If you haven’t noticed yet, then you might start doing so now. We are in the golden generation of performance cars, and with the way the auto industry is unfolding before our very eyes, there is a hint of irony in the thought that we’re still a long way away from seeing the end of this blitzkrieg era. These days, supercars are being built at such a rapid pace that a six-year-old Lamborghini Aventador is already considered a “senior citizen” in the ranks, and the more exotics we get, the more these performance records will go by the wayside.

Take the all-too-important “acceleration time” as an example. We all know it to be the time it takes for a car to hit 60 mph (or 62.1 mph - 100 kph) from a standstill position. The 1995 McLaren F1 brought supreme importance to this performance time when it did it cleared a 60-mph sprint in 3.2 seconds more than two decades ago. Today, a 3.2-second, 0-to-60-mph car doesn’t even make it in a top 10 list of fastest accelerating cars. That’s not to say that the F1 is old news because that supercar, together with the Ferrari F40, will always be the industry OGs. But, the advent of the supercar era has also ushered in machines that are hair-raisingly fast to the point of disbelief. In line with that alarming realization, we’ve prepared a list of the ten fastest-accelerating supercars in the market today, ranking them from “slowest” to “quickest.

Continue after the jump to read the full story.

A few qualifiers before we start. I tried to make this list as comprehensive as I can, but obviously, there will be some supercars that will be left out, intentionally or otherwise. Rest assured, if you have the numbers to make it to this list, there’s a good chance that you’re going to be mentioned at some point. Ok, now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s begin.

10) 2.9 seconds - Porsche 911 Turbo S / Lamborghini Aventador / Nissan GT-R NISMO / Ferrari F12tdf

It seems fitting that we’re starting the list of at 2.9 seconds, isn’t it? A three-second, 0-to-60-mph sprint time is so 2011, so let’s leave them out of the picture entirely. There’s also a little bit of hilarity in the fact that it didn’t take me long to make a mess of my list. But hey, these four exotics deserve equal mention because they’re all mental in their own unique ways. Nissan does get special mention because of how far it’s come in the supercar world. There was a time not too long ago that mentioning Nissan in the same breath as Ferrari, Porsche, or Lamborghini would’ve drawn some giggles and side-eyes. Not anymore, folks. All because Godzilla remains a force to be reckoned with in the supercar industry.

9) 2.8 seconds - McLaren P1

It didn’t take long to get our first hypercar in the mix. The McLaren P1 shares more than just a name with the legendary F1. Both are also lightning quick on the block. The P1, in particular, can do it in 2.8 seconds, all thanks to a hybrid powertrain that combines to produce a staggering 903 horsepower. Here’s a little-known tidbit about the P1: it’s actually capable of surpassing a 2.8-second time if the ideal conditions are there. Not that it matters because hypercars can be prickly about “conditions,” but it is something worth paying attention to. And, speaking of paying attention to, equal shout outs to the BAC Mono and the Caterham 620R, two vehicles that nobody’s going to mistake for the P1, except that both are just as fast to 60 mph.

8) 2.7 seconds - Koenigsegg Regera / Hennessey Venom GT

If you picked between these two, which one would you choose? Truth is, it doesn’t matter because both the Koenigsegg Regera and the Hennessey Venom GT are speed demons in their own right. They may be packaged differently - the Venom is a Lotus Exige at heart while the Regera is, well, automotive engineering at its apex - but rest assured, you don’t want to be sitting next to these cars in a starting line. Unless you’re driving any one of the cars that have yet to be mentioned on this list, it’s a foregone conclusion that the Regera and the Venom GT will leave you in the dust, weeping at the realization that you just got emasculated.

7) 2.6 seconds - Rimac Concept One

I had reservations about putting the Rimac Concept One on this list because it doesn’t have the stature of any of the other automakers in here. But, I can’t deny greatness and that’s exactly what the Concept One is. On top of being one of the first full-fledged, all-electric supercars in the world, the Concept One has somehow gained even more mystic after dismantling a Ferrari LaFerrari and a Tesla Model S in a recent video. Remember the name, folks. Richard Hammond - good to see him up and about now - certainly will.

6) 2.5 seconds - Ferrari LaFerrari

The Ferrari F12tdf may have already been mentioned on this list, but the truth is that no list of fastest accelerating cars in the world will be complete without having a spot reserved for the Prancing Horse. Fortunately, the Ferrari LaFerarri is still around to remind us that Maranello is still in peak form when producing supercars. If there was anything that the LaFerrari taught us other than the fact that it’s blisteringly fast, it’s that Ferrari can adapt to the game changing rules and still thrive in the face of it. The LaFerrari may have set the bar for the Italian automaker, but you can rest assured that the objective within the company is to new see if it can create something that’s faster and a lot more powerful. Only time separates us from that inevitability.

5) 2.5 seconds - Porsche 918 Spyder

Completing the holy trinity of hypercars is the Porsche 918 Spyder, a car so exquisite in its engineering that you forget that it can destroy just about any other car in a race to 60 mph. It’s emphatically quicker than the McLaren P1 and even with the identical times, the 918 Spyder actually nips the LaFerrari in terms of acceleration speed. Plus, the Porsche is arguably the most well-rounded of the three hypercars and far more importantly, was the cheapest of the three - priced at just $845,000 - before all of them were sold out.

4) 2.5 seconds - Ariel Atom 3.5R

It’s technically not a road-going car in the traditional sense of one, but that doesn’t matter. The Ariel Atom 3.5R is more than capable of putting the fear of God on anybody who happens to be in the driver’s seat. We all saw what the Atom V8 did to Jeremy Clarkson’s face and while the 3.5R may not have the horses of its V8-counterpart, its 350-horsepower output rating on a body that only has a 550-kg curb weight still allows it to post a quicker sprint to 60-mph than just about every other car in the world

3) 2.3 seconds - Bugatti Chiron

With respect to the almighty Bugatti Veyron Super Sport and its own 2.5-second acceleration time, I’m putting it together with its successor, the Chiron. It’s a testament to Bugatti’s capability to bring us some of the fastest and most powerful cars in the world when an all-conquering masterpiece like the Veyron Super Sport can still evolve into something that’s faster and more powerful. That’s what we have with the Chiron, which boasts an incredible 1,500 horsepower and 1,180 pound-feet of torque. Here’s the best part though: knowing what Bugatti was able to do with the Veyron, there’s reason to expect that a more extreme Chiron could be in the way. Imagine what that car can do.

2) 2.3 seconds - Dodge Challenger SRT Demon

It was billed as the fastest-accelerating muscle car in the world and it sure as heck lived up to it. The Dodge Challenger SRT Demon’s ability to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph is beyond incredible. Considering that the only car to beat it in an acceleration test is an electric car, there’s no doubt that the SRT Demon is also the fastest-accelerating, gas-powered car in the world. There are no ifs and buts about it, folks, The Demon is a monster in every sense of the word.

1) 2.28 seconds - Tesla Model S P100D

The Tesla Model S P100D is the ultimate in car irony. It’s the fastest-accelerating car in the world and it’s also arguably one of the quietest and most environmentally friendly cars you’ll ever come across. It’s also no surprise that it sits on top of this list even though the Challenger SRT Demon did give it a serious run for its money. In the end, the Model S P100D still reigns supreme, at least until a hotter version comes along. And to think, all Elon Musk had to do was figure out that electric power meant instant torque…