GTA Online has so many different HSW vehicles that it's worth analyzing what's the best for each class. There are two metrics covered in this article for objectivity. Up first is top speed. The second factor is lap time. The data here stems from YouTube analyst Broughy1322's documentation. Hence, the information should be accurate, at least up to the San Andreas Mercenaries update.
Future DLC may introduce new HSW vehicles for a class or two. There should be several months until the next batch of cars arrives, so let's look at what's currently the best options in GTA Online right now. This article starts with top speed as a metric before covering recorded lap times by Broughy1322.
List of best HSW vehicles for their class in GTA Online in terms of top speed
Here is a list of HSW vehicles with the highest top speed for their class:
- Compact: Brioso R/A (124.75 mph)
- Coupe: Sentinel XS (137.75 mph)
- Motorcycle: Hakuchou Drag (157.5 mph)
- Muscle: Vigero ZX (157.5 mph)
- Off-Road: MonstroCiti (135.75 mph)
- Sports: Itali GTO Stinger TT (168.5 mph)
- Sports Classic: Stirling GT (156.8 mph)
- Super: Deveste Eight (151.75 mph)
- SUV: Issi Rally (138.25 mph)
The following classes literally only have a single HSW vehicle, so let's highlight those:
- Compact
- Coupe
- Motorcycle
- Off-Road
All other classes have at least one other contender. However, top speed isn't everything. For some people, recorded lap time by Broughy1322 is a better metric for the average race, so let's look at that next.
List of best HSW vehicles for their class in GTA Online by lap time
By comparison, here are the current record-holders for lap time in each class:
- Compact: Brioso R/A (1:06.768)
- Coupe: Sentinel XS (1:06.43)
- Motorcycle: Hakuchou Drag (0:52.736)
- Muscle: Vigero ZX (1:02.145)
- Off-Road: MonstroCiti (1:00.327)
- Sports: La Coureuse (0:56.139)
- Sports Classic: Turismo Classic (1:00.693)
- Super: Weaponized Ignus (0:55.589)
- SUV: Astron Custom (1:04.348)
Keep in mind that HSW vehicles typically cost well over a million dollars. Doing Sell Missions for your businesses or completing heists can help you earn enough cash. Likewise, abusing GTA Online money glitches can also help some players.
Verdict
The above table shows the best HSW vehicle for top speed and lap time. Other metrics, such as weapons, armor, Imani Tech, etc., would complicate matters. Not to mention, some details, like visual aesthetics, would be too subjective to rank.
Having the fastest car or motorcycle around is crucial to winning races. Top speed is more important if a player fancies tracks with primarily straight roads and almost no turns. Otherwise, lap time is an underrated metric worth considering when a player is unsure as to which automobile or bike to purchase.
It would be interesting to see if Hao appears in Grand Theft Auto 6 so players can utilize his blazingly fast upgrades again. Until then, GTA Online players can look forward to more additions to his lineup.