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Sales figures show us each month what the most popular used cars are for Australian buyers, but popular doesn't also mean best.
When it comes to affordable sports options, you should make sure the three models below are high on your list of cars to consider.
JUMP AHEAD
Near new: Hyundai i30 N
Plenty of choice, so Snag a good ‘un
Hot hatches have long provided us with cut-price performance. But as the number of new-model offerings diminish, one hot hatch steadfastly remains: the Hyundai i30 N.
Fortunately, it’s also one of the finer hot hatches made, with its rock-solid 202kW 2.0-litre turbo-petrol four driving the front wheels via a six-speed manual and super-tricky electronically locking front diff. There’s even a rorty active exhaust, customisable driving modes, and rev-matching – tech normally reserved for sports cars many times its price.
Hyundai has regularly boasted about the i30 N’s durability, even on a racetrack. Second-hand examples built in 2019 can be yours for as little as $30,000, and come with plenty of safety features as standard.
We recommend a Premium grade with extra conveniences such as a heated steering wheel and upspecced front seats. And if you manage to nab one with some of its five-year factory warranty remaining, you’re also covered for track-day use.
Mid range: BMW M130i / M140i
M + LSD + ZF = OMG
in the future, we’ll fondly look back on the days when a manufacturer would cram a slightly-too-large engine into a slightly-too-small vehicle, such as the brilliant rear-drive BMW M140i, and the cheaper, but no less beguiling, M135i.
Both sport a 3.0-litre BMW turbocharged straight-six which is amply reliable by most accounts, and able to be paired with either a six-speed manual or an eight-speed ZF torque converter automatic.
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Decent M140i examples around a 2018 vintage will cost you in the vicinity of $35,000, which gets you a rear-drive hot hatch with 250kW and 500Nm.
While the M140i is unlikely to win any medals for outright handling brilliance, the abundant power more than makes up for it – as does the brawny straight-six sound and additional practicality of its five-door layout.
Much as we like a manual, the BMW’s is a bit notchy and recalcitrant, making the slick auto the pick. Factory mechanical LSDs were an option, and rare, but worth trying to find.
MOREEverything BMW
Budget: Toyota 86 / Subaru BRZ
Tokyo Thrift?
While we’re still waiting for used Toyota 86/Subaru BRZ prices to get back to pre-pandemic levels (they were approaching $10K) we suppose that $18K in 2024-money (about as cheap as they are now) is close-ish to $10K by 2019 standards. Sort of. Slightly. Maybe.
However you cut it, it’s still a ripping great bargain for a vehicle that is more fun than most Ferraris – indeed, COTY-winning levels of fun. That’s down to its superbly friendly rear-drive chassis, standard limited-slip diff, sublime steering and, we even concede, the 147kW horizontally-opposed four-cylinder under the bonnet.
They’re a lot safer than an S15 Nissan 200SX and, as for reliability, look after an 86/BRZ and it will look after you, or so we’ve heard from those who race them. They’re also okay on fuel, can come with seat heaters, and grant you access to an entire aftermarket universe of possible modifications.
Where do we sign?
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