Best Sports Cars For 2021

While our title refers generally to BMW’s 2 Series, there’s one special version of the 2 that towers over all the others, the M2 CS. We’d consider both the M2 CS and its less expensive sibling, the M2 Competition, as two of the best performance cars you can buy in 2021.BMW’s 2 Series replaced the tiny 1 Series as BMW’s smallest U.S.-market car in 2013. Light

While our title refers generally to BMW’s 2 Series, there’s one special version of the 2 that towers over all the others, the M2 CS. We’d consider both the M2 CS and its less expensive sibling, the M2 Competition, as two of the best performance cars you can buy in 2021.BMW’s 2 Series replaced the tiny 1 Series as BMW’s smallest U.S.-market car in 2013. Light and small, it was a natural choice for the M treatment from BMW’s performance division. The M2, new in 2016, is similar in size and concept to the beloved E30-generation M30 of the 1980s, and comparisons were quickly made by the BMW faithful. Like all M cars, the M2 Competition takes the regular four-cylinder 2 Series and makes it lighter and faster. Component weights are reduced throughout the car and improved suspension pieces and a 365-horsepower 3.0-liter inline six are swapped in.
 
M division turned up the wick in 2018 with the 405-horsepower twin-turbo M2 Competition, a track-ready warrior for the road. The M2 CS builds on that car, adding the 444-horsepower six from BMW’s M4 Competition model and further reducing weight, including using a carbon fiber roof. It’s lightning fast: zero to 60 in just 3.8 seconds with a 12.6-second quarter-mile time, but it’s most at home devouring twisty roads or racing chicanes. The CS uses an adjustable sport suspension for more on-road comfort than the M2 Competition, and is just as sharp. An old-school six-speed manual is standard, with BMW’s seven-speed, dual-clutch DCT automatic transmission optional. At $84,595, the M2 CS doesn’t come cheap, but just 500 will come stateside and every one is a performance gem.

Chevrolet’s Corvette has been General Motors’ performance flagship since 1953 and the 2020 Corvette is unlike any that came before. Or, at least, any that made it to production. GM’s engineers, led by the original Corvette guru Zora Arkus-Duntov, began experimenting with mid-engine Corvette prototypes in the 1960s. Putting the engine back there puts more of the weight back

Chevrolet’s Corvette has been General Motors’ performance flagship since 1953 and the 2020 Corvette is unlike any that came before. Or, at least, any that made it to production. GM’s engineers, led by the original Corvette guru Zora Arkus-Duntov, began experimenting with mid-engine Corvette prototypes in the 1960s. Putting the engine back there puts more of the weight back there, providing better traction, more even braking, and higher cornering limits, among other benefits. After several false starts in the 1970s and another two in the 1980s (the Corvette Indy and CERV-III concepts), GM finally moved the Corvette’s engine behind the driver for 2020.
 
This major change gives the eighth-generation C8 Corvette the low, cab-forward look of a Ferrari or a McLaren but with many of the Corvette’s traditional style cues. It also gives it amazing traction, reflected in 0-60 and quarter-mile times (2.9 seconds and 11.2 seconds, respectively) and in handling superiority. The outgoing C7 Corvette was no slouch, but the C8 is firmly supercar territory on the strength of its performance. It isn’t, however, priced like a supercar. The C8 may be the most changed Corvette of all time, but there’s one thing GM did not change: the Corvette is still a fantastic value. The base model C8 costs $59,995 (destination fees included) and tops out under $90,000 loaded generously with options. The pricier convertible, starting at $67,495, ranges a bit higher. However, for the price of a Ferrari F8, you could buy three of them.

Honda’s Civic Si first got noticed by enthusiasts in the 1980s, and aftermarket tuners began souping them up in real numbers a decade later. Honda noticed and created the first Civic Type R, a hot-rodded lightweight version of the car, in 1997. American fans of The Fast and the Furious and video games like Gran Turismo begged Honda for a U.S.-spec Type R for years and finally

Honda’s Civic Si first got noticed by enthusiasts in the 1980s, and aftermarket tuners began souping them up in real numbers a decade later. Honda noticed and created the first Civic Type R, a hot-rodded lightweight version of the car, in 1997. American fans of The Fast and the Furious and video games like Gran Turismo begged Honda for a U.S.-spec Type R for years and finally got one in the summer of 2017. Like earlier Civic Type Rs, it’s a wild blend of in-your-face boy-racer styling and frenetic performance with the practicality of an ordinary commuter Civic.
 
The Type R is directly based on the Civic Hatchback and retains much of its utility, but it has an entirely different personality. The differences begin under the hood, where the Type R features a 306-horsepower turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine, 126 more horses than the most powerful regular Civic. It’s mated to a six-speed manual transmission; no automatics here. Despite channeling all that power through the front wheels, the Type R doesn’t exhibit much torque steer. Its handling is sharp and neutral, encouraging vigorous cornering. An audible and visual extrovert, it’s noisy on the highway and festooned with wings, scoops and spoilers; but it’s great fun and affordable.

Hyundai’s cute, offbeat Veloster, with its single driver’s side door and two on the passenger side, debuted in 2011 and entered its second generation in 2018. Traditionally Hyundais have been long on value but short on driver involvement, and the original Veloster was a tepid performer. But in 2015, Hyundai hired engineer Albert Biermann away from BMW’s M division and charged

Hyundai’s cute, offbeat Veloster, with its single driver’s side door and two on the passenger side, debuted in 2011 and entered its second generation in 2018. Traditionally Hyundais have been long on value but short on driver involvement, and the original Veloster was a tepid performer. But in 2015, Hyundai hired engineer Albert Biermann away from BMW’s M division and charged him with building its own in-house performance brand, N Line. The N is for Namyang, Hyundai’s R&D headquarters in South Korea. The first car to get the N Line treatment was the Veloster in 2019.
 
Like the Civic Type R, the Veloster is a hot-hatch that retains the basic car’s practicality but adds lots of performance goodies. That starts with a turbocharged 2.0-liter 275-horsepower four-cylinder engine mated to a six-speed manual with rev-matching tech or eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, the car’s only optional item. The vehicle also benefits from a much tighter suspension and a reinforced body shell, which means tack-sharp handling. The Veloster N likes to be pushed to its limits and it’ll sprint to 60 mph in just over 5 seconds, but it also has some traditional Hyundai virtues, including lots of standard equipment, with new driver-assist gear added for the first time. At $33,245, including destination charges, it’s also a bargain.

Inspired by long-gone but lovable sports cars like the MGB and the original Lotus Elan, Mazda single-handedly revived interest in that type of car with the original MX-5 Miata in 1989, and it’s been the purist’s cheap sports car of choice ever since. The current fourth-generation MX-5 was introduced in late 2014, with a stronger shell and the Mazda’s “Kodo” design aesthetic

Inspired by long-gone but lovable sports cars like the MGB and the original Lotus Elan, Mazda single-handedly revived interest in that type of car with the original MX-5 Miata in 1989, and it’s been the purist’s cheap sports car of choice ever since. The current fourth-generation MX-5 was introduced in late 2014, with a stronger shell and the Mazda’s “Kodo” design aesthetic. The company added the RF retractable hardtop version in 2016 and upped the power of its 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine to 185-horsepower, from 155 in 2019. Still, the car’s fundamentals haven’t changed very much over the years, and that’s in part what makes it the most popular 2-seat sports car on the market.
 
The interior is tight and the trunk an afterthought, and plenty of other performance cars have more power or faster drag strip numbers. But the Miata isn’t about power or top speed; it’s about finesse and fun. On a twisty road, the featherweight 2,400-pound Miata responds to a driver as if connected to their thoughts, with what can accurately be described as go-kart handling and enough power to be fun in almost any situation. It entertains and encourages. Lowering the top turns driving into a sensory experience, just as it did on those old roadsters. Unlike them, the Miata is as reliable and safe as any modern commuter car.