hear you ask? Well, just look at it. Do you need any further explanation?
Mercedes-AMG ‘Project One’
Remember how earlier I said the Ford GT is the most hardcore car you can buy on this list? Well, should Mercedes deliver on their promise to actually start selling Project Ones, this will officially be the most ridiculous road car of all time. As some of you might know, Mercedes has dominated the world of F1 in the last couple of years, and the Project One is the embodiment of all their success and expertise crammed into one car. Believe it or not, the Project One uses the same 1.6-liter turbocharged V6 as the one found in their F1 car, but it’s obviously been modified for longevity and reliability. It also uses three electric motors to produce a total of 1,020 horsepower. Mercedes quoted a 0-124 mph time of under 6 seconds. Lovely.
Koenigsegg Jesko
You know the drill by now. Crazy Swede starts his own car brand, makes an insane supercar to shame all other supercars, but only builds a few examples at a time. The Jesko, named after Kristian Von Koenigsegg’s father, is a replacement model for the Agera. It’ll use the same 5-liter twin-turbo V8 as the Agera, albeit heavily upgraded, to produce 1,600 horsepower and enough torque to speed up the Earth’s rotation when you put your foot down. It’s expected to be the most powerful internal-combustion engined car ever, and with a top speed of ‘over 300 mph’, probably the fastest as well.
Mercedes AMG GT Coupé
Again, we’re blurring the line between sportscars and supercars with the AMG GT, but this is definitely much more of a supercar than it is a sportscar. It’s extremely rare, extremely fast, and really striking to look at. Plus, its 4-liter twin-turbocharged V8 is mounted in front of the driver but it’s technically behind the front axle, making it front mid-engined. Even the entry-level base model is good for 469 horsepower and 465 lb-ft of torque. Top speed stands at 205 mph and it’ll sprint to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds. It’ll set you back roughly $115,000, but with the level of performance on offer, it’s definitely an affordable supercar and one of the best value for money propositions in 2020.
Audi R8 V10 quattro (2020)
An obvious if slightly predictable choice, but for a very good reason. It’s one of the best supercars currently on the market, and it drives great too. It may be an Audi, but I don’t think many cars get as much attention as the R8 does on the road. Lamborghini? What Lamborghini? Park an Audi R8 next to a Huracan and you’ll be staggered to notice people prefer the R8 by a rather wide margin. I don’t know whether it’s the way it looks or the way it sounds, but something about this car makes people go crazy for it. The V10 is the same powerplant as the one you’d find in a Huracan, but the Audi is the slightly more civilized proposition (though just as fast).
Porsche 911 Turbo (s)
If you’re looking for a genuine supercar you can take to the shops and use as a daily driver, look no further than the 911 Turbo. It is, by some considerable margin, the most friendly and usable supercar ever made. Honestly, anyone who’s ever had a Turbo can attest to this. They might be somewhat soulless and cold to drive, but they’re deadly effective when it comes to real-world performance. Even the standard Turbo produces an almighty 520 horsepower and 457 lb-ft of torque from its 3-liter twin-turbocharged flat-six, but a clever all-wheel-drive system helps put all that power to the ground effectively.
Acura NSX
When Honda (Acura) built the original NSX back in the early 1990s using Ayrton Senna’s expertise, the car was appropriately nicknamed the supercar slayer. It was faster than most Ferraris and Lamborghinis on track, and a lot better to live with as a daily driver. Although the second-gen car made its official debut back in 2016, small updates over the years and rarity have made it a sought after supercar even in 2020. It uses mild-hybrid technology, with a 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6 and an electric motor to produce a healthy 573 horsepower. Thanks to instant torque fill from the electric motor, it’ll hit 60 mph in just over 3 seconds. Just like its predecessor, the original NSX, it uses torque-vector steering and utilizes a mid-engined layout. At $160,000 it’s not what you’d call cheap, but it’s one of the more affordable supercars on this list. NSX.acura.com
Pagani Huayra BC
What better way to end our top 20 supercars list than a Huayra? It’s as fast as it’s gorgeous to look at, and as expensive as its name is hard to pronounce. It’ll burn a massive $3.5 million hole in your bank account, but in return, you get one of only a few examples ever built and second-to-none build quality and attention to detail. When it comes to luxury in the supercar world, no one does it better than Pagani. The Huayra BC is powered by a 6-liter twin-turbo V12 engine sourced from AMG, tuned by Pagani to the extent of 800 horsepower. It’ll launch to 60 mph in just 2.8 seconds and top out at 240 mph. Not the newest car on this list, nor the most innovative, but probably a lot of people’s favorite because of how cool it is. Pagani.com Huayra BC
What’s your favorite supercar? Is it a modern electric one or a traditional gas-powered monster like the Huayra? Let us know and send us a suggestion on what you think we should cover next.