I'm in the market for an R53. I'm thinking about what else I should look at. The criteria are lightweight, great handling, seats 4, reasonably safe and under $15k. FWIW I don't find the GTI or Fiesta ST nearly as fun as the R53. Any other cars I'm missing?

 

Porsche Cayman/AudiTT Yes you can find them for less than $15K I know you said 4 seats, but............just saying

 

No its not as much fun, but the Civic Si has a sweet motor. I have an 08 as my daily / winter car, with my R53 being my summer toy. The 06-11 are the good ones

A miata, but once again only seats 2

 

Honda engines rock. I have an S2000. This will be my sorta practical car. I need to do short trips around the suburbs with the kids.

 

Great cars. I have a 2 seat convertible. This is for my kinda practical car. I've thought about the 911 but $15k is a beat down 911 and the seats are too small besides.

 

As much as I love my R53, putting kids in the back for even a short while gets old fast. That S2000 you already have is a great car, when it comes to hauling kids around, even on short jaunts, SUV all the way $15K can get you a nice used Expedition....

 

for longer hauls we have my wife's SUV. I've stuck the kids in the wife's R52 a bunch though.

 

Focus ST is a decent little car.

 

If you have young ones that are in a rear facing seat, don't even think about an R53. If you need to buckle them in, leaning in will get annoying fast. If you really want a mini get a clubman (used to have one) or potentially a countryman. A clubman can be a lot of fun (just get a 2011+ if you want the turbo).

Otherwise a 4 door civic si with the 8000rpm readline is 90% as much fun as the R53.

 

They are practically giving away Fiat Abarths away, a 2015 model with super low miles are selling for 12-13K. The sticker price on a loaded one was 28-32K. Slap on a Unichip Q4 on there and you're getting about 220HP at the wheels, so says their dynos.

 

If I woke up one day and my mini was gone, and there was a good chunk of cash parked where it used to be.........I think I would look for a nice used BMW M3

 

Hands down a WRX. I bought one of the first ones when they started selling them in the U.S back in 2002. Gave it to my daughter in 2012 when I bought my first Mini. From day one, other than a set of tires and a new battery, the Subie was at the dealership for annual oil/filter changes. Zero problems, sqeaks or rattles over 10 years.

 

MazdaSpeed 3. The next best thing to a Mini when it comes to a balance of performance and practicality.

 

+1 for a 2002ish BMW M3. My dad just bought one with a supercharger kit and tons of aftermarket work done on it for $20,000 so I think that a stock one under $15,000 is reasonable.

when I wrecked my first R53, I was looking hard at Subaru WRX/STI but its hard to find one below $15,000 and hard to find one that hasn't been abused.

 

WRX. I've owned them for over 10 years. Super low maintanence, great performance. I was actually looking for a newer one, but settled on a Mini. So kinda the reverse. Glad to have gotten here though.

 

I absolutely loved my old rx8, amazing to drive, seats 4 unlike the r53 in my opinion because nobody can fit back there the back of my seat literally touches the rear seat, gas mileage is awful and some say reliability is an issue although mine was at 140k when I sold it on the original engine. I loved it but most people hate them either due to engine issues or gas mileage but next car after my r53 will be an rx8

 

Beyond a doubt a Mazda CX-3 if I had to have a four seater and a Miata if I didn't.

 

[QUOTE=Racingguy04;4277537]+1 for a 2002ish BMW M3. My dad just bought one with a supercharger kit and tons of aftermarket work done on it for $20,000 so I think that a stock one under $15,000 is reasonable.

On this era M3 gotta be careful as the rear end welds can be defective where attached to the body.

 

Not too sure about the $15k range, but there's quite a few cars I really enjoy in the sub-$10k range.

Modified '02-'04 330ci is the sweet spot for E46's, IMHO. In any case, it will be a huge power increase from an R53. Just make sure VANOS, rear subframe rust (as r53coop mentioned), transmission shift pins, and cooling issues are addressed. Also watch out for janky interiors, although this is easily fixable, even without mechanical abilities.. Avoid '01 due to hilariously overboosted steering. Parts & maintenance will be near MINI territory.

Most Subarus will be a step down in terms of driving pleasure. The practical choice is a hawkeye/blobeye ('05/'06) WRX Wagon. The wagon is unique, holds value well, and would maintain the convenience of hatchbackiness. Stay away from 150k+ mile cars, though. Basically every EJ25 blows its head gaskets or rear main at or before 200k miles.

But to be perfectly honest, they added a lot of weight over the years, but basically no power. The best Subaru you can get IMHO is the early 2000's RS 2.5. You could pick one up for less than $2k, swap in an EJ20 from a version 8 JDM STi and you'd be set for any season in any location, all for less than $10k. And you could basically afford every mod anyone could ever think of for that car. Light, cheap, reliable, and so much fun both on & off road.

'87-'89 Porsche 944. 'Nuff said.

One could also always argue NA Miata, S13 coupe 240sx, VR6 Corrado, Focus SVT, etc, but I think that may be a little too low-budget and boy-racer for you guys, haha.

Btw, I'd avoid a Speed3, unless you just LOVE understeering every single time you turn the wheel. Huge downgrade from the peppy handling dynamics of the R53. If you want another hot hatch, consider an EP3 Civic Si. No turbo, but instead you get a delicious motor and the cool center console shifter.