We all love fast cars. We all love performance cars. Performance cars represent the peak of cars for a lot of enthusiasts, as they are all about putting a smile on your face behind the wheel. In almost all cases, they are fast, great at taking corners, and engineered to a very high standard. However, performance cars can get pretty expensive, sometimes well into the six digits. As car enthusiasts, while we love it when engineers get the opportunity to truly show what they're capable of, we also love a good value-for-money proposition.

In today's day and age, it's very difficult to find a performance car for good money. If you look at the used market, other than a few notable exceptions, all the best performance cars have skyrocketed into oblivion, making them basically unattainable, especially for the value-minded enthusiast. While new cars are also getting more expensive and more difficult to purchase by the minute, there are still some fantastic value performance cars that you can buy new today.

5 Hyundai Elantra N

Hyundai Elantra N Front Quarter
Hyundai

Ten years ago, everyone would laugh at the idea of a performance car with a Hyundai badge. But nowadays, Hyundai is the one having the last laugh. Their i30 N proved to be a genuine contender to the Golf GTI and similar a few years ago, and now they're tackling the compact performance sedan market with the Elantra N. This angry looking sedan, despite its humble roots, is not all show and no go.

Hyundai Elantra N Rear Quarter
via Hyundai

RELATED: Why We Love The 2022 Hyundai Elantra N

The 2.0-liter turbo engine under the hood puts out 276 hp and 289 lb-ft of torque, which goes to the front wheels through either a six-speed manual transmission, or an eight-speed DCT. MacPherson struts at the front and a multilink setup in the rear, as well as an electronic LSD, all make the Elantra N a fantastic FWD performance car. You get all of those goodies for $39,700 if you get the manual transmission. This is definitely a car that gearheads should consider.

4 Honda Civic Si

Honda Civic Si Front Quarter Driving
Honda

Long before Honda ever offered the Civic Type R in North America, the only way to have a higher performance Civic was the Si. While not quite the full fat Type R experience, the Si gave you some pretty decent performance perks for an amazing price. Even though the CTR is now available in North America, and the new one is coming in hot, Honda continues to offer the Si, and it's still the perfect everyday performance model from the automaker.

Honda Civic Si Rear Quarter Driving
Honda

The 1.5-liter turbo four-cylinder under the hood makes a respectable 200 hp and 192 lb-ft of torque. Not exactly a speed demon, but that was never really the point of the Civic Si. The primary focus of the Civic Si is to provide an overall fun driving experience at a lower cost, and the mandatory six-speed manual in the new Si definitely contributes to that. Plus, Honda knows a thing or two about good chassis tuning. If you're ready to give up some mod cons, a new Civic Si will set you back less than $30,000.

3 Toyota GR86

Toyota GR86 Front Quarter Red
Via: Toyota

Toyota absolutely set the sports car scene on fire when they launched the original GT86 back in 2012. It showed the world that an affordable, RWD sports car was definitely possible, and it has become a huge success since then. Even though the automotive space is changing, Toyota isn't ready to give up on the affordable RWD sports car just yet, and the new GR86 is proof.

Toyota GR86 Rear Quarter Red
Toyota

RELATED: 2023 Toyota GR86: Costs, Facts, And Figures

The GR86 takes everything we loved about the original, and improves on it. The new styling is way more modern, and it definitely leaves a bigger impression. It's still RWD, and it's still available with a manual transmission, but it finally has something that we all wanted from the original: more power. The 2.4-liter boxer four under the hood now develops around 230 hp, a huge jump from the previous car's 197. It also has more standard equipment and more mod cons, and all for the princely starting price of just $27,900.

2 Mazda MX-5 Miata

Mazda MX-5 Front Quarter Orange
Mazda

When it comes to good value performance cars, very few things can top the Mazda Miata. It has been the world's favorite roadster for over 30 years now, and in that time, it has never once changed its formula. A relatively small four-cylinder engine, RWD, a standard manual transmission, a tiny body that weighs basically nothing, and bulletproof reliability. That's still very true to this day, and very few cars have stood the test of time quite like the Miata.

Orange Mazda MX-5 on the driveway
Via Mazda

Recently, Mazda gave the Miata a little more power. This current generation car has been around for almost a decade, but it still looks fresh, and it's just as good as ever. It may have "only" 181 hp, but the Miata has always been about saving weight. You can raise and lower the soft top roof, for example, with one hand and in two seconds. The current Miata is actually even lighter than the original NA Miata, and you can now even have it with a power folding hardtop. All for less than $35,000.

1 Kia Stinger GT

Kia Stinger Front Quarter Red
Kia

This one is slightly different, and you need to have a slightly higher budget, but Kia's Stinger GT offers so much for the money, we can't help but include it in here. The Stinger GT came out of nowhere back in late 2017. It was a Kia liftback sedan that was targeting cars like the BMW M340i xDrive. People wanted to laugh at first, but then this car proved to be a fantastic competitor.

Red Kia Stinger on the road
Via Kia

RELATED: These Are The Things We Love About The Kia Stinger GT

The Stinger is still available today, and the GT2 model, which includes the turbo V6 engine and the AWD system, comes in at around $51,000. That's not cheap by any means, but the aforementioned M340i xDrive starts at $56,000. The Stinger GT2 includes everything right away, whereas the M340i will start getting pretty expensive once you start tacking on option packages. What's more, if you look at the used market, you can get a Stinger GT for a lot less money. Still, a good price to pay for a fantastic all-around performance car, and one that offers great practicality and looks that will make you take a second glance.