Fun, lightly practical cars new or almost new

I'm approaching year 9 daily driving the SVT Focus. It has been fun, but it's getting a bit rough around the edges. It has been mostly reliable, but it is needy, and I no longer have a suitable space to work on a car.

I have been mostly blind to new vehicles on the market save the Frisbee cars and the soon to be released Miata. In the $20-25k price range, I can also think of the Ford Focus ST and Fieta ST. What else is available nowadays? I am thinking new or CPO.

Manual a must, RWD would be great.

Mazdaspeed3, I love my gen2. so much torque, but still gets decent economy. Great transmission once you put a rear motor mount in, the stock one moves soooo much.

That's a nice price range. Do you have to finance? After nine years of fwd a rwd would be a nice change.

I will be financing some portion of it. I have really enjoyed my FWD hatchback, but going from a FWD hatch that's paid off to a FWD hatch that I have to pay for feels a bit silly, no matter how much better the replacement would be.

Between the Frisbees and the STs and the new Miata it's hard to imagine needing any more alternatives unless you are just trying to be different. Compared to times past we are almost in a golden age for people in your exact position.

What about a CPO Mustang GT? Say a 2011+ so you get the 5.0? A quick search on Autotrader found quite a few GTs with manuals.

412hp, RWD, manual, makes good sounds, decent fuel economy and a huge aftermarket.

stanger_missle wrote: What about a CPO Mustang GT? Say a 2011+ so you get the 5.0? A quick search on Autotrader found quite a few GTs with manuals. 412hp, RWD, manual, makes good sounds, decent fuel economy and a huge aftermarket.

This guy knows what he is talking about.

Skip the track pack though, the 3.73s = terrible MPG

Agreed. My brother has one and fun is an understatement.

If slightly used is fine and you don't mind horrible mileage I'd say look for an rx8 r3. Hella fun and you may not notice the lack of power coming to it from a focus. Accessible rear seats with the back doors, can fit full set of tires in it. The rotary might scare you off but apart from the poor mileage and imminent risk of random engine death its a very enjoyable car.

Mine has been reliable but I also maintain it and so far it only has 15k miles. Having driven both the mustang is much more powerful and handles surprisingly well, but the rx8 handles so much better its hardly a competition. The mustang feels half a ton heavier in my opinion.

I am thinking BMW.........1 or 3 series and of course M3. Dont' know what 20-25K will buy but I am guessing there's enough there to get something pretty nice.

In that price range I would think buying new would be a better option with financing rates etc. I say ecoboost mustang. Mpgs, boost, and power.

I am enjoying our one week old MK7 GTI. But it's front drive.

BMW 135i should be in that price range now, but I haven't had the ownership experience of a later-model BMW and I know how German parts & maintenance can be...

Mustang would be a good choice if you don't mind the weight.

Z-car?

After finally having driven one i can say 370Zs are kind of amazing. Genesis coupe maybe? What kind of boxster can you get for 25k? The world is basically your oyster as long as you can get financing for something with a few miles on it. If you are limited to practically-new mileage then you are reduced from 'world is your oyster' to only having 'several great options'.

The newest S2000 is good, but it's not new enough for a CPO. Neither is an early C6 Corvette.

jsquared wrote: BMW 135i should be in that price range now, but I haven't had the ownership experience of a later-model BMW and I know how German parts & maintenance can be... Mustang would be a good choice if you don't mind the weight. Z-car?

while the Ford definitely weighs more (3605), the BMW isn't light (just shy of 3400). Plus, the mustang has over 100 ponies more (ha ha)

I drove a Veloster R-spec today, it was pretty fun to drive and less than $23k. They are pretty ugly though, maybe if you just kept in in your garage and didn't turn the lights on until after you get in in might be ok though?

Frisbees are arriving on the used car market and seem to be in your budget. They don't seem to hold a lot of value as used cars, so that is in your favour.

I don't know about your hood, but the new Miata is not likely to land in the driveway for less than 40k in mine. Would an NC fill your needs? They will get pretty cheap once the new car is released.

the veloster looks best in dark colours that hide all the weird bumps and useless vents and scoops

NOHOME wrote: I don't know about your hood, but the new Miata is not likely to land in the driveway for less than 40k in mine.

$40k?? As much as I'm a Miata cool-aid gulper, there are plenty of other cars I'd plunk down on before the Miata if I had $40k to spend.

I really do not see the Miata touching 40 large ones. That seems the antithesis of what the car was meant to be

Klayfish wrote:

NOHOME wrote: I don't know about your hood, but the new Miata is not likely to land in the driveway for less than 40k in mine.

$40k?? As much as I'm a Miata cool-aid gulper, there are plenty of other cars I'd plunk down on before the Miata if I had $40k to spend.

Because Canada.

well.. you are paying twice the price for a car you can only use half the time..

mad_machine wrote: I really do not see the Miata touching 40 large ones. That seems the antithesis of what the car was meant to be

The nearly $8000 price difference was one of the reasons I am driving the Frisbee rather than a NC Miata. Well, that and the fact that the NC kinda sucks at being a Miata.

You have to start with the fact that we have 13% sales tax. And that tax goes on all the extras. And cars do cost more due to the smaller market size. And the Canadian consumer is well screwed-over species. If you think our cars are expensive, you should see the fees for Mutual Funds!

I think I will keep the Frisbee for at least another five years,sell it and the MGB GT, then go looking south of the border for a gently used ND.

The Veloster doesn't look ugly to me, just cheesy and kind of childish.

They were among the first to rip off the folded headlights from the Aston Martin One-77.

In reply to Mitchell:

I purchased an FR-S for $24,087 brand new. It was fun, light, practical (fit a forward and rearward facing child seat), good fuel economy, and cheap.