If by automobile we mean a car powered by a piston engine, then the fastest any car has ever traveled was 4181/2 miles per hour. This speed was achieved in 1965 by a specially built car driven over the Great Salt Desert in Utah.
The fastest racing car was a Porsche that reached a speed of 257 miles per hour during a 1973 race. This car could go from zero to 60 miles per hour in just over two seconds, and to 200 miles per hour in just 12.5 seconds!
But the fastest cars built for driving on ordinary roads, a Lamborghini and a Ferrari, both built in Italy, can reach speeds of 186 miles per hour.
Old info. Bugatti Veyron and Shelby’s SSC Ultimate Aero are presently the fastest road cars with top speed of about 430 km/h for the Veyron. I guess Shelby will try to beat Bugatti’s record very soon.