10 Best Sports Cars for Under 50k
In a market with tons of play, which would you choose? We take a look at some of the best autos to be had for the sub $50,000 price point.
We reviewed what we find to be the Top 10 Sports Cars Under $50k and here are the results. Each vehicle has its own values so we refrained from ranking them but instead share what puts them on the list and their individual merits.
Listen in:
A surprise to no enthusiast- the M235i. Coming in $49,250.00, BMW’s return to the driver is a car no one should ever over look. At this price point, we built our Jr. M with leather interior, the Technology package and Harmon/Kardon sound. Vaulting from 0–60 is just 4.5 seconds, you’ll be hard pressed to find a comparably well rounded vehicle in this segment. Let us not forget BMW is offering the most comprehensive maintenance plan from the start on the current market*. In fact, the only things we found to our disliking were the midget-sized back seat and BMW’s shortening of the maintenance plan for MY 2017.
Get your 3rd rate action movie ready *cue Nissan and the Nismo Edition 370*. Despite half of Asia having one of these sleds, it is still in contention for our list. Nissan does an interesting job touching on luxury and performance. We found this car to have a sort of playful style. With hips wider than your pregnant girlfriend, you certainly know what it is when you see. The Nismo edition with Tech brings you upgraded suspension, some interior touches, ground effects and the technology you’d expect to find in this Japanese calcu-car. Add Nissan reliability, and you’ll get tired of it before it gets tired of you.
Oh Cadillac. While we would love to put a ATS-V on our list, you simply can’t make one fit into the category. The next best thing, is the ATS 3.6. With touches of sport, your father’s couch and David Bangler styling, there is something everyone might find appealing in Cadillac’s offering. Our build came in $47,170.00 equipped with the Performance Trim level (which has nothing at all to do with performance) and a moon roof. She’ll still want to ride home with you, but it might end there… on your father’s couch…
The Rolls Royce to Waffle House Bobby- The 2016 Challenger R/T. Fully equipped, this American Neo-Classic comes in at $47,650.00. What you lack in luxury, you gain in power. With 485hp, Bobby has no excuse not to make it to Waffle House on time after a night of Bud Ice. With functional backseats, he can even carry his whole family! Surprisingly, with all that power, you still manage an EPA estimated 30mpg. Burnt hash browns aside, we found this car to be a hell of a performer in the segment.
What do you get when you take Shia LeBouf, a trailer park, Chevrolet and a 100th of Michael Bay’s production budget for Transformer’s and mix them together? We don’t know either, but imaginably something close to the 2016 Chevrolet Camero 2SS. You’ll be the eye of Betty and Jethro when you park this sled at the back of the Walmart parking lot on Friday’s for your “Car Rally”. On a lighter note, you’ll be ahead of the rest in looking bad with Chevrolet’s newest iteration of the Camero. As if that wasn’t bad enough, you can’t see over your plastic dashboard. Sure it goes fast, but you want to go fast so people can’t see you driving this. If you had an extra $48,360.00 to spend, you might get more enjoyment from lighting it on fire.
Waffle House Bobby’s cousin that escaped the trailer park and went to Clemson did it in style with the 2016 Ford Mustang GT Premium. Of the American offerings, this is hands-down the most well rounded of them on our list. We found the Mustang to give you more of a sport feel, opposed to the American muscle shirt you’d get with the Camero and the Challenger R/T. Another great thing about Ford’s latest mustang is price. Ours came with every conceivable option and tipped the scales at $45,850- easily snuffing the other Neo-Classics. While it’s got next to no curb appeal, your smiles per dollar are bountiful.
Venturing over seas we land in the company of Audi’s latest brain child: The 2016 S3. This is a TON of car for the money. Priced to test, we grabbed a Prestige Plus model at $49,225. Here you can find things like Bang and Olufsen sound, Audi’s MMI Infortainment and LED headlights. This is a smaller car that does an effective job of its footprint by offering you 4 doors. As if it couldn’t get any better, the joys of quattro and a complementary first service warm up even the coldest of drivers. While not all sunshine and rainbow’s with no manual transmission or hatch back being offered in America, there might not be a better way to combine technology and drivability in this segment.
Before you scroll pasting thinking, “WTF is a GTI doing on this list?!” take 2 seconds to notice the “Arrrrrrrrgh” badge on the bumper. This is the 2016 VW Golf R. Almost $10,000 under budget, our test hatch came to us at $40,010. The only added option available to add on the vehicle is color, transmission type and Driver Assistance package. If hatches aren’t your thing, you suck and I hate you, Waffle House Bobby. VW gives you their version of AWD to manage the 292 hp, and a flat-bottom steering wheel for your driving pleasure. The only thing to our displeasure would the the “Fender” (Panasonic) audio… But for saved 10k, you could add almost whatever set up you wanted and still save yourself some money.
BMW’s more flippant mark, MINI, makes the list with the John Cooper Works droptop iteration. While it doesn’t make smoke rings on pavement it may very well represent the most enjoyable drive on the list. Razor sharp handling and brisk acceleration will make everyday driving in traffic all the more pleasurable. The only convertible on the list leaves over $5,500 to spare in our target budget of $50k. Feeling every slight break in pavement in your lower lumbar is the only real setback for this vehicle in our view.
Making a street legal rally car requires certain concessions in appearance, as noted with this Subaru. Grip, handling, and power come wrapped in a High School graduation package complete with rear spoiler bow. You can delete that spoiler as an option by the way. The interior is more of the same with varying degrees of racing bits on full display to complete the Fast and Furious feeling that’s so en vogue these days… You’ll also get H/K sound and Nav as standard with the Limited build specs and still have close to ten grand in change before closing in on $50k. Bonus.
