What are the most affordable new performance cars you have ever seen or tried?

[63dot]

It's hard to beat a new Audi A4 when I saw a sub-$30,000 dollar one sometime back. Not bad stats for 0-60 and top speed.

For a somewhat more, at around $42,000 a couple of years ago, the Lotus Elise is both fast and an exotic looking car that looks like it should cost twice as much.

As for pure speed and acceleration, the rather normal looking Pontiac G8 (sub-$30,000 2009 model) claims to be faster than the Porsche Boxter. I actually did see one of these drag race once and it was truly the fastest car I have seen outside of a racetrack (Laguna Seca).

[Joe-Bob]

I thought you wanted affordable...?

[63dot]

Originally Posted by Joe-Bob

I thought you wanted affordable...?

Compared to the Porsches, Ferraris, and Maseratis, these cars offer incredible speed for price. Sure there are cars that are under $20,000 dollars new with extras, but without the same type of sub-6 second 0-60 acceleration or top speed.

The G8, cash out the door, can do 5.1 seconds in the 0-60, for under $30 grand, and for three grand more, 4.5 seconds, and smokes many cars that cost far more. The low end corvette at $48,500 is the same speed in the 0-60 acceleration test. Wanna shave a mere three more tenths off of the low end Corvette? Then pay over $100K just in the Covette line, more for Italian cars. The humble G8 is the type of car that does not have the Corvette or Boxster cache, but has the guts inside.

But the car I am looking for, for the real world, would go for gas mileage in these hard times, and there are all types of price ranges in cars that get great mileage. I like the Honda FIT or Mazda 3 in the 15K range, but that's for another thread. ;)

[Mike Eskimo]

Tata Nano

$2600 in India

IF they come here - maybe $5000 ?

[Steve McGinnis]

I test drove a Mini Cooper John Cooper works and it was a blast! 200 Horsepower, handles like a go-cart (in a good way) and 34 MPG. The looks? you either love it or hate it.

[getbent]

I think you can still get the Honda S2000 for 35K

240 hp... and weighs nothing.

You won't find anything faster or that handles better... it'll whine like a girl being pinched in a hurricane... but, for flat out performance... that is your perennial winner in that class...

The A4 would disappear in the S2000's rearview mirror.

[Nick JD]

The G8 (an Australian car) is known as a Holden Commodore round these parts.

There's a performance wing of Holden called HSV, or Holden Special Vehicles - which although sounding like a PC term for a vehicle with a seriously low IQ, is actually where they make G8s that leave Italian exotics behind.

Check out the HSV 427W.



500Hp.



Not very affordable though!

[Ironwolf]

The New Hyundai Genesis Coupe. The full on performance model has 306 horsepower goes 170 m/h holds the new speed record for the Pikes Peak climb (you can find the record setting run on youtube). It's competition consists of the G37, BMW 100 series, and Mazda RX8 (all of whom's stripped down base models cost more than the absolute top end model of the Hyundai). Oh yeah, its rear wheel drive, too.

[boris bubbanov]

Hyundai? Talk about a weapon. Totally primitive chassis, miserable to drive.
All appearance, no function. Good seats, tho.

I used to loved to watch the Saab 900 NGs at pikes peak when the stock iron block cars were being tuned to 900 horsepower. But the production cars were not 900 bhp; they weren't even 300 horses. Anything with output (bhp) around 300 is an irrelevant side show.

+++

Now, if you're just buying for today, this afternoon, you should look at the Mitsu Evo IX cars. No reliability, no crash safety, no retained value, but man those things go like stink, totally stock form.


++++

S-2000. Why not used? Their prices used have GOT to have come down in the faltering economy. This one I have is bulletproof. They replaced a power window motor I think was probably OK, for free. And I've had the convertible top replaced because vandals slashed it one Christmas morning. Otherwise; change the oil and filters. 2002 model year car, stupid fast.

[SimpleOne]

Originally Posted by getbent

I think you can still get the Honda S2000

That car was, or still is, the #1 car for the highest horsepower rating per cc displacement, IIRC.

Must be a big blast to drive.

[getbent]

I work with a woman who has one and has let me take it for a spin. It is hard to fit in (I'm 6'3") but, in taking it through the santa cruz mtns....

it is quite a car... I know I should state some stats about it... but, she is a very type A person and she said the only other car she would want is an M4 (I think that is the model) and she has one (she is single and a very type A personality) but only takes it out on weekends and has reprogrammed it....

Anyway, yeah, the little honda ain't messin' around... one thing, it is a 6 speed... and you have to wind it so it makes a very non american high pitched sound when you are flyin'.... I have a friend with a kit shelby cobra and the honda would kill it (having driven both) in the hills... and might hang in the straights.

That hyundai sounds pretty screamin too!

[PK]

I love my Corvette! It's a 2001 C5, I've owned it 2 years & paid 23k when it still had only 41,000. The car drives like a dream! If you shop wisely, look for a low mileage garage queen, similar cars can be had now in the high teens or low 20's. I get 23 MPG in mixed hwy and around town, and in cruise control going 90 I got 27 MPG on the way to vegas. The top pops off, a targa top they call it, and she gets good mileage cus she's all about low end torque.... at 70mph she turning maybe 2000rpm. 350hp & 350 lbs of torque on my stock C5, but a gearhead who loves the go button can go for the Z06 which has 400 hp plus 400 lbs of torque. Dont underestimate the importance of torque vs horse power. The hp doesn't really kick in til your turning 4500 rpm's, which is almost never (I said almost :) ). I can fit a small amp, a medium sized pa, and my tele in the hatchback. And when i hit the go button its a thrill! 0 to the speed limit then cruise control is enough to keep me happy, and so far only 1 ticket in 2 years and almost 50,000 miles. Here she is, the other American classic:





PK

PS: A brand new stock C6 can be had for around 45k. The 100k car is a legal street racer, but who needs that?

[Clutch442]

Affordable + preformance = motorcycle. :) Or maybe a nice Subaru

[stephent2]

Not new but affordable, paid $2300 a couple years ago for this lovely thing. I can fit my gear into the trunk and it gets 26 MPG average, and the fun factor is way up there. I've since put on a set of the snazzy Saab "cheese grater" wheels.

[Cassady]

I'm going to put in a word for the Saturn Sky (especially the Red Line) and Pontiac Solstice (especially the GXP).

I went to an autocross this weekend and a guy driving a car just like mine (a Sky Red Line with some mods) in the SSM class against Vipers and Corvettes and beating them. I know that it would be a different story on the track where the longer straights and higher power of the big iron would come into play, but in an autocross it was a pretty impressive feat.

The Solstice and Solstice GXP have dominated their classes in SCCA club racing over the last couple of years, too. In SSB, it goes up against cars like the Mazda Miata and in T2 it's grouped with the S2000s and Evos and winning.

I paid an extra (about) $800 for the GM stage 2 kit that brings the engine up to 290 HP and 340 lb.-ft of torque and it's plenty fast. It's a completely impractical car with almost no storage, but I get almost 24 MPG in city driving and well over 30 on the highway.

If you act soon, you can still get one of these orphans for ~$30K





Cassady

[T Prior]

ahh just way too easy

any 01 thru 04 Z06 Corvette !

Hold on because these rocket ships wait for no man...

Priced on the used market from $20K and up for excellent condition rocket ships...

.

[1293]

I vote for the Elise. They can be had in the low $30's with ~10k mi.. There's nothing like having your butt 6" away from the pavement. It will be my next impractical car.

[dijos]

One look reveals the probable character of the beast, so let's just cut right to the quick. The Neon SRT-4 rips to 60 mph in 5.6 seconds, to 100 in 13.8, covers a quarter-mile in 14.2 seconds at 102 mph, and keeps on huffin' all the way to 153 mph.

[Cassady]

dijos' post about the SRT-4 reminded me that I would be remiss if I didn't mention what has to be one of the greatest bang-for-the-buck performance cars around: the Chevy Cobalt SS.

In Car and Driver's "Lightning Lap" the turbocharged Cobalt SS had faster lap times than an Evo, a BMW 135i and the S2000 among others. You can get one in the middle 20's, too.

I prefer my sports cars to look sportier than the Cobalt, but it's a real bargain for the performance you get.

Cassady

[63dot]

Originally Posted by 1293

I vote for the Elise. They can be had in the low $30's with ~10k mi.. There's nothing like having your butt 6" away from the pavement. It will be my next impractical car.

The first time I saw it, I liked it but then I heard the reasonable price tag and it became love. In a few years, some used models will be had for $20K and be a popular used, affordable sportster like 911s, RXs, Corvettes, Mustangs, and Z-cars even with 100 thousand miles or more on them. The Lotus Elise is definitely a bargain legend in the making. Again, forget about Ferrari. ;)

[muchxs]

Originally Posted by 63dot

For a somewhat more, at around $42,000 a couple of years ago, the Lotus Elise is both fast and an exotic looking car that looks like it should cost twice as much.

A used Elise goes out the door for around $22k right now.

It's a Toyota MR2 powertrain in an exotic wrapper.

That means you can get close to Elise performance out of an MR2 and...

You can upgrade a "plain" Elise to Exige spec with readily available bolt-ons. Anything that works on the MR2 engine will work on the Elise.

'Course, I can remember when you could buy a big block 'Vette for $3k.

[TheBear]

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution
Any of them really. You'll have a hard time finding quicker cars under $50,000

The STI has never been quite as composed as the Evo.

The Evo X is a little more luxurious then past models and has a Dual Clutch automatic that is as good as Audi's.

The cars you listed (Elise is the exception) really are not about performance. I would call them "Sporty". Cars like the Evo, Elise, Corvette. These are about performance. Are you really concerned with how it performs or just how it looks?

[Roli]

http://www.uscaterham.com

[T Prior]

ok road war ..I can see where we are going here..
C5 Z06...
0 to 60 4 seconds, 1 st, 2nd and 3rd sideways if you stay in it, I had it at 130 in 3rd one time only then chickened out..

I used to call these cars 0 to a total wreck in less than 5 seconds if you are not paying attention. Sold mine a month ago getting ready for another

meet you on the street..

[Pvee]

I have driven the Honda S2000 and the Suburu WRX.

The S2000 seating position felt like a race car cockpit to me.

The Suburu was a blast to drive also the torque was amazing for a four cylinder in both cars.

Here is my favorite Video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1szPu5rV5Y

The one I drove was not this powerful.

[joedrII]

s2000
FD rx7
Lotus elise
mr2 spyder.
Ive driven all these cars except the elise, and they are all exceptional sports cars. Also, dont overlook the miata. Go to any open track day, and you will get your @$$ handed to you by more than one, regardless of what you brought. Seriously.

[octatonic]

S2000 is still the best value for money.
After that an MX5/Miata.

[Buckocaster51]

Let me start by saying that I live in the past...

take yourself back to 1998.

$12k could get you one of these



it was the street version of the NEON American Club Racer (ACR) that was flatout tearing up its SCCA class.

This one is rev-limited to 143 mph

TWELVE THOUSAND STEENKIN' DOLLARS!

I would buy a new one today if I could.

I wrecked a tire out in the middle of nowhere once. I took the tire & rim (those of you who know me can see me doing this) and plopped them on the counter and said, "I need a new tire."

Counter guy looked at it. Did a double-take on the speed rating, and said, "What kind of car does this go on?"

I said, "My NEON."

I had to take him outside and show him the Buckomobile sitting there and a teeny-tiny spare before he really believed me.

Then he said, "We don't sell many of those."

[dijos]

Buck, I had a 95 sport. The first year, 2 door coupe. Sold it to some crazy neon kid. I miss that car every day.

[Warm Gums]

To be honest pretty much every thing is a performance car these days, I would need to compare specs to be sure, but from driving them (and being nearly run over by them on numerous occasions) I'm pretty sure the little Hynda & Kias have equal or better performance & handling to most early '70s performance 2 doors (BMW 2002, Triumph Dolly Sprint, small Alfa etc.) & are far more reliable. My wife recently bough a Honda Civic ex (not a SI or Mungen or anything) & it a much more entertaining drive than those big German "sports sedans" from the '80s..
Just like guitars it is amazing what you can get for short $ these days..

[Astro1176]

Originally Posted by Roli

http://www.uscaterham.com

+1 - just got back from a days hire of one of these. You can get a car with 0-60 in 6.5 seconds for under £20k, and its a LOT of fun to drive within the speed limit!

(that's the entry level - you can get a lot more performance if you want to spend more money)

[Roli]

You're right Sir! They are pretty much the equivavlent of 1950s open wheel (F1, Indy, etc.) race cars.

[Wardpike]

You can get a lot of car for little money in the base V6 Ford Mustang.

[getbent]

Originally Posted by Wardpike

You can get a lot of car for little money in the base V6 Ford Mustang.

too true. I rented a 'hopped up' mustang awhile back when I was in Austin for business... the rental car company had like 6 of the shelby ones and I sprung and extra bit beyond my allowance to get one...

my goal was to hit all the bbq places in the outlying towns over 4 days with limited time....

I don't want to be scolded for my driving here... but, when I got out on the farm roads.... I did my fair share of bending the law....

One thing that was fun was being able to chirp the tires through third gear which I'd not done in many years... there is a cheap feeling to the new stangs, but I got used to the car in a day or so and had a lot of fun with it...

like one of the posters above said... lots of good cars out there.

[930vet]

I bought my Audi TT 225hp Quattro coupe used for about $15K with 45k miles on it. It is quite fast in a straight line and in the curves; I once kept up with a Ferrari on an exit ramp with it- he probably could have gotten away, but the fear factor of pushing such an expensive car that hard may have taken over. Also got 25+mpg when I was trying when gas was at its most expensive. Ran it on regular for a while without too much impact on performance. The rear seat is usable for kids.

Handling is not perfect; I suspect power bias to the front wheels makes it difficult to get the really precise handling of an s2000 or a Miata, but the power shift to the rear when accelerating thru a corner does tighten up the line. I'm afraid to mess with handling balance because of the TT's early rep for crashing from trailing throttle oversteer- supposedly fixed, but changing the suspension for more balanced handling under normal conditions might bring it back under extreme. The Quattro coupe is lighter than the roadster and also the 3.2 version.

When I got the TT I test drove a Mini S. The Mini was lots of fun, fast, and great gas mileage, but the FWD was just not what I wanted. Even with traction control, getting on the gas in a curve pushed the car in a way I didn't like. FWD performance cars are just not my thing.

All in all, Top Gear be danged, I think the TT Quattro is a pretty good compromise on a lot of features- AWD, economy, performance, handling, even a little practicality over a pure 2-seater.

[spotface]

Burned out on pickups and SUVs last winter, wanted something sporty that had 4 doors and good mileage. Ended up with a 2009 VW Jetta Wolfsburg Edition. Has drivetrain/suspension from GLI without all the gizmology. 0-60 in mid 6's and up to 30 mpg. DSG gearbox sold me - it is a manual with an automatic clutch. My wife has a Chrysler 300c (yep, with the Hemi) and she is blown away with the acceleration of the little Wolfie. A bit too much understeer for my taste, so an aftermarket rear sway bar is in the works. I consider myself a gearhead and had never heard of this car until I bought one....for under $24k brand new w/extended warranty!

[CharlieO]

Originally Posted by spotface

Burned out on pickups and SUVs last winter, wanted something sporty that had 4 doors and good mileage. Ended up with a 2009 VW Jetta Wolfsburg Edition. Has drivetrain/suspension from GLI without all the gizmology. 0-60 in mid 6's and up to 30 mpg. DSG gearbox sold me - it is a manual with an automatic clutch. My wife has a Chrysler 300c (yep, with the Hemi) and she is blown away with the acceleration of the little Wolfie. A bit too much understeer for my taste, so an aftermarket rear sway bar is in the works. I consider myself a gearhead and had never heard of this car until I bought one....for under $24k brand new w/extended warranty!

I was really tempted by the Jetta Wolfsburg Edition and the GLI when I was car shopping last year, but I decided that I needed more interior space. The DSG transmission is amazing. I've always enjoyed driving sporty cars with a manual transmission, but given the option of choosing the DSG, I'd never buy a manual again. Comparing the GLI or Jetta Wolfsburg Edition to something like the Audi A4, I'd choose the VW and save thousands of dollars. Of course, I'd want to buy new to get as much warranty coverage as possible.

[RiverDog]

Originally Posted by Nick JD

The G8 (an Australian car) is known as a Holden Commodore round these parts.

There's a performance wing of Holden called HSV, or Holden Special Vehicles - which although sounding like a PC term for a vehicle with a seriously low IQ, is actually where they make G8s that leave Italian exotics behind.

Check out the HSV 427W.

Man is that sexy!

[boris bubbanov]

Originally Posted by CharlieO

I was really tempted by the Jetta Wolfsburg Edition and the GLI when I was car shopping last year, but I decided that I needed more interior space. The DSG transmission is amazing.

The DSG is incredible. I love manual transmissions, but the DSG is just so good.
You gotta try it.

As for TTs, I recommend the new generation car. My brother ordered a 225 bhp quattro convertible when they first came out, and even after the motor was fully broken in, on a legendary road like CAL 41 between Atascadero and Shandon (where my parents live)(and all the other equally cool roads nearby) the 1st Gen TT was bound up and just no where near as much fun to drive as the fine craftsmanship and serious price would suggest. His S4 Avant was way more fun, and faster even though both those cars are very heavy for their size. The new TT turned out much better, for the twisties.

[slauson slim]

Mazda Speed 3.