Sports cars are often the dream purchase or long-term plans of most gearheads. These mean machines boast a striking design, advanced tech, and a lot more power than a Prius or a Corolla. But they also cost a lot more than those sensible cars.
You can get sports cars for as low as $5,000, but your choices will be extremely limited, and luck would have to play a major factor. Add another zero, and all that changes. You can have plenty of reliable sports cars to choose from if you browse the used market with $50,000 in your hand.
But not all of them are good deals, as some of them tend to be a pain to maintain. On the other hand, finding a reliable sports car that would stay with you for years after getting it is not so hard as it is important. Here are some sports cars of both types to give you an idea of where to begin.
10 Reliable: 2019 Ford Mustang – $35,000
Mustang enthusiasts will have to tread carefully when selecting a good model year, especially for the last few ones. You see, the 2018 and 2020 Mustangs have lots of problems and a few recalls, but the 2019 Mustang surprisingly turned out to be great.
An accident-free 2019 Mustang can cost somewhere anywhere between $20,000 to $60,000 depending on the trim, mileage, and condition, but you should expect an average price of around $35,000 just to be safe. If you want a relatively newer sports car, the 2019 Mustang offer great value for its money.
9 Stay Away From: BMW M5 E60 – $25,000
The E60 M5 has its engine to thank for both fame and infamy. We’re talking about the S85, a 5.0-liter V10 that makes 500 hp. It’s a beast of an engine, and the M5 E60 can outrun a Nissan GT-R. But as good as it sounds, there’s a different side to the story as well.
The same engine can choose to simply give up on you without many invocations. Owning it will set you back by around $25,000, but that’s just the start. The repairs and maintenance cost of the E60 M5 is way above average, especially all these years later, after more than a decade of use.
8 Reliable: 2020 Toyota GR Supra – $50,000
When we finally got a new Toyota Supra, half of us were dismayed that it had BMW’s engine and interior tech. Purists didn’t like that, but once we move past it, the Supra benefits from that, because BMW has been on a roll these past few years with reliability and tech.
The 3.0-liter inline-6 turned out to be a great investment for Toyota and the iDrive infotainment the Supra got is one of the best in the market. The Supra isn’t cheap, but you can still find one for just under $50,000 if you spend some time and effort.
7 Stay Away From: Mazda RX-7 FD – $40,000
The RX-7 is a great sports car and is not a bad-performing car by any means, and it’s a beautiful ’90s Japanese sports car you can get for $50,000. The Rotary engine it houses is one of the most popular and unique engines out there.
But, its uniqueness also lands it in a bad spot when it needs any repairs. The FD RX-7 has been around for a long time now, and you’d be dreaming if you thought it would be smooth sailing once you buy it, and finding a cheap place for its repairs is easier said than done.
6 Reliable: 2017-18 BMW M2 – $42,500
If you think that the new M5 is too costly and the previous M3 or the new Z4 just doesn’t cut it, then the BMW M2 strikes a perfect balance between performance and affordability. Keep in mind, the M2 CS would have a heftier price tag than $50,000 even in the used market.
But you can have the normal M2, which is one of the most reliable BMWs of recent years, and we all know how good they’ve been doing lately. For $40,000 to $45,000, you can have one of the best driver’s cars with awesome handling, decent power, and a high reliability rating.
5 Stay Away From: 2005-06 Chevrolet Corvette – $20,000
The C6 Corvette looked awesome in photos and in spec sheets. But it had a rough start when the 2005 Corvette’s report states 526 owner complaints and six recalls. Moreover, the 2006 Corvette did not improve much either and is one of the worst used C6 Corvettes you can buy right now.
Thankfully, Corvette fans have plenty of other great models, like the early–2000s Z06 or the 2019/2020 ‘Vettes. And a lot of them fall in the same price category as the 2005–06 Corvettes as well, so you are essentially getting a better version of the same car for a similar price.
4 Reliable: 2016 Porsche Boxster – $45,000
The third-gen Boxster was short-lived, with just 3 years under its belt. But Porsche ended it with a bang, and the 2016 Boxster is one hell of a sports car. Apart from being one of the cheapest Porsche cars you can buy new, it still offers a great value for its price in the used market.
The Boxster is a great way for someone to own their first Porsche sports car, and the 2016 model got a 5 out of 5 rating for reliability on KBB. Overall, if you believe that a 911 would be overkill, then the Boxster is the way to go for a refined, agile, fast, and yet, daily-drivable sports car.
3 Stay Away From: 2016 Mercedes C-Class Coupé
If having a decent interior is a preference for your car, then do not go with the 2016 C-Class. Mercedes-Benz has done a great job with the new MBUX digital cockpit for their new cars, but it came a long way from the one we see in the 2016 C-Class.
The 2016 C-Class seemed great when it came out, but when the smoke faded and problems started to arise, it quickly became a laughingstock for people and a bad investment for potential buyers.
2 Reliable: Lexus RC F – $45,000
Most if not all of us fell in love with the Lexus LFA upon first sight. But that is quite out of reach for us, both availability- and budget-wise. The RC F, however, is another great sporty coupe from Lexus, and you can have it for less than $50,000.
Even Lexus can produce an unreliable car, but thankfully, this one is not one of them. It’s also very luxurious, and pretty fast due to a 5.0-liter V8 under its hood that delivers 467 hp. The RC F gets an A+ on the holy trinity of reliability, performance, and (relative) affordability.
1 Stay Away From: 2015-18 Jaguar F-Type – $40,000
Finally, we end with a Jaaaag. The F-Type is a sports car that scores the highest marks in style, driving dynamics, and performance, but sometimes leaves the rest to be desired. It’s something you see in an Italian sports car, even though it comes from a British manufacturer.
The F-Type suffers from engine and transmission-related issues, as well as a crampy interior. The fact that used F-Types sell for about half their original prices should say all about how people feel about this beauty.
