If you’re like me, you might’ve grown up with rakish little Matchbox cars, “Red Barchetta” on the brain, and names like Shelby and Clark burned into your memory. A determination to dream about sports cars and open roads, if you will. The truth is, in 2024, we don’t know where the sports car is going, or what its future holds in an electrified era. Time is the one thing in life we can never get back, so if you’ve always wanted a sports car, why not pick one up?
Sure, we might be headed into winter, but it’s still autumn for now, and autumn colors are some of the best conditions in which to experience an open-topped sports car. So, let’s take a look at the array of sports cars you can buy for less than $10,000 because it truly is amazing.
We’re talking classics, modern sports cars, Japanese sports cars, American sports cars, German sports cars, even Italian sports cars. Potent sports cars and sports cars more suited to Sunday drives. Sports cars for everyone, because a little two-seat bundle of joy shouldn’t just be for the wealthy.
Let’s start with the obvious choice in the segment, the original Mazda Miata. After all, if the internet’s to be believed, Miata Is Always The Answer, right? We’re talking about the car that really revived the roadster segment, and one of the few here with a bloodline that continues to this day. This particular Miata is a first-year 1990 car, and it was recently auctioned off on Bring A Trailer by the original owner. How’s that for pedigree?
With an eager little 1.6-liter engine in the nose, an incredibly crisp shifter, and double wishbone suspension at all four corners, Mazda got the fundamentals right for this thing, and it’ll give you plenty of smiles without getting you plenty of tickets. Sure, the Millen alloy wheels on this example might not be to everyone’s tastes, but this is a straight-looking 82,000-mile example of the archetypal reborn roadster that someone was lucky enough to scoop up for $8,400. Not a bad deal for a certified classic.
However, let’s say you’re looking for something a bit more modern. Something with a decent set of safety features, a bit more comfort, better acceleration, just something more usable on an everyday basis. Well, how about a third-generation NC Mazda MX-5? Sure, owners of other MX-5 generations may poke fun at it for being big for a Miata, but with a curb weight of less than 2,500 pounds, it can’t exactly be called pudgy.
This particular NC MX-5 is a 2007 Touring model with a clean Carfax and the fairly rare appearance package, which gives it a subtle set of skirts, Of course, it’s rocking a six-speed manual transmission, and although it had 115,300 miles on the clock when it hammered on Cars & Bids, its largely Texas history means it should be pretty clean.
How about something with a little bit of James Bond cachet? Sure, Agent 007 driving a Z3 in “GoldenEye” was a heavy bit of product placement, but this is an actual Bond car you can buy and run for sensible coin. Sure, this 2001 Z3 that recently hammered on Cars & Bids for $6,300 might not be an early blue car, but it has the desirable M54B30 three-liter straight-six, meaning it pumps out a stout 225 horsepower.
What’s more, this Z3 seems to be far from rough. It’s a Southern car so it should be essentially rust-free, it only had 83,400 miles on the clock when it sold, and it’s got a limited-slip differential. If your idea of a sports car is closer to the formula for a Big Healey than that of an MG B, the Z3 is a sports car to put on your short list.
Speaking of potent sports cars, let’s take a look at what America has to offer. Sure, the Pontiac Solstice may be a parts bin special with shockingly little storage space, but in GXP trim, it’s also a 260-horsepower turbocharged terror that will lay waste to a base-model Porsche Boxster of a similar vintage in a straight line. Plus, it can handle well too, even if it is a more serious, less tossable machine than a Miata.
This particular Solstice GXP recently hammered on Cars & Bids for just $8,000, and that feels like a lot of car for the money. With 96,700 miles on the clock and a minor hit on the Carfax, it’s also something you can happily drive every day without it feeling too precious. Don’t overlook GM’s last non-Corvette sports car, because it offers some serious bang for the buck.
Porsche Boxster — $9,400
Of course, if you’re feeling particularly fancy, you can still buy an early Porsche Boxster for less than $10,000. Hell, I bought one myself, although not for less than $10,000 USD, because well, I’m Canadian. Still, these mid-engined cars are where the smart money’s at when it comes to entry-level Porsches, provided you can afford Porsche maintenance bills. From the back of the floorboards forward, these cars are functionally identical to the 911 from the same era, which means you get a whole lot of goodness at a vastly reduced buy-in.
This particular Boxster is a 1999 car, which means it got the 201-horsepower 2.5-liter flat-six with the sturdier dual-row IMS bearing, along with shorter gearing than the later 2.7-liter cars. Good stuff. Sure, it might have 150,000 miles on the clock and a minor damage entry on the Carfax, but the previous owner kept it for 21 years, and it fetched an entirely reasonable $9,400 on Bring A Trailer. The later headlights without the amber lenses are a nice touch on a silver car, and while the bright wheels likely aren’t to everyone’s tastes, they’re something you could grow to find endearing. Yep, this does the business.
Then again, what if all of this stuff is a bit too new for you? What if you’re a misty-eyed romantic aiming for classic car nostalgia and Castrol stains on your jumper? If you’re leading with passion, an Alfa Romeo Spider might be exactly what you’re looking for. Sure, it won’t be as robust as something modern, but it’s stylish, makes a brilliant noise, and pairs well with “Mrs. Robinson” on the stereo. Best of all, Alfa made so many of them that they’re still cheap.
This beautiful black 1988 Spider Quadrifoglio recently hammered on Bring A Trailer for just $8,500, and it offers all the right stuff. Heritage, gorgeously slim door handles, a mere 84,000 miles on the clock, a 115-horsepower two-liter twin-cam four-cylinder engine, charming Jaeger dials, the works. It’s just inherently cool, but not wildly expensive.
So there we are, six different flavors of open-topped sports car, all with their own upsides. Given how the number of attainable sports cars on the new market continues to dwindle, maybe re-living the past isn’t so bad. Besides, tomorrow is never promised. It’s unlikely for any of these cars to shoot up in value, but numbers could continue to dwindle and situations might change. If you’ve always wanted a sports car, the best time to buy one — any sports car — is always now.
(Photo credits: Bring A Trailer, Cars & Bids)
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