You can call them "dad cars" and maybe chuckle a bit, but there's nothing derogatory about that term in today's quarter-mile race. In fact, these models would also be great for beginners who just turned advanced and want more than 68 horsepower under the hood. Many would consider a sedan with nearly 300 horsepower the perfect balance between speed, fuel consumption, acceleration, and the sheer fun of driving.
Now let's check them out, starting with a very strong "dad car" contender, the Toyota Camry TRD. This 4-door sedan is packing a 3.5-liter V6 engine mated to an 8-speed automatic gearbox that will take your family to the market in no time via its front wheel drive.
The front-mounted V6 can deliver 301 horsepower or 305 PS with 267 lb-ft or 362 Nm of torque. In case anyone was curious, it weighs 3,556 lbs. or 1,613 kg. The best part about the Camry is that it's a TRD model, which means it's been tuned in-house by the Toyota Racing Development team.
The latest and greatest 2025 Camry LE model with 16-inch alloy wheels starts at $28,400. Next in line is the $30,700 SE version. The XLE has 18-inch wheels and starts at $33,400, while the fully loaded XSE with 19-inch wheels is $34,600. The TRD models start at around $33.5k in the United States.
Next, we have the Audi A4 with a more modest engine displacement. It has a turbocharged 2.0-liter mill that produces 261 hp (265 ps) with 273 lb-ft (370 Nm) of torque. That power is wielded by a 7-speed S tronic dual-clutch automatic transmission system and sent to all four wheels. Under the right circumstances, it can hit 60 mph in 5.2 seconds with a top speed of 130 mph or 209 kilometers per hour.
The 2024 40 TFSI quattro Premium version with 201 hp and 236 lb-ft of torque starts close to $42,000, while the Premium Plus and Prestige 40 TFSI models cost $46,100 and $51,300, respectively.
Photo: Sam CarLegion
Our model is part of the 45 TFSI family, beginning at $44,100 for the Premium package. The Premium Plus is $47,700 and the Prestige costs $52,000. So far, the Camry has the A4 beat in both the pricing and technical specifications. However, we are comparing a 3.5-liter engine to a 2.0-liter one, so maybe it's not so cut and dry after all.
Lastly, we have a tuned old-gen Honda Accord Touring. The owner did a great job with the aftermarket exterior package because the car looks fantastic. The Honda has a 2.0-liter engine that delivers 252 horsepower (255 ps) with 273 lb-ft or 370 Nm of torque. It has a 10-speed automatic gearbox in cahoots with the front-wheel drive system. Sam from the "Sam CarLegion" YouTube channel is behind the wheel.
Finally, now that we're finished with the introductions, let's see how these "dad cars" performed down the quarter mile. The Honda and Toyota went head to head first, and surprise, surprise, the Honda dominated with a two-win streak. The Accord got to 60 mph in 5.6 seconds and finished the race in 14.2 seconds, while the Camry got from 0 to 60 mph in 5.9 seconds and crossed the finish line in 14.8 seconds.
The Audi A4 faced the winner in a 1v1 battle, basically a repeat of the first race; only this time, the FWD Honda was the sore loser. It simply couldn't handle the Audi's AWD. The Audi reached 60 mph in just 4.9 seconds and finished in 13.6 seconds, while the Honda got to 60 in 5.6 seconds and clocked in at 14.2 seconds.
The Audi A4 was the undefeated champ. It's too bad we didn't see it face off the Toyota, but we can compare the numbers to get a general idea. The former was one whole second faster for the 0-60 mph stretch of the road. As for the entire race, we have a 1.2-second difference in favor of the German car brand.
The times from the track speak for themselves, but at the same time, the math from the price tags also has a few things to say. At the end of the day, we're not talking about Lamborghini versus Ferrari, but daily drivers.
Codrin just loves American classics, from the 1940s and ‘50s, all the way to the muscle cars of the '60s and '70s. In his perfect world, we'll still see Hudsons and Road Runners roaming the streets for years to come (even in EV form, if that's what it takes to keep the aesthetic alive). Full profile
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