In spite of the dominance of the crossover in today’s market, the love-affair with a good sports car continues unabated. Unlike appliances, there’s still a great deal of emotion attached to driving a speedster down a twisty road. For some, it is all about the peace that comes with the freedom, for others it’s for the love of the drive. Regardless, the longing so many have for a sports car is real. Here, Driving.ca’s contributors put their collective heads together and came up with the top choices in five key categories.
Best Starter Sports Car: Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ
In the starter section, the 2+2 Toyota GR86 and Subaru BRZ were the top choices. They are mechanically identical, so splitting them boils down to personal preference — the grilles, the BRZ’s rear lip spoiler and the GR86’s Track button is all that really separates the two. The cabins are near identical, the rear seat is more for a briefcase or purse than a person and there’s precious little trunk space (178L), but who really cares?
The two share a 2.4L Boxer flat-four that pushes 228 horsepower and 184 pound-feet of torque at 3,700 rpm. The power flows to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox with a six-speed automatic transmission being available. The combination sees the two canter to 100 km/h in 6.3 seconds for the manual and 6.8 seconds for the automatic. Where this duo excels is in making the driver feel like F1’s Lando Norris. The lightweight design, front struts, double wishbone rear suspension and steering combine to deliver sublime handling. It’s not the fastest drive you’ll ever experience, but few get much better. The connected driving experience proves you don’t need to spend a packet to have fun!
Starting Price for the Best Starter Sports Car
The Subaru BRZ has a starting price of $31,895 plus $2,095 for delivery.
The Toyota GR86 has a starting price of $32,350 plus $1,860 for delivery.
Viable Alternatives for Starter Sports Cars
The BMW M240i ($59,600) is a kick-ass drive with 382 hp and a run to 100 km/h in 4.3 seconds. It also sticks to the driver’s line with the sort of tenacity only a BMW manages to nail. The other choice is a perennial favourite. The Mazda MX-5 ($34,900) is a wonderful drive where the driver’s built-in yaw sensor picks up every nuance.
Best Premium Sports Cars: Chevrolet Corvette and Porsche 718 Cayman
The Chevrolet Corvette and Porsche 718 Cayman were tied for top pick. These two mid-engined monsters are, however, like chalk and cheese — the Stingray is more a muscle car; the 718 Cayman is akin to a ballet dancer. However, what ties them together is the two combine rear-drive fun with a blistering turn of speed.
The Corvette Stingray’s 6.2L V8 twists out 495 hp and 470 lb-ft of torque when the Z51 Performance Package is aboard. It drives the rear wheels through an eight-speed twin-clutch transmission and limited-slip differential. This combo powers it to 100 km/h in 3.1 seconds. The option worth taking is the Magnetic Selective Ride — the dampers read the road every millisecond and adapt to changing demands in just 15 milliseconds. It adds enormously to the way the Stingray feels and drives.
The best 718 Cayman pick is the GTS. It counters with a 4.0L flat-six that twists out 394 hp and 317 lb-ft when the twin-clutch gearbox is driving the rear wheels. It rockets to 100 km/h in 4.0 seconds and uses adaptive dampers with normal and sport modes. The GTS’ driving experience is sublime, as it and the driver combine to become one.
The Stingray takes more muscling to get the best out of it, but once muscled it hunkers down and tests the driver’s nerve on a hot lap. The GTS dances though corners with a light touch keeping it on track.
Now, when enough is not quite enough, both offer an uber-version. The Corvette ZO6 arrives with 670 hp and a run to 100K in 3.1 seconds; the 2025 ZR1 makes 1,064 hp and hits 100 km/h in around 2.5 seconds! The Cayman GT4 RS punches out 493 hp and tops the metric ton in 3.4 seconds. Clayton Seams described the GT4 RS as the “complete sensory experience.”
Starting Price for the Best Premium Cars
2024 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray 3LT has a base price of $107,720 plus $2,300 for delivery.
2024 Porsche 718 Cayman GTS has a base price of $107,600 plus $2,950 for delivery.
Viable alternative for Premium Sports Cars
In the voting, nothing came close to these two.
Best Uber Drive: Porsche 911
The Porsche 911 was the popular choice in the uber-drive category, and it’s not difficult to understand why. Perhaps more than any of its rivals, it’s seems to have a model for every taste and budget. At this point, revamped 911s are the top choices. The 911 Carrera and Carrera GTS have been reworked with a styling update and the 911’s first fully-digital instrument cluster. The power output ranges from 388 hp for the Carrera to 640 hp for the 911 Turbo S. The latter warps to 100 km/h in 2.7 seconds. In the end, pretty much anything you want is available including the cartoonish 911 Dakar. The pick of the crop is, arguably, the GTS with the T-Hybrid system. It cranks out 532 hp and 449 lb-ft of torque, so it delivers more performance than most will ever use. Derek McNaughton described the driving experience this way: “Overall balance, steering, handling and braking of the 992.2 GTS is excellent — 100 percent pure Porsche.”
Inside, the 911 GTS now puts all key controls on or near the steering wheel. For example, the drive mode dial and, for the first time in a 911, the start button live on the steering wheel. It all emphasizes the cockpit and the driver.
Starting Price for the Best Uber Drive
While the refreshed 911 starts with the 911 Carrera at $135,600, the 911 GTS commands $182,900 plus $2,950 for delivery.
Viable alternative for Uber Drive
The BMW M4 CS ($150,000) takes the very good and makes it seriously wicked! Driving the 543-hp M4 CS proved it’s so fast, it made my head spin. There’s no shame in admitting a serious track session where a long looping right-hander was taken at 160 km/h produced a 9.5 pucker factor, but what fun!
Best Hot Hatch: Toyota Corolla GR
Toyota Corolla GR was the unanimous winner here, and simply because it manages to out-Type R the Honda Civic Type R and it teaches the Hyundai Elantra N a solid lesson. It’s one thing to have mega horsepower in something the size of a roller skate, but it is quite another to put those ponies to the pavement with authority.
The GR Corolla was engineered by Toyota Gazoo Racing. It is a force to be reckoned with in its own right. However, the GR was track tested by none other than Akio Toyoda. (He’s the grandson of the company’s founder and current chairman.) The Corolla GR is powered by a 1.6L turbo-three that makes 100 hp per cylinder for a total of 300. It also boasts an advanced all-wheel-drive system (GR-Four) that allows the driver to adjust the front-to-rear power split. The GR’s six-speed manual transmission is superb, even when pushing hard. Kudos for the fact it is just as easy to drive in the city — the light clutch bites in the right place, which is a good start! New for 2025 is an eight-speed automatic transmission. Drive it with either transmission and it will leave you gob-smacked. This is, after all, a relative of the beige Corolla that holds traffic up every day!
Starting Price for the Best Hot Hatch
The Toyota GR Corolla has a starting price of $46,850 plus $1,760 for delivery.
Viable Alternatives for Hot Hatch
The Honda Civic Type R ($51,330) and Hyundai Elantra N ($39,899) are both in the hunt. The Type R is legendary, but is losing a little of its lead to some serious upstarts. However, nobody can complain about the Type R’s 315 hp, outright performance or handling! Ditto the Hyundai Elantra N. The 286 hp is nothing to sneeze at, even by Type R standards. However, both of these front-drivers become tire shredders when the traction control is switched off.
Best Fun Outsider: Hyundai Ioniq 5 N
The Hyundai Ioniq 5 N slammed the Kia EV6 GT to make it the hands-down choice for a ride that’s a little different. This fully electric ride can run with some very big dogs — it has a scintillating turn of speed, and for good reason. The front electric motor makes 223 hp and the rear motor adds another 378 hp. That adds up to 601 hp. However, hit the N Grin Button and the pony power jumps to 641 hp. That, however, only tell half the story.
It’s the torque and the fact it is available from Rev One that makes the Ioniq 5 N such a riotous ride. The front motor twists out 258 lb-ft, the rear motor adds another 288 lb-ft for a total of 545 lb-ft in normal mode and 568 lb-ft when Grin is active. Granted the higher outputs are only available for 10 seconds, but when the Ioniq 5 N sprints to 100 km/h in 3.4 seconds who really gives a darn? By way of reference, it is faster than the Ford Mustang Mach-E GT Performance, Tesla Model Y as well as the BMW M240i, 718 Cayman GTS and 911 Carerra. Now that is heady company!
Usually speed means sacrificing creature and ride comforts. The Ioniq 5 N has the same digital displays and heated and ventilated front seats. Factor in the different drive modes, which alter the steering, suspension and throttle, and there is a mode for all occasions — Normal makes it actually feel almost civilized.
The electrics get the juice from an 84-kWh battery that delivers 356-km of driving range. Now if you do decide to play silly beggars and burn a little rubber, the battery will drop fairly quickly. The saving grace is a 350-kW DC fast charger takes the battery from 10 to 80% in 18 minutes.
Starting Price for the Best Fun Outsider
The Hyundai Ioniq 5 N has a list price of $78,199 plus $1,950 for delivery.
Viable Alternatives for Fun Outsiders
The Ford Mustang Mach-E GT ($69,995) and Tesla Model Y Performance all-wheel-drive ($68,990) models are the only real competition. The Mach-E has a range of 451 km, the Model Y comes in at 449 km making both better than the Ioniq 5 N. However, the Mach-E is 0.6 seconds slower and the Model Y lags by two-tenths.
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