[Alan D Segal]

For me it depends what the car is, how old it is, and what sort of engine it has and what mods it has had.

In particular how old it is, because in recent years power and performance has gone up a lot across the range of vehicles.

We know this forum isn't just about Fords, so I'll discuss it broadly.

Around 15 seconds or under is good for an NA 2 litre, But if you've got a 2 litre turbo and you can't into the low 14s or even into the 13s it is nothing special.

Under 14 is 'quick' for a street-driven car of any description, but if it is a petrol turbo or is NA but bigger than 3.5 litres and has been built since about 2008 then it would want to be better than that otherwise it is what I would call an average or slow car for what it is.

If you've got a fairly new car that claims to be a high performance model, is a V8 or has any sort of turbo 6 cylinder petrol in it, then it's nothing to write home about if it isn't under 13.5 down the 1/4 mile.

A 'quick' new (last three years) car is under 13 seconds over the 1/4 mile stock standard. Fast cars are under 12.

If you're modifying a fairly new (less than 5 year old) high performance model and can't get into the low 12s or under you've either done the wrong mods, or picked the wrong car.

However age isn't everything. There's plenty of old cars in the 12s or 11s or better but they also have big dollars spent on them and aren't always that street friendly.

Edit: And I'm not the sort of elitist that only cares about the very best 1/4 mile times and won't acknowledge a car that is quick for what it is. For example, if someone does mods to a 2005 VW Golf GTi and gets a mid-13 out of it, I can say 'thats a fast car'. It doesn't have to be a V8 with huge power for me to notice it.

My 2c.