Toyota GR86, 2022, 4k, £28,790
Oh we’re done. That’s right, tar us with the predictable brush if you wish, but also make no mistake: pound for pound (coin), the GR86 is the most fun you can have with fewer than 30 big ones on the table. Frankly, it’s high in the running if you have triple that to spend. No need, surely, to recount the details (it’s the GT86 come good, essentially) although we’d also factor in the wind-in-the-sales feeling you get from having a Toyota warranty at your back. Moreover, thanks to the additional volume that its maker turned up when it seemed like things might get ugly, the prices have settled down. So you’re not paying over the odds to get into something nearly new. Here’s one from a main dealer with 4k on the clock. Rejoice.
Porsche Cayman (981), 2015, 20k, £29,990
If your idea of fun has some badge snobbery built into it, we understand. It is more fun saying you own a Porsche than a Toyota - especially when you paid the same amount. Cheap Caymans and Boxsters proliferate in the classifieds, so you can take your pick - but we’d argue the entry-level 2.7-litre 981 offers a very pleasant pathway into affordable and entertaining sports car ownership. For one thing, you get a naturally aspirated flat-six (an asset the Toyota cannot claim to rival) and a wonderfully neutral mid-engine chassis to go with it. Also, the 2.7 can be driven with relative abandon without perpetually risking ludicrous speed. This one has a full service history and precious few miles. Lovely.
Caterham 310R Signature Edition, 2017, 12k, £31,995
If fun for you means having the wind in your hair then there are several well-established ways to go for £30k, but anything at or very near the grin-inducing zenith is almost certainly going to have emerged from a British industrial unit. Thirty grand will just about bag you an example of the lesser-seen Atom 2 160 (with the Type S donk) although the low-mile Seven options are far more plentiful. We’ve mildly overstepped the budget (something Caterham always thrives on) to bring you this 310R Signature Edition, mainly because it looks terrific in starlight black with yellow detailing, but also because it represents a sweet spot in the lineup. This one seems to have all the goodies - including the optional six-speed ‘box - plus it’s only completed 12k miles. Minty.
Ford Focus RS FPM375, 2017, 23k, £27,950
Of course, the reason everyone (or everyone reading this) doesn’t drive an Ariel or a Caterham or a Morgan or the like is because it’s a nuisance getting the shopping or a child or a cup of tea to fit. So we’ve dutifully saved one space for a do-it-all hot hatch. Granted, the last-ever Focus RS isn’t universally adored - and something like a Megane RS Cup-S easily trumps it for handling purity - but with the onus on fun it’s hard to ignore the Blue Oval’s hooligan-at-large. No performance car is complete without a Drift mode these days, but the Focus was among the first to put its shoulder into the concept and (assuming you don’t give a hoot about tyre wear or who's watching) it remains a very moreish thing to pilot. Especially with yet more power and silliness courtesy of Mountune, as you get for your money here.
BMW M3 (E92), 2008, 63k, £27,250
If you’re the kind of person who really needs to maximise power and silliness to get your fun on, then you’ll want a honking V8. Happily, these proliferate at £30k and we’d cheerily recommend anything powered by AMG’s 6.2-litre or JLR’s 5.0-litre motor if you want to raise a smile (or a shaken fist). In fact, we were going to recommend this XFR on the basis that you could save half the budget for V-Power - but ultimately we figured a big engine is always best with a manual ‘box, so we’ve gone for the inimitable shape of the E92 M3 and the zingy vitality of its 4.0-litre internal organ grinder. Has BMW built a better engine since? Maybe, but its atmospheric soundtrack is going to seem like a tonic in 2024. To double down on that vibe, this one is in Fire Orange. Gangsta.
Mazda MX-5 BBR 220, 2019, 16k, £27,995
Talking of orange. And of fun. Yes, the MX-5 in general, but very specifically it’s the BBR 220 add-ons we’re pointing at here. And much else besides going on the vendor’s description. With much attention paid to the chassis, it reads very much like a labour of love and that’s usually great, because the MX-5 is one of the few modern cars that really lends itself to a blank canvas approach. But even if the owner had settled for just the BBR bits you’d be onto a winner. It’s been nearly two years since we pitted one against an Alpine A110 GT, and it says much that we’re still banging on about the experience now. ‘Mechanically perfect’ says the seller. We couldn’t agree more.
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