THE END OF AFFORDABLE SPORTS CARS

[@TwoDollarGararge]

The problem is that the entry level sports car market simply isn't big enough it isn't. Enthusiast tend to be notoriously picky, and they are also sharing a space with classic and used sports cars.

[@lexisnep525]

Proud owner of a 2023 Integra A-Spec 6MT. 37k for a pretty dang quick little liftback, 3000 pounds, 220hp, LSD, adaptive suspension. Looks fast fun to toss around on a back road and didn't break the bank. Truly a rare breed these days.

[@TwoDollarGararge]

And marketed terribly with very picky enthiast I don't think they have sold many.

[@lexisnep525]

@ they’ve sold very well for an Acura product actually. It has outsold the TLX for a while, and for about a year after it came out it even outsold the RDX crossover. Acura doesn’t sell in high volume. They sell on margin.

[@TwoDollarGararge]

@lexisnep525 I never see them in 2 or 3 years I've seen maybe 5 acrua does not say much most acuras I see are from the early 2000s

[@TwoDollarGararge]

@lexisnep525 The problem with Acura is it shares the same issues most mid range luxury brands suffer from their medicre but not amazing. Brands like genasis are a copy but offer value and a great deal, or bmw has mediocre cars but has decent image defining vehicles. When you think of Acura, there is no new identity. Yeah, there was the NSX it was a flop and when you think of great Acuras, it is the 2003 tsx the rest is a bland suv or a honda in a suit.

[@lexisnep525]

@ I mean if you say so. I’ve been a pretty loyal Acura fan because their dealers offer excellent service and the cars are understated and handsome, while offering decent performance and good features for the price. They’re also second only to Lexus in terms of reliability, and they currently hold the crown for safest small car with the Integra. Different people value different things.

[@Michael-ur5qb]

This video hit the nail on the head. It’s not just less sports cars but also less cars and thus less sporty variants. I also think because of the US and European regulations it has made it hard to adopt technologies that keep cars fun and the tuner community interesting. Hard to make a Corolla/Civic fun with a cvt. Now they’re switching to hybrids and it doesn’t even really utilize a transmission so manuals really will be extinct. Cars are just less exciting to build.

[@courtneypuzzo2502]

the most affordable sports car currently available is a Mazda Miata technically SUVs have existed for around 90 yrs going back to Jeeps and Chevrolet/GMC Suburban other makers followed suit later I.E. Toyota Land Cruiser 1951 Ford Bronco 1965 Land Rover 1969 etc. generally sports cars are a niche market either used ones going to teenagers or a middle aged person buys one to relive their youth the best selling sports car in the US this year is the Chevrolet Corvette with 43,000 units sold trough Nov and the biggest Corvette Dealer is MacMulkin Chevrolet in Nashua NH with 1746 sold this year

[@MagicalFishy]

Corvette’s MSRP has gone up by $10,000 in the last 4 years. This stuff’s ridiculous.

[@RobertMunteanu105]

I hate SUVs! Next March I'm getting a Civic 10th, and I hope I will be able to afford keeping it virtually forever. Thanks for the video!

[@TwoDollarGararge]

Issue is a modern civic is as big an accord.

[@pbourdon231]

The other reason there were more sports cars in the 80s and 90s is because people had more disposable income. Wages were higher (adjusted for inflation) back then and people could justify having a "toy/fun" car for the weekends.

[@KeltonKozlowski]

Facts. Did not want to get into underlying socioeconomic drivers but this 100% contributes

[@Michael-ur5qb]

The 80s had some fun cars but alot of it was because they invented the sporty commuter car. Most of those aren’t really sports cars. Since there are less economy cars we also have less of those too along with actual sports cars.

[@Dyesnipa]

Kolego, I was just thinking about this the other day

[@christianjadot4459]

I picked up a 2024 BRZ, I was iffy at first, but it is so great to drive.

[@gabbu297]

Ah, yes. The good old Ford ThunderBOARD

[@kevinmartinez2548]

Maybe people get thunder bored driving it ;)

[@oligarchy-usa]

The upcoming Honda Prelude re-release will probably be ridiculously expensive.

[@Michael-ur5qb]

I wouldn’t say ridiculously. Starts at $30k. Basically starting at less than a Civic Sport Touring but going up higher. Unless it gets an Si or Type R variant it’ll top out at probably $40k which I don’t think is crazy.

[@oligarchy-usa]

@@Michael-ur5qb From what I have read recently, it will start at $35K & then go up from there on trim levels.

[@schweizervaje8191]

Toyato Celica and honda prelude, mazda miata

[@nathanvorhes]

Audi TT is still alive. Still have the 86/BRZ that you titled. Still have the MX-5. Ford Mustang. BMW M2. BMW Z4.

[@dhyskRand]

I'd say cars over 35K don't count as affordable. So your whole list is shot except the 86 and MX5.

[@chrisklugh]

Na. Its not that stuff is getting 'more expensive', its people becoming less valuable.

[@KeltonKozlowski]

Wealth inequality is a massive issue

[@chrisklugh]

@@KeltonKozlowski Your right. And every poor person I have ever talked to in my life wont do a damn thing about it. Every suggestion is matched with a rebuttal of some sorts that prevents them from thinking they can change. Its not Rich people that are the problem, its poor people that don't want to fix the problem that is the massive issue.

[@lexisnep525]

Also, grammar nitpick, "Less" is used with something that can't be counted like "less gasoline" but "fewer" is used for things that can be counted. You said "less choices" a lot, but the correct grammar is "fewer choices" if you're going for a journalistic voice.

[@lordkent8143]

Yeah the trend is crossovers 😢. People just like the space and the feeling bigger is better mentality. Also fuel consumption and the rise of hyrbid and electric cars also took hold of buyers interest.

[@nikolastojanov8749]

I really hate how this is developed. I want a car that looks like a Prelude, a Celica or a Thunderbird. It doesnt have to be that fast, its getting ridiculous recently. It doesnt feel right when the speedometer is only up to third of the way and you are already over every speed limit imaginable. I dont care about speed anymore, every car is too fast now anyway. I want it to look like a sports car. Maybe I should buy one of these from mid 90s and call it a day

[@No-yp2vo]

i cant wait for the crossover/suv era to die out one day… its actually sickening

[@oligarchy-usa]

I've been happy with my smaller 2022 Mazda CX-30 Crossover & mainly purchased it because the latest Mazda3 hatchback looked really weird to be in the hindquarters. It's my first Crossover & probably my last though. The elevated seating & ground clearance is really nice, but I will still likely go towards a Civic hybrid sedan, Mazda3 sedan, upcoming Honda Prelude re-release, or even perhaps a Mazda MX-5 Miata RF 6-MT roadster as my next purchase.

[@No-yp2vo]

@ my issue with crossovers is that they try to do everything at once yet fail. They wanna be ‘safer vehicles’ compared to smaller cars yet they get in more fatal accidents. They wanna be more comfortable & have more room but they usually have less room than sedans in my experience or about the same. Smaller trunks too. small weak engines & they arent more efficient than economy cars when it comes to mpgs its very similar in that sense. Crossovers no matter the car brand tend to look ugly to me personally & look the same unless its some luxury crossover like a porchse just slap a different badge & boom. Idk if this is a universal experience or not but i personally hate driving on the same roads as crossovers they tend to drive the worst