Yamcha's too stupid to know any better. They were really fast in Dragon Ball though. When Krillin fought Master Roshi (Jackie Chun), the announcer had to stop the fight because no one could keep up with them. In a split second, they managed to charge at each other, attacking and dodging one anothers moves. Having enough time to think and even predict each others next attack. They even played a game of rock-paper-scissors and had a brief conversation.
Travel speed I'd say is about light speed, but their reaction and combat speeds are much higher. In their fight with Radditz Piccolo mentions how he dodged the beam cannon, which at the time was as fast as light. Yes it's hyperbole, but when it comes to fiction such as anime and comics, sometimes hyperbole is what you have to work with.
Have they been stated to be faster than light? A lot of times Japanese manga can't be taken seriously sense they joke around a lot. I have read manga where the characters are completely human but run hyper sonic speeds because it was funny.
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