I always wanted a RWD sports car. Never had one. You know YOLO right. These are the choices I have in mind.That fits the bill. RWD affordable fun to drive car. BMW 130i (2005-2008 model). Rx8 rotary and Gr86. Never driven or own any of these vehicles. IF you have then let me know your opinion on the matter.

All have their pros and cons.

BMW 130i inline six cylinder engine is the best N/A BMW has produced. Of all the 1 series this is the one to have. Properly maintain it's not too bad.

Mazda Rx8. The most controversial car of the bunch.Problematic rotary engine. But can be had for cheap. It's probably the most practical the rear seat is sufficient. This car has everything except an unreliable engine.

GR86 or BRZ. I looked at one the other day soon as I sat in it. It felt like it was designed for a driver and nothing else. Everything was for enjoyment.

Hard choice.HMMMM..

 

A GE8 in reverse.

Just kidding. I'd get a G35 4-door with a 6MT and leave it stock.

 

GR86 by a country mile.

i love the RX8 but 13-15 mpg is hard to stomach.

 

Indeed a solid shout. Except not a fan of the styling and the looks department.

 

True. It's looking like the GR each day that goes. But the long wait is a bummer. I went to the Subaru dealer they guy was saying a 9 month wait...1 year wait for the GR in Australia? Who knows. Lol The only bad point I could give. Is the rear is really only for a leg amputee or tiny people. You can make it work on a pinch though. Well you can't have a cake and eat it too.

 

I'd do a little hunting for a N54 powered 135i if you want to retain a smaller car... IF you're open, maybe look at the E9X 3 series or E60/E61 5 series (I'm an E60/E61 guy at heart).

As with BMWs of that age, there will be some patina and maintenance to get sorted away BUT its surprisingly not bad and usually with about 1500 to 2000 bucks with of "maintenance upgrades" like ditching the brittle factory charge pipes with proper metal ones, walnut blasting the intake valves (yay direct injection), decent intake, and JB4 you can make about 380 WHP reliably on our junk 93 octane in the states.

There are also some quirky things that come with the N54 such as randomly failing electric water pumps after 60k to 100k miles, waste gates on the turbos rattling loose and not adequately sealing and DME solder failures (had one fail on our families 2008 E60, was covered under factory warranty though). Like any project or potential investment, I'd do the best amount of research as possible. BMW forums and FCP Euro would be my go tos in regards to them.

 

I want to avoid the turbo BMW.N52 NA is the way to go.I am guessing but you guys in the states didnt get the 130i model.They are rare and starting to be well sort after so prices will likely go up.Strike when iron is hot they say.They are a bit more involving to drive than the 135i and e60.Its a essentially a rwd hot hatch.

 

No, we did get the N52B30 state side and I do indeed adore it along with its rev happy NA glory. We just didn't get the hatch version of the 1er.

Heck, I briefly considered selling my Fit to order a 128i back in 2012 (Black Sapphire with Dakota Brown and Black two tone leather interior 6MT Sport package car if I remember right) BUT... I'd still be mad at myself for missing out on the torque that the N54B30 made since the finding a decently spec'ed manual N54 135i was slim pickings somewhat locally. Plus I did NOT want the single turbo N55B30 after experiencing it in the F10 535i that replaced the E60 535i.

 

My car history has been 4 door, FWD automatics. 97 Dodge Neon, 99 Pontiac Grand Am GT and 08 Honda Fit. My next fun car I wanted something different and went with a 2016 Mazda Miata. The ND is a fantastic car. I know it's not on your lair but Miata is worth looking at. Unless I guess 2 seaters are out of the question. It's not the fastest car out there but it's still lots of fun. The ND2 has a bump in power and from what I hear its the perfect bump in power. If you don't like convertibles they have the RF version with a hard top and still gives you the option to take he roof off on nice days. Not too sure about your budget. I got my ND in 2017 for $30k OTD a RF would probable be a bit more. BMW can be expensive for maintence, RX8 takes more attention to the rotary engine to keep it reliable. Not too sure about BRZ's but I think they're fairly reliable as well. My ND o have only had to do normal maintenance.

 

Its a labor of love! Plus the naturally aspirated cars aren't as expensive to run... BUT knowing how to acquire parts from the supplier source versus straight from BMW makes it a night and day ordeal cost wise for off warranty items.

Renesis Rotaries are like clingy, needy women... They'll die without constant attention. There ARE ways to make them reliable though and niche things to know much like the BMW.

I've heard its hit or miss. It is comical that the recall for fixing the rocker arm issues tends to accelerate engine failure when it initial was in effect. hahaha

 

I considered buying an E90 335i and came close to doing so, but the no oil dipstick among other things left a bad taste in my mouth and pushed me away. Shame since although I'm not a BMW guy, they make a mean sounding straight 6 (my personal favorite sounding engine type). I'd definitely give an RX-8 a shot if I had the space, I've always had a soft spot for wankel engines. And due to years of driving $500 auction cars, I'm already accustomed to checking oil several times a week and providing some extra tlc.

 

Exactly. Reliable if you know how to take care and deal with her mess. (Clingy woman) lol analogy. But yeah, spot on. I can do most of the maintenance.

 

Rx8 are the most misunderstood car. I don't mine it. But I know eventually I would end up engine swapping it at some point. K swap or LFX kit are available.I also have a spot in the heart for the 8. Shame that Mazda has axed it's plan for a RWD sedan 6 for a RWD luxury Suv. It's a big mistake.I had hopes that they would revive the rotary that looks like just a hybrid range extender unit lol.

 

Not in that phase in my life for a 2 seater yet. Might be down the line as we get older. lol.

 

To me, removing the rotary defeats the point of it, although I don't blame anyone else who does so since the chassis is a good build basis and can be had for cheap. Although it could be good with the MZR 2.3 out of the Speed3. I had an 09 that I drove for 4 years. That thing was a monster, they didn't call it the FWD muscle car for nothing. On an unrelated note, if I could get that, but with a turbo K series and Honda 6 speed (the Mazda engine was a bit of a pain to service, certainly so compared to a K series. Plus the body and suspension showed it's Ford roots with some obtuse designs. Saw the same working on Fords at my old job), it would be my perfect daily.

 

I have an E90 N54 which I've had around 7 years. I recently bought a hybrid Fit because gas is getting crazy expensive.

When I bought the Fit it was to be a runner only and was planning on keeping the E90 as its fully optioned has a strong motor and I've spent a lot of time getting to know it maintenance and repair wise. Now I'm having so much fun with the Fit with its MT i dont miss driving the E90 at all so might sell it. Only thing it beats the Fit on would be for long distance travel since its so comfy compared to the tiny unbolstered seats in the Fit. The keyless entry and start on the Fit works every single time while it can be a bit finnicky on the E90. The sound system on the Fit is crap as well but going to upgrade soon.

The E90, N54 in particular, is an okay fun car if you like doing your own R&M. If you have to go to a mechanic or dealer for R&M it will quickly rape your wallet. There are lots of known failure points on the N54 not the motor but everything attached to it including electronics. It also pisses oil out of every hole it can find and gaskets need to be changed regularly. Things I've had to fix over the years are waterpump 3x, OFHGF 2x, oil sump and valve cover gaskets, PCV value (blocked the ports eventually to bypass), Logic7 amp repair, lower and uppercontrol arms, front and rear dampers, radiator and cooling system hoses, plugs and injectors and various other little things. And constanty having to adjust the wastegates to prevent the rattle. Turbos will need replacment eventually as well and althought there are a lot of aftermarket options mechanics locally I contacted flat out said they wouldnt want to do it because its a shit job. So if i keep it I'd probably up doing the turbos in my driveway which wouldnt be fun.

Its a love hate relationship. You love it when its working but then something breaks and you hate it because parts are expensive and they are a pain in the ass to work on.

Have a look at E90forum 90% of the posts are about DIYs and asking how to fix something. That should tell you something about the E90 lol.

 

Jesus, I've worked on plenty of E46s and they're not that bad to service. Haven't done too much with E90s, and now I'm real glad I didn't buy one. It really is a shame. It's almost perfect on paper. RWD, decent handling, straight 6, manual trans, decent aftermarket support, and available as a sedan (I personally don't like coupes). Guess I'll be sticking to my FWD 6-6 Accord to satiate my need for speed. Doesn't take corners as well, but it does have decent handling, and that J30A5 gets it up to speed more than quick enough to get me into trouble.

 

I just looked at goo net. There were S2000 and Silvias i was salivating. Damn.Is it true that Honda s2000 get stolen and EK Hondas. Importing could be an option. Older 90's and and early 2000 JDM classics.

 

Cannot help you with any of those 3 cars.

I want an Alfa Romeo Guilio Quadrifoglio.

 

I learned everything i rarely see other drivers know out of buying into Mid Engine after cutting my teeth on FWD. MR-S are in a amazing spot right now regarding the market, not insane but very easy modifications like plug play 2zz swaps, none of the suicidal tendencies that were hard to tune out of older MR-2 platform.

Out of cars you mentioned they are all great, but depends on market. I'm in NA so i would never buy a BMW 130 because repairing them here is a nightmare, the RX8 is cool but the least appreciated (for decent reason) Rotory stuck to a great but very strange looking car. If its 2nd gen then BRZ/GR86 would be my go to, the first gens engines torque dip issues can become too all consuming part of the experience over time.
130i most "respectable" but scary, would only ever go into it if i was super serious about that car and that brand.
RX8 sort of opposite, i would only go into it if its a bargain and basically a throw away fun car.
BRZ/GT86 ideally if 2nd Gen or at least tuned very well (maybe even on E85) basically the most quantifiably good without a hitch, probably best tool to learn on because of relative ease to own/low stress ownership, but won't win you originality points, as if it matters