0 to 60 mph

The time it takes to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph (0 to 97 km/h or 0 to 27 m/s) is a commonly used performance measure for automotive acceleration in the United States and the United Kingdom. In the rest of the world 0 to 100 km/h (0 to 62 mph) is used. Present performance cars are capable of going from 0 to 60 mph in under 6 seconds, while exotic cars can do 0 to 60 mph in between 3 and 4 seconds, whereas motorcycles have been able to achieve these figures with sub-500cc engine for more than 20 years. The Bugatti Veyron Super Sport is currently the fastest production street legal car to reach 60 mph from a stop, reaching the speed in 2.46 seconds.

Criticism of magazine testing

Automobile magazines often post 0-60 mph times that they achieve in testing. Many have questioned the practices and methods used to test the automobiles. Typically criticism revolves around:

• "Roll out" here the car is allowed to roll for a certain amount of time or distance before the timing begins.
• General conditions: Air temperature, altitude, fuel level, etc.
• "Factory Freaks" which would be abnormally quick stock automobiles
• The public's inability to achieve such low times
• High level of differences between magazines
• Possible bribery or other unethical practices of the testers
• Optimizing the car's performance by making setup changes such as tire pressure
• The ability of the particular driver

See also

• List of fastest cars by acceleration
• Vehicle metrics