Nothing rivals the speed, prestige, and head-turnability of a supercar. They represent the pinnacle of what a car can be, and I don’t know anyone that wouldn’t love to own one. But, here’s the issue: they’re really frickin’ expensive.
What if I told you that you actually can own a supercar for cheap, though? At least, cheap compared to new supercars, that is. In fact, we put together a list of supercars you can buy for less than the cost of a new Dodge Hellcat, which also may or may not be a supercar. It’s complicated.
Today, we’re going to be talking about 7 amazing supercars, plus one honorable mention, that can be yours for less than $60,000.
Audi R8 – Germany, Italy, and Adrenaline
Let’s be really honest for a second, most of these cars are not a good idea to buy. If you want supercar performance at a good price that won’t break down or cost you your life savings just to maintain, get a good old fashioned Corvette, not a supercar. However, if any car supercar comes close to the practicality of a ‘Vette, it’s this first one on our list, the iconic Audi R8.
If you were a multi-millionaire playboy philanthropist mech-pilot, what would you drive? Well, if Iron Man is any indication, it’d be the Audi R8. Now down in the sub-$60,000 range, you’re going to be looking at older R8s that have a few miles on them, like the 2008 we found on Cars.com for $55,000.
That’s a car that cost $170,000 when it was new, and it’s not like they get any slower. You could have one of these, or you could have a GMC Yukon. Want to take bets on which one is more fun to drive?
And, truthfully, the R8 has a reputation of being one of the most reliable supercars you can buy, which actually makes it one of the most practical cars on our list. Some people even daily their R8. That’s some big brass energy. Just roll up to the office and pop revs a couple times, and let management know what’s up.
Practicality is cool, but that’s totally unlike the next car on our list, a car synonymous with depreciation and unreliability, the Maserati GranTurismo.
Find a cheap Audi R8 on Cars.com!
Maserati GranTurismo Sport – Mechanic’s Special
There are two things Maseratis are known for: having Ferrari engines and losing value faster than a printer without ink. That first part is really cool. In my opinion, the Ferrari-built F136 engine makes the Maserati the best sounding car on our list. The second thing they’re known for is the reason you can afford one.
This 2017 GranTurismo Sport is the newest car on our list, and it was well over $150,000 new, but now, $60,000 will get you in the seat of a silver GranTurismo Sport. And even though the inside feels like it’s from 1980 (seriously, the head unit still has numbers for dialing a phone number), the outside is really easy to look at.
But what if you’re a little more adventurous and are willing to take a bit of a risk? For $29,000, you could have a 2009 Maserati GranTurismo. That’s insane. That’s the same as a used Camry. You could just rip the motor out of it and make a Ferrari-powered go-kart, and you’d still be on top of the financial game.
Just be sure you’re really good friends with someone who owns a shop, or have the extra funds to pay for the expensive and frequent repairs. Honestly, though, that 2009 Maserati is the cheapest car on our list. You could buy a lot of repairs with the money you saved.
The next car on our list is actually an homage to one of the best looking cars ever built, and a favorite of a certain British spy. We’re talking about the Aston Martin V8 Vantage.
Find a cheap Maserati GranTurismo on Cars.com!
Aston Martin V8 Vantage – Shaken, Not Stirred
The V8 Vantage made its silver screen debut in 1987 being driven by none other than James Bond. Now, 34 years later, the modern V8 Vantage is one of the best valued supercars you can get. We found a 2013 for $56,000 on Cars.com, and this secret agent has 430 horsepower of pure British luxury. Plus, it costs less than a new Lincoln Navigator. I know which one I’d rather have.
But, I hear your complaints. The V8 Vantage will never be as fast as its V12 siblings, and even though the 4.7-liter dual overhead cam V8 is reliable by supercar standards, the auto-shift transmission leaves a lot to be desired. Worse, if that transmission has a mechanical problem, not even Aston Martin is willing to work on them, so good luck.
If you really want something that has bulletproof reliability, supercar prestige and performance, and comes with that all important manual transmission, consider the humble Ariel Atom.
Find a cheap Aston Martin Vantage on Cars.com!
Ariel Atom – Face Stretcher
What happens when you take a car and remove everything that’s unnecessary? You get the Ariel Atom. And when it first hit the market in 2003 with the supercharged Honda motor, it quickly developed a reputation for being a face-distorting monster. A 4-cylinder? On a supercar list? You’d better believe it.
While you might argue that’s it not a supercar for some reason, it’s hard to argue with the fact that it’s one of the fastest cars around the Top Gear track, and one of the fastest cars on our list. Over on BringATrailer.com, they regularly sell for less than $40,000, and they’ll outrun anything else on our list, especially the similarly-priced Maserati.
Also completely unlike the Maserati, the Atom’s powerplant is just a Honda Civic engine. Maintenance is a breeze because there’s no body in the way, and it’s not like you need to worry about Honda reliability.
Ariel doesn’t carry the weight of a traditional supercar, though, so if you want something that will invoke some envy from others, maybe a Ferrari is more your speed.
Ferrari 456 – It’s a Ferrari
Maserati’s claim to fame is that they’re Ferrari-powered, but you know what else is Ferrari-powered? A Ferrari! Who would have thought, right? Just one problem: Ferrari’s are well known for being too expensive to buy, that is, unless they’re a little older.
Enter the 456. It was the car to own between 1992 and 2003, with a fantastic screaming V12 and that all-important horse on the badge. There’s not a person alive that won’t turn to look when you drive by. It’s not super fast by today’s standard, but when it came out, it was the most powerful Ferrari ever built.
We found two of them for less than the price of a Hellcat. Which would you rather have? A muscle car that some people might call a supercar, or a car that is definitely a supercar with just one problem, you’ll be broke the minute you have to find someone to change all 12 spark plugs?
So, what if you want something that has the performance to hang with Ferraris, is way more comfortable than an Atom, but is still reliable? Let’s bring out the crowd favorite Nissan GT-R.
Find a cheap Ferrari 456 on Cars.com!
Nissan GT-R – Not a Supercar?
For some reason, whether or not the GT-R is a supercar is a hill people are willing to die on. But you know who calls it a supercar? Nissan. They call it the “supercar you can drive everyday”. So, go argue with them instead of flaming the comments.
No one can argue with the numbers that it puts down, though. The all-wheel drive GT-R makes more horsepower than everything else on our list, and is one of the most drivable supercars you can get, because the tech they cram under the roof basically corrects all mistakes for you. It’s honestly a little disorienting.
The GT-R will do 0-to-60 in 3.2 seconds, but they drive like a 370Z that’s been tamed. The biggest downside is that the GT-R is old now. It came out in 2008 and is pretty much still identical. Plus, the secret has been out for a long time, so not only is it kind of an old car, but all the deals have been snatched up already.
Still, we found one for $56,000. Not bad for a car often considered one of the best driver cars ever produced.
Wait a minute, you hear that? It sounds like an LS motor! It must be time for today’s honorable mention!
Find a cheap Nissan GT-R on Cars.com!
Factory Five GTM Supercar – Honorable Mention
We think the C8 Corvette is a supercar. It makes a ton of power, is mid-engine, and definitely looks more exotic than any American car has a right to look. However, even though they’re a great value, they still cost a lot. What if you could have a mid-engine Corvette that looks even more radical for less than a third of the price? You can! You just have to build it yourself.
Factory Five is one of the most popular kit car makers out there, partially because they pride themselves on being easy to build, and the GTM is their highest performing model with a 400-horsepower LS6 located behind the driver. The GTM will slay everything else that dared show up to track day.
Just be ready to source a lot of used parts, and get some friends to help you, because it’s a serious undertaking.
Alright, we’re here at the end of the list, and we’re keeping it GM, but I bet it’s not what you expect, because this last car is a Cadillac.
Cadillac XLR-V – Caddy Snapped
The XLR-V is a strange beast. It’s one of the most exclusive Cadillacs ever produced, and one of the best handling on the road. In fact, if it wasn’t for the Northstar motor, it’d be one of the best Cadillacs ever made. What’s wrong with the Northstar V8, you ask? It’s not the power. Honestly, the supercharged 443 horsepower is more than enough to earn a spot on this list.
The problem is that the Northstar is a terrible motor to maintain, and they have this habit of self-destructing, which I’ve been told is bad. Just imagine for a moment if they had the cajones to put an LS motor in this. I know Chevy has this rule where nothing can be better than the Corvette, but I think this car could have been one of the best GM’s ever built, instead of a Cadillac that no one has ever heard of.
Missed potential aside, there’s nothing about the XLR-V that isn’t exclusive, and you will turn heads as you drive around town. People associate Cadillac with success, and they’ll believe you paid way more for this car than you did, especially since we found one for $35,000.
I love the styling. It looks like some kind of cross between a Mercedes and a Corvette, and as much as us car guys don’t think too much about Cadillac, most people still think of Caddy as a premium brand, and you’ll look like a baller rolling through town.
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