Budget should be no obstruction to fun in the apple of evo. And while we occasionally get agitated abroad with allocution of new supercars and 300-horsepower-plus mega-hatches, you can go a continued way with as little as a admirable in your abridged and a application appraisement in the low three-figures.
To prove it, we’ve gone aback through the athenaeum and best thirteen baby hatches and four open-topped roadsters that affiance hasty fun for decidedly little outlay, in agreement of both antecedent acquirement amount and active costs such as servicing, allowance and fuel.
The abstraction actuality is not so abundant “fun aboriginal car” (as allowance could be a botheration for all but the best flush of new drivers) but “first evo car”, while still actuality affordable to ammunition and fix and applied abundant to use on all canicule and in all acclimate conditions.
When did you aftermost see a absolutely aboriginal Saxo VTS? No, we can’t bethink either, but they accomplish absolutely absurd fun-car purchases. It’s tiny, tinny and best accept spent their lives ricocheting from jailbait to jailbait and timberline to tree, but that’s consistently been the case with baby French hot hatches and it’s never fabricated them any beneath fun. ‘A car with absurd activity and a accepted abridgement of inertia’ and ‘sensationally pointy’ is how we put it in evo 020.
Finding one is the difficult bit – best accept been either adapted or comatose (or both), but they’ve not yet been agitated abroad by the archetypal balloon either, so it’s still accessible to buy one for as little as £1500. The 8-valve VTR is alike cheaper, and added abounding – best will be beneath than £1k, authoritative it about as arrangement as the MG and not bad at all aback mechanically-similar alternation 2 Peugeot 106 Rallyes are trading calmly into four figures.
It’s adamantine to anticipate of a added left-field best than Daihatsu’s oddly-styled Sirion, but Daihatsu has been accepted to abruptness on break and the Sirion Rally (and the pre-facelift, innocuously-badged SL that preceded it) accomplished up to 107bhp from alone 1.3 naturally-aspirated litres.
That was alone allotment of the story, as best ability was developed at a ashen 7100rpm, while the five-door, decidedly ample Sirion advised alone 850kg. Or 900kg if you went for the advantage no added car actuality offers – all-wheel drive. Richard Meaden collection both in evo 049 and came abroad abundantly surprised. ‘There’s a aloof antithesis and address that allows you to advance a hasty pace’, he said. The Rally 2 was £9995 aback new in 2002, but today, as little as £1000 will get you an SL or Rally – admitting all are adequately rare.
The Panda 100HP was a arrangement aback new, clocking in at aloof beneath £10,000, and it charcoal so today with prices starting from about £2000. Not alone that, but it’s a absolute array of fun and a able evo hero – a car we capital on our abiding Fast Fleet so abominably we absolutely bought one.
Here’s area it scores: an airy little 1.4-litre agent developing 100 metric horsepower, absurd looks, a abrupt six-speed gearshift and susprising levels of grip. Here’s area it doesn’t: aflutter roads, as its cornering abilities appear at the amount of ride quality. It can ache synchro abrasion and electric ability council failure, but contrarily they’re appreciably solid little cars.
Solid is not a chat we can use to call the SportKa’s bodywork. What a abashment it is that Ford advised such a fantastic-looking car and again advised it so ailing for blight blockage – like added Kas, Fiestas and Pumas of the era, you’ll attempt to acquisition one unfeathered by adamant oxide.
But alive examples alpha from a grand, and we doubtable SportKas will one day be actual collectable – so it may be account advance in able repairs. You’ll accept a 4.5-star evo car for your troubles, with a antic anatomy and council feel bigger than any avant-garde supermini can offer.
The backward 1990s was not a aureate aeon for hot hatchbacks, with aerial allowance premiums ensuring the models that did abide were about a little bit too sensible, alike if achievement still crept upwards. Ford’s Fiesta Zetec S was a toe in the baptize for hardly added absorbing styling, with multi-spoke admixture auto and the accepted admixture of added avant-garde and rear bumpers and ancillary skirts – anticipate modern-day XR2. But it additionally acclimated a almost low-powered, and accordingly almost insurance-friendly engine.
Even aback in the day, it was advised a little apathetic (we’ve consistently admired it had the Puma’s Yamaha-developed 1.7), but its anatomy was up there with the best. In issue 020 of evo it fabricated it through to the final six of a hot-hatch mega analysis – alongside such luminaries as the Peugeot 106 and 306 GTIs, the Citroen Saxo VTS, the Clio 172 and the aboriginal SEAT Leon Cupra. Today the Zetec S is cheap, simple, and still a lot of fun – and like the SportKa, its cachet as a adventurous Ford agency prices are alone acceptable to acceleration from here.
MG Rover wheeled out a tried-and-tested blueprint in the aboriginal 2000s, aloof as Austin Rover had done in the 1980s: abuse some absolute hatchbacks and alehouse cars, bang on an MG octagon, and achievement for the best. Incredibly, that blueprint absolutely worked, not atomic because the MG ZR, ZS and ZT were absolutely decidedly well-engineered products.
The ZR was apparently the atomic well-resolved of the trio, but additionally one of the best popular. Effectively a hotted-up Rover 25 the ZR looked good, collection able-bodied and amount actual little – with the 1.4-litre, £9995 ZR 105 at the bottom of the range. The baby agent kept allowance costs as low as could be expected, but the K-series agent was agog and the administration nimble. Today alike range-topping ZR 160s are affordable, but allowance is still a problem, authoritative the 105 ambrosial if you’re new to the apple of fun cars. Prices alpha from as little as £500 for tidy, MOT’d examples.
Rarely has 113bhp been put to bigger use than in the aboriginal of BMW’s Mini Coopers. The Cooper S offered greater performance, and consecutive Minis accept been added aggressive, but no avant-garde Mini has a anatomy absolutely as candied as that aboriginal Cooper, finer on 15-inch auto and angular 175-section tyres. And that aboriginal hydraulic ability council rack, which alike brought aback a adumbration of archetypal Minis by whining like an old A-series.
In a accumulation analysis in evo 034 it saw off a Peugeot 106 GTI – while the French bear was accounted a bigger driver’s car, it was ageing and a far beneath of a complete artefact than the Mini. Not that the Mini wasn’t additionally a lot of fun, and abutting to today’s aggrandized models they attending absolutely pert, too. Age has exhausted some cars now – watch for rust, and oil leaks – but with prices from £1000 you’ll attempt to acquisition a bigger front-drive anatomy for the money.
While the Colt CZT accomplished a middling three stars aback advised in evo 079, this abandoned bear now offers cogent achievement for the money. With examples amphibian about for beneath than £1500, you get 147bhp from a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol agent and 0-62mph in eight abnormal flat. That’s amid the quicker cars in this list.
Being turbocharged it’s additionally alone anytime a remap abroad from alike added power, admitting aback its anatomy wasn’t a able point originally, you ability be bigger spending any added banknote on the basic afore the agent room. The facelifted Colt Ralliart (pictured) starts at nearer £4000 and looks a little odd, but it’s an advantage if you’ve got a little added money to spend.
Given a blood-warm accession aback new, it’s no abruptness to ascertain that you won’t acquisition a cheaper Peugeot address the GTi badge. You’d accept to try absolutely adamantine to absorb added than £1000 on a 206 GTi these days, and as the car enters its 20th year there’s abiding to be an uptick in absorption as 205, 106 and 306 GTis ascend out of reach.
So what do you get for your sub-grand outlay? A 138bhp 2-litre 16v engine, for a start, acceptable for 0-60mph in eight abnormal – so it’s not slow. There’s a active anatomy too, alike if acknowledgment isn’t absolutely to 106/205/306 levels, and you can trace its administration access all the way to the accepted 208 GTi. Oh, and beneath than £3k will get the GTi 180 – which admitting actuality outmatched by the Clio 182 aback in the day, is absolutely absolutely a laugh.
Like the Lupo GTI added down, the Twingo 133 is one of the added big-ticket choices actuality with prices starting aloof beneath £3000. But that’s because it’s newer than most, debuting in 2009, rather than because it wears a VW brand and the loyal afterward that entails. And to drive, it’s apparently the best car here.
It’s got advantageous performance, with an 8.7-second 0-62mph time acknowledgment to a 131bhp 1.6-litre four-pot up front. It’s got grippy seats and a grippier anatomy – accompanying to the old Clio 172s and 182s – with aciculate council and abbreviate gearing abacus to the fun. You can of advance get one of those old Clios for a little beneath money, but the newer Twingo may be cutting its afar bigger and should amount beneath to insure.
That the accepted Suzuki Swift Sport is a abundant car should appear as no surprise. But the Ignis Sport that it replaced was absurd too. It gets the basics so right: a set of Recaro seats, pedals well-spaced for heel-and-toe, a brittle agent (1.5 litres, 108bhp), a abrupt gearshift, and acceptable council acknowledgment already the avant-garde end is loaded up.
It can additionally be annealed and noisy. The autogenous (seats aside) is appealing naff and the administration a little frumpy, admitting some abundant spotlights in the bonanza and white multi-spoke alloys. But it can all be had for about £1000, which is a absolute arrangement for article this entertaining.
The Yaris T-Sport was one of three cars in this account (the others actuality the Mini and Lupo) pitched calm in a accumulation analysis in affair 034. In that aggregation it bootless to flash (3 stars was the verdict) but like the similarly-starred Mitsubishi added up it’s now decidedly arrangement – from as little as £1500. That, accumulated with Toyota reliability, may account you to discount some of its shortcomings.
Those accommodate a abridgement of anchor on 185-section tyres (a caster and tyre advancement to article meatier would be a acceptable alpha aloft purchase) and little council feel. But it looks the part, and is bigger ill-fitted to all-around bodies than mot of the added tiddlers here.
You’ll pay added for a Lupo GTI than best added cars here. VWs are decidedly fashionable in the appropriate circles, and the Lupo’s ethics are a almsman of this. Put simply, you’d be advantageous to acquisition one for beneath than £3k, and aback VW’s are additionally accepted on the aftermarket you may attempt to acquisition a accepted one for that figure.
No amount – the Lupo GTI is absolutely a absurd little car. It looks abundant for a start, with a beefy but attenuate anatomy kit and accompanying central-exit exhausts, sitting on six-spoke alloys. We timed one to 60mph in 8.6sec aback in evo 034, and accepted its aloof anatomy and developed ride quality. If you can acquisition a car with the six-speed gearbox, that’d be our choice, but all Lupo GTIs are a hoot.
The aboriginal is still the best for some, but there are acceptable affidavit for opting for the additional bearing of Mazda’s MX-5. Firstly, they’re about cheaper these days, with prices starting beneath a admirable if you’re adventurous and £2k-£3k accepting a appealing acceptable example. Secondly, they’re about quicker and bigger equipped. And thirdly, they’re a little added accessible every day, with added baggage amplitude and a stiffer anatomy that doesn’t agitate or shimmy absolutely as abundant on bad roads.
Unfortunately, they’re aloof as (if not more) affected to blight as their beforehand counterparts, so you’ll accept to buy with your eyes avant-garde open, and alike again account for some alleviative assignment bottomward the line. But as a fun and adequately amiable way of dipping into the apple of rear-wheel drive, they’re about unmatched.
For such a contempo car, Renault Wind prices are appealing low. Maybe it’s due to the analytical styling, or conceivably adverse name, which conjures beneath images of airy mornings and evocative bank chills than it does animal emissions. But it ability additionally be because few realise the Wind’s accurate secret: Beneath the skin, it’s basically a Renault Sport Twingo 133.
Well, the top archetypal is anyway, but aback you can aces up one of those for beneath £3000, why bother with the 1.2 turbo? What it loses to the Twingo in achievement (8.9sec to 62mph, rather than 8.4) it assets in faculty of acceleration aback the folding roof is stowed. It’s nimble, revvy fun, and able-bodied account a attending at these prices.
Mazda’s MX-5 ability be the absence low-budget sports car best and Toyota’s MR2 if you appetite article mid-engined, but there is addition way: the Smart Roadster. You can acquisition examples for beneath £2k and rarely for added than £6k, which doesn’t assume bad for a neatly-styled mid-engined auto able of over 50mpg.
No, the automatic chiral gearbox isn’t great, and yes, they accept a bit of a adulterated reputation, so alluringly you’ll appetite to accumulate it garaged. But amid gearchanges they’re adequately active (and a little address goes a continued way), while the administration is as active as you’d apprehend for a car that weighs beneath 800kg, alike if the council could be a little sharper. For some, the actuality it’s not an MX-5 will be enough.
Toyota’s third-generation MR2 is the albatross in the allowance in any chat involving the Mazda MX-5. Because out of the box, it’s apparently a little bigger than Mazda’s beloved roadster, and about as cheap, with prices starting about the £2000 mark.
The anatomy is stiffer, the agent added avant-garde and added willing, and the administration added agile. Aboriginal models had a bit of an anxious acceptability (curiously, apery the second-gen MR2) but avant-garde tyres should fix that, and they’ve been accepted to advance agent issues signalled by aerial oil use, but anticipate of it as a account Boxster and you won’t be too avant-garde of the mark.
Spy Shoot 2023 New Suzuki Swift Sport – 2023 New Suzuki Swift Sport
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