Dodge makes a SRT-4, Mitsubishi makes a Lancer, Mazda's got their
Protege and VW their Golf. The Ford Focus and Nissan Sentra also come
to mind. All of these cars are inexpensive, fun to drive, and
relatively simple. The SRT-4 even backfires like my spider! If you
don't like FWD, there's always the Mustang, Subaru 2.5 and Pontiac GTO.
The Mazda RX8 and (my choice) Hyundai Tiburon GTV6 also spring readily
to mind, as do the Saturn Ion Red Line and Lotus Elise. I'm sure I'm
missing a few, but my point remains that there are many cars to choose
from that are inexpensive and simple and fun to drive. I've driven 3/4
of these cars, and I am amazed at the leaps forward in quality on cheap
cars. In 1987, my Audi 4000 quattro was considered an expensive luxury
car. Now a base model VW Golf is more comfortable, better handling
(arguable, admittedly), faster, cleaner to run, cheaper to run (it
doesn't need premium), with better milage and a better sound system. It
will be safer in a wreck and I know that if I have a problem, I can
plug it into a computer and I'll know what's wrong.
What if I want...