Durability and fuel economy are something most of us write off when we talk about sports cars. These vehicles are built to impress with their performance and stunning designs and made to appeal to something artistic and visceral inside us, not to provide endless years of reliable and comfortable rides. But does that mean there aren't any badass sports cars that won't cost you an arm and a leg to maintain and keep running? Well, if there weren't, we wouldn't be writing this list, would we?

Sure, it's no surprise that, given the higher performance parts, sports cars may be a bit more expensive to maintain than say, a Nissan Altima or a Chevrolet Malibu. But the 10 we've included in this list manage to buck that trend by sharing parts and technology with their cheaper cousins and still provide impressive performance and endless fun on the road.

So without further ado, here are some of the world's most affordable sports cars not just to buy but also to keep running for many, many years.

10 Mitsubishi 3000GT

via Bring A Trailer

It might come as a surprise to you that a classic car can be cheap to maintain, but Mitsubishi’s 3000GT certainly is. Base models can be picked up for an affordable sum and it’s a great car to drive.

via Autocar

Powered by a V6 engine that was very reliable, later models featured the twin-turbocharged DOHC 24v and manual and automatic transmission was always available, with a four-speed automatic, five-speed manual plus six-speed manual from 1993 onwards.

9 Nissan 300ZX

via Journal Classics

It’s fair to say that most of Nissan’s sports cars have been well received. And with the 300ZX, it is very difficult to go wrong. Especially given the company's famed reliability with the Fairlady machines.

via Bring A Trailer

The car is almost a grand tourer, as it uses a 2+2 seating layout in order to get a bit more comfort out of your driving experience. Road and Track list it as one of the cheapest sports cars to buy too. Oh, and a twin-turbo was also an option.

8 Mazda RX-8

via Top Speed

It might seem an odd choice given the mixed reputation it had, but Mazda’s RX-8 was never a truly bad car. It has often been called quite a funky car, and it has a nice coupe-like shape.

via Wikipedia

But that hides those two small, but useful back doors. And it was the last rotary engine car to be sold in the USA, powered by the 1.3L RENESIS Wankel Rotary. It needed more oil than conventional engines, but if you looked after it you never incurred big running bills.

7 Ford Mustang

via Top Speed

A Ford Mustang? Cheap to maintain? Well yes. They certainly aren’t high maintenance machines. With Ford dealers everywhere and a wealth of spare parts around for even classic examples, it's surprising how affordable Mustangs are to drive.

via Hot Rod

Fox-body Mustangs are some of the most affordable to buy and maintain, but even modern iterations of the car won’t set you back all that much. Of course, the credentials of the car don’t need explaining. It’s a Mustang. And we all know how good they are.

6 Fiat 500 Abarth

via Digital Trends

This is probably another car that’s left you scratching your heads a bit at how it's on this list. True, more modern Fiat's can suffer in the quality department. But unlike classic Italian cars, gone are those electrical niggles that once plagued the likes of the Fiat or Maserati.

2017 Fiat 500 Abarth

But the ‘500 Abarth is a fun little beast that can be picked up well below $10,000 even fairly new. Plus, it's very practical as a city car whilst being tons of fun once you get onto the open road.

RELATED: 5 Most Hated European Sports Cars (And 5 Everyone Loves)

5 Porsche 911 (996)

via YouTube

It always seems up for debate as to how good this Porsche actually is. It is certainly hard to remember a great Porsche, as there are some really incredible examples of their work out there.  The 996 variants of the 911 somehow divide opinion, but this belies the fact they were great examples of Porsche’s marquee sports car.

via Jalopnik

It had little in common with its predecessor being a virtually all-new car, powered by either a naturally aspirated or twin-turbocharged V6 engine of either a 3.4L or 3.6L choosing. And like with the Mustang, spare parts are plentiful and with the attention to detail Porsche put into their cars, you can't go wrong.

4 Nissan 350Z

via Wikipedia

The problem with the Nissan 350Z is that it does not have the greatest of reputations. Which is a shame, as its 3.5 liters VQ V6 and relative cheapness make it quite an attractive proposition?

via Bring A Trailer

Its safety of course was always the biggest question mark. It doesn’t make it expensive to maintain, it was more the overall build quality was somewhat lacking. Happily, the later models rectified many of these shortcomings.

3 Subaru BRZ

via Car and Driver

Newer models will set you back a bit in terms of outright cost, but given how reliable Japanese cars are, you won’t be emptying your wallet out much for the BRZ. The Subaru BRZ has low running costs and is cheaper to run than its counterpart, the Toyota GT86. This makes it a very attractive alternative.

via Force GT

What makes the BRZ so good is its rear-wheel drive and the fact that when it comes to modifications, it's second to none. Like with some very good European sports cars, modifying a Japanese car is often a very popular practice.

2 Honda S2000

via Classic Cars

Probably one of the best small sports cars ever created. The Honda S2000 is certainly one of my personal favorites. It was always very agile, and all, of course, had VTEC engines from Honda.

via Bring A Trailer

The car was in production for ten years from 1999 to 2009, and it is still greatly missed by many JDM enthusiasts and car enthusiasts in general.

1 Mazda Miata

via Motor1

I will admit, I have never been a huge fan of the MX-5 Miata, in whatever form. It’s early 1990’s guises would be my choice, but anyway. But anyway, Car Buyer has listed the MX-5 very highly on its reliability scores, with regular maintenance never costing more than a large family sedan. 

via Top Speed

Every generation is still great fun to drive despite my personal feelings, and they are all extremely affordable even today. But surely, a classic example has to be the way to go.

Sources: Motor1, Classic Cars, YouTube, Bring A Trailer, Top Speed

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