The best used sports cars to buy in 2026

Very cheap sports cars, similar to anything bought second hand very cheaply, should be considered with a degree of disposability built in. This probably isn’t a car that will last forever, and unless you’re at the beginning of a project, it’s not something you want to spend a fortune on. The risky side of £5,000 buys you short-term pleasure. The standard solutions have their advantages – old MX-5, MR2 etc. – but for the sake of contradiction we opted for a wild yellow MG Trophy. Haters gonna hate, but the 160bhp 1.8 VVC is more than capable of putting a smile on your face – and that’s the whole point of a sports car in the first place.

Of course, things get a little more serious when you double the budget. That’s an appropriate attitude for the prospect of a 350Z, a rear-drive car that was considered hefty even for its time (the baseline twenty years ago was considerably rougher than it is today). It wasn’t and isn’t a delicate kit, but it certainly retains its own charm, helped in no small part by the 3.5-litre V6 in its nose – an engine that’s obviously naturally aspirated like a retired greyhound. Completely standard British examples are notable for their relative scarcity, making this a pleasant prospect as it is apparently well cared for whilst offering less than 80,000 coverage. A bargain, in other words.

If ‘burly’ means ‘heavy heavy’ to you, then you obviously live in the right country. For many people, there are two levels of British sports cars: a nicely appointed front-engine two-seater for a trip to the pub on Sunday, or a bare-bones mid-engine two-seater for a trip to the track on Saturday. Luckily, £15,000 will get you into both concepts and, as evidenced by this vibrant blue VX220, completely turn your weekend frown upside down. Less famous and less beautiful perhaps than the Lotus on which it was based, but hardly less wonderful to drive, even with the Vauxhall-supplied mule. This comes with an almost spotless MOT history and insignificant mileage. Don’t mention it.

Does PH like a BBR-ified MX-5? Do bears like honey? It’s no coincidence that the combination has appeared on our auction platform multiple times – so much so that it’s almost surprising to find one for sale without a seven-day deadline attached. But here it is, and it looks really nice too. We can argue all day about whether or not a turbo conversion is preferable to the naturally aspirated Super alternative, but the end result is much the same: a faster, more involving Mazda MX-5. Especially if the chassis has also been overhauled, which it has. It is clearly a labor of love for the last owner and has been cared for very sparingly over the past ten years. That explains the price, but believe us when we tell you that you are buying an undeniable sports car. Also one for all ages.

Speaking of one for the ages: welcome to the idea of ​​buying a used Aston. If you’ve never considered an old Vantage as a real property prospect, then you’re either a) here by accident, b) strangely unaware of the money now being asked, c) well aware of how much trouble they can cause. There’s certainly a reasonable chance that spending $30,000 on one won’t be the last time you spend money – but the benefits remain obvious. You’ll own a V8-powered Aston Martin and it will forever look and sound great, putting anyone who spent $30,000 on a car to shame. This has a flawless green record when it comes to MOTs, has the correct number of pedals and an upgraded clutch. Bingo.

There aren’t many price points here that a Porsche Cayman wouldn’t be very strong at, from early 987s for under £10,000 (get ’em while you can!) to 981s for £20,000 and up, and then the GT-badged cars, which can cost from £55,000 to more than double that. There’s a Cayman for (almost) every budget, with great handling, Porsche quality and a glorious flat-six in (almost) all of them. This time the R gets our vote; Not only has its residual power been incredible (15 years ago this was a £50,000 car), it will be no less sensational to drive than it is in 2011. Light, raw, exciting yet completely usable, it’s the mid-engine Porsche sports car at its best. And with the current confusion surrounding the future of the Boxster and Cayman, a decent R will be no less desirable in the future.

As with the Cayman, there’s a plethora of Jaguar F-Types, from £15,000 high-mileers to six-figure Project 7s. Likewise, the Jag is attractive almost regardless of budget; the case for making a £20,000 V6 Roadster is as simple as that for an all-season V8 hot rod, for twice as much money. And since Jaguar will never produce anything like the F-Type again, the temptation is hard to ignore. While £55,000 is a lot to spend on a car launched in 2013, the latest facelift has really sharpened up the looks and introduced the 5.0-litre P450 model, which was a great compromise: V8 thunder and supercharged tomfoolery in abundance, without the ridiculous (perhaps unnecessary) performance of the 575bhp R. At launch this 4WD cost £75 (the run-out version) at least 83,290. More than £25,000 discount after less than 20,000 miles doesn’t need much explanation…

And while we’re on the subject of British heroes, I’d be remiss not to mention the Lotus Emira. There’s simply no escaping the fact that the MSRP of a new one has risen to a point that’s hard to justify. What was once intended as the £60,000 Lotus sports car now starts at £80,000 for the Turbo; you can add another £10,000 to make it a Turbo SE. The V6, in flagship Racing Line specification, costs £99,500. The Emira is undoubtedly fantastic to drive, but it’s not that fantastic. Considering that it’s probably no surprise to find nearly new ones with significant savings; bad news for the original buyers, but a pleasant turn of events for those who want a brilliant Lotus sports car for less. This first edition covered just 5,000 miles, was registered in 2024 and combines the supercharged V6 with a six-speed manual gearbox – it costs £61,750. Rude not to, right?

Although the F430 was a brilliant junior supercar some twenty years ago, times are changing. And quite drastic when it comes to mid-engine Ferraris: the new Speciale features a twin-turbo V6 and a hybrid that produces almost 900 hp. This will still give you the feel-good feeling of a supercar (and the running costs), but the performance will be more familiar to a contemporary sports car. That honestly doesn’t sound like a bad place to be, especially with the peak output of 490 hp at 8,500 rpm. Speed ​​will have to be earned and not simply handed out, with that epic flat-crank V8 providing all the encouragement needed. At less than £100,000 you’ll have to make do with an F1 box rather than an open port, but nothing says mid-00s like a computerized manual – call it authentic. It has less than 20,000 miles on the odometer, gets four new tires for sale and is offered for £5,000 less than a new BMW M3. Yes, really.

The most famous sports car in the world, made as well as possible. It’s really no wonder that Singer Vehicle Design has had such phenomenal success over the past decade. Of course, people have been customizing their Porsches since the present day; Singer didn’t invent that. What they could claim for themselves was a level of attention to detail, obsessiveness and flair that the Porsche community had never seen before. A Singer redesigned 964 looks great, drives great, and is beautifully built, which is why everything they make sells out in no time. The car that started it all, the Classic, is no longer available for use as Singer has moved on to increasingly ambitious Porsche-shaped projects. Conveniently, there are now a few for sale second-hand, which looks more attractive than ever: this early car (number 14, delivered in 2015) benefits from an upgrade to the 4.0-litre engine and only 3,000 miles. It even comes with a warranty. A sports car that is undoubtedly worth every jackpot win.