Yesterday, Car & Driver posted a somewhat incoherent article from car journalist Matt Farah in which he accused car companies of abandoning the everyday enthusiast. The gist is that vehicle makers are focusing on high-margin supercars targeted at billionaire collectors at the expense of the little guy. While Matt notes a handful of mainstream auto companies that still sell reasonably affordable sports cars, I wanted to see just what was out there for the average enthusiast and if the situation is as dire as it seems. In this week’s Market Monday, I’m sharing 10 affordable new sporty cars you can buy today.

According to CarPro about 16.3 million cars were sold in 2025, a year-over-year increase of 2.3%. JD Power reported in January of 2025 that 80% of those vehicles were trucks and large SUVs. While these hulking vehicles produce higher margins for car companies, they’re also what customers want. At some point, Americans decided that they were a better fit for their lives than smaller sedans, compacts and sports cars.

With only a small number of enthusiast cars being purchased at the more affordable end of the spectrum, it’s not hard to see why automakers are catering to the wealthy and ultra-rich buyers. Mid-six figure vehicles offer personalization and customizability that luxury buyers expect and will pay a premium for. I see this less as some nefarious plot by car makers to destroy the middle class and more as a shift to where the profit centers are in today’s bifurcated market.

Farah also spoke to how many sporty cars from all manufacturers could be seen driving around in the 1990s. This is undoubtedly true, but consumer preferences were dramatically different. When I was a teenager in the 1990s, my parents didn’t feel they needed to own a 3-row 7-seat massive SUV as our primary vehicle. Our family car for many years was a 1984 Datsun/Nissan Senta 2-door coupe with a 5-speed manual, which was good enough for a family of four on many road trips and vacations. My dad upgraded in the early 1990s to the still-small Toyota Corolla.

I’ve been out of the new car game for a while, preferring used cars to new for some time, preferring used cars instead. While researching what cool, fun enthusiast cars are on the market today, I was pleasantly surprised to find quite a few options. Frankly, there are more options than I thought there would be. In regard to price, I consider “affordable” in today’s market to be under $40,000. I know that sounds like a lot of money, but performance has always come at a price.

The Civic Type R might be the most top-of-mind sport compact in this list, but with a starting price of $46,895 the Type R starts to reach into Acura Integra Type S territory. Instead, the Civic Si is a lot of fun for the price.

Powered by a 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder putting 200hp to the front wheels and featuring a six-speed manual, the Civic Si also has firmer suspension and larger brakes than the standard Civic. It’s a bit slower than some of its competitors, but it makes up for it with a lower price point.

Powered by a naturally aspirated (amazing in this day and age) 228hp 2.4-liter horizontally-opposed four-cylinder engine from Subaru driving the rear wheels, the GR86 is a recipe that seems to have been written by an enthusiast driver. The option to choose a 6-speed manual transmission over an auto-box removes the usual qualm. I’ve never had the privilege of driving one, but contemporary reviews praise its handling, good looks and sprightly performance.

The GR Corolla is another obvious choice from Toyota, but with a starting price of just over $40,000 it’s too pricey to include here. Additionally, the Civic Si does fun car stuff better than the GR Corolla by most accounts.

The Miata is so often the answer to today’s question that there’s a joke that Miata is always the answer. Still providing a quintessential sports car experience in 2026, it’s not hard to see why. Available in a manually-operated soft-top or electric targa top, the Miata sprints from 0-60 in 5.5 seconds thanks to its 181hp 2-liter engine mated to a 6-speed manual or automatic. The original Miata was small, and today’s Miata was still small so it’s not the right choice as a sporty family-hauler. Fortunately, the Mazda 3 Hatchback Turbo is available at a starting price of $37,890 if you need a single do-it-all vehicle for your household.

The BRZ is an obvious choice here and should be considered, but it uses the same platform, engine and transmission as the GR86 mentioned above. The latter also has a sportier feel, according to automotive review. So for the Subaru entry, we have the WRX. Bred from rally cars, the WRX has provided a mix of everyday practicality and on-demand performance for years, and that’s still true today. Modern criticisms include perhaps a little too softening of the car’s edge, but it can still hit 60mph in 5.7 seconds with the CVT-equipped auto thanks to its 2.4-liter turbo four pumping out 271hp. Miles per gallon takes a hit, with 19 city and 26 highway even with a manual transmission.

The 2026 MotorTrend Car of the Year is the Golf GTI / Golf R, so it’s an obvious choice for this list and as such it felt conspicuously absent from Matt Farah’s brief overview of modern-day enthusiast cars. While most joke that Miata is always the answer, in my opinion the only choice for one-car-to-do-it-all is the Volkswagen GTI. A 241hp 4-cylinder turbocharged engine motivates the German hatch from 0-60mph in 5.8 seconds thanks to its smooth operating dual-clutch transmission. Recent upgrades to infotainment, including a return to physical buttons on the steering wheel, make the GTI a truly modern enthusiast option at a value-rich price point.

While the Z is the likely choice, its $43,000 starting price puts it more in the premium segment next to cars like the Golf R, Acura Integra Type S and BMW 2-Series. Though it doesn’t really come close to the pluckiness of the Senta SE-R from the 1990s and the “R” treatment mostly applies to a body kit, the Sentra SR still posts skid pad numbers that best its elder. If you’re looking for a sporty-looking car that will get you from point A to B in comfort while sipping fuel instead of guzzling it, the Sentra SR might be a nice option. With a 0-60 time of 8.7 seconds, it’s slow — but it’s faster than a base Sentra and way faster than my 2002 Volkswagen Golf.

Prices for the Ford Mustang range from around $35,000 all the way up to $176,000, and as you can imagine you get more for your money. The base Mustang is pretty potent, generating 315 horsepower from an EcoBoost turbo four. Most journos suggest the V8 is worth the price premium, but that puts the Mustang at nearly $50,000. At that price point, I’d start looking at alternatives to the Pony car in the premium space. The needle on the EcoBoost version of the Mustang is said to hit 60mph in just 4.5 seconds, which is no slouch. Personally, I think it’d be a gas to buy as stripped-down a version of the Mustang as I could and drive it like an old lady 80% of the time.

The Integra is praised for its precise steering, smooth ride, and lively handling in road tests, making it a good option for the enthusiast driver. Power comes from a turbocharged 1.5-liter four that delivers 200hp to the front wheels through a standard CVT transmission. Fortunately, a six-speed manual and limited-slip differential are tickable options. A sprint to 60mph is a disappointingly slow 7.1 seconds with the automatic and its heavier weight means the cheaper Civic Si is a better performer. If you want a premium badge, though, the Integra is an affordable and fun way to get it, though in my opinion the Integras of yesterday offer far more allure.

It’s a bit surprising, but the pricing of the entry-level model from Cadillac plus its sporty rear-wheel drive layout and 310hp base engine put it into consideration for this list. The Cadillac CT4 will spring from 0-60 in a very respectable 5.8 seconds using its 8-speed automatic. The ride is smooth yet offers crisp handling per the latest reviews. A common complaint is that the CT4’s interior trimmings fail to meet the quality standard of its rivals, but in base trim the car beats rival pricing by $5,000.

I’m loath to include a Hyundai in this mix, mostly because it seems that they fully fund some of the biggest car magazine’s budgets through their advertising dollars these days, but the specs speak for themselves. The car can reach 60mph faster than the pricier Honda Civic Type R using a 276hp turbocharged 4-cylinder engine mated to an 8-speed dual clutch automatic. It might be a bit gimmicky, but the car includes a smile-inducing feature where the driver can briefly boost the output of the engine to 286 horsepower by pressing a red button on the steering wheel.

If the masses didn’t consistently choose SUVs and pickup trucks as daily drivers and instead purchased GTIs and GR86s, manufacturers would probably be motivated to create more choice at this level of the market. Unfortunately, that’s not the world we currently live in. Based on the list above, however, I don’t think the situation is as alarming as Matt Farah suggests.

That said, there’s a legitimate lack of sporty car options from domestic American manufacturers, who have poured all their energy into SUVs, trucks and EVs. Outside the Mustang, Corvette (too pricey for this round-up) and the Cadillac there’s not much to inspire the modern American performance car lover.

If you’re in the market for a new car and you’re a true enthusiast, perhaps you can help send automakers a message and buy one of these cars instead of that shiny new Toyota 4Runner or Ford Bronco. Have a great week, everyone!

Wolf and Mare provides car finding, appraisals, and auction services for buyers and sellers of collector European cars. If you’re interested in acquiring an overseas car, give us a call or drop a line!