The best sports cars – driven, rated and ranked

Best for: All-round ability

It's fair to say that the Porsche 911 is the most versatile sports car on the planet.

Any new 911 is still brilliant, and following the '992.2' range realignment, there's a clear role for every version.

Illya Verpraet, Road Tester

It comes in Carrera, Carrera T, Carrera S and Carrera GTS specifications, all powered by a 3.0-litre turbocharged flat-six engine with differing power outputs. It also comes as a coupé, a cloth-top Cabriolet and a folding fixed-head Targa. 

You can choose between rear- or four-wheel drive and between an eight-speed dual-clutch PDK automatic or a seven-speed manual gearbox. 

There are also the extra-rapid Turbo, Turbo S, GT3 and GT3 RS versions higher up. There’s even a hybrid GTS variant now.

For a car that remains without equal among direct contemporary rivals for usability, rounded sporting credibility and especially for the accessible, everyday-use, any-occasion brilliance of its driver appeal, the evergreen 911 stands head and shoulders above most of its peers.

Best for: Affordability

The fourth-generation Mazda MX-5 is shorter, lighter, more spacious and better laid out than any of its predecessors. Sharper-looking too, but still disarming and not at all ostentatious. It's also faster, more frugal and even more vibrant and engaging to drive.

There isn’t a single area in which this MX-5 fails to surpass its predecessor. It’s shorter, lighter, more spacious and better laid out.

Matt Prior, Editor-at-large

In 2018, Mazda facelifted the MX-5, adding 23bhp to its zippy 2.0-litre engine and an adjustable steering column. More changes were made in 2024, with the MX-5 gaining a new slippy diff, returned steering, a more lenient stability control and interior updates. You can still get the 1.5-litre 130bhp lump, but the 2.0-litre model is the more complete sports car. 

It's not the best-selling roadster in the world for nothing. Whichever you choose, rear-driven chassis poise and lots of driver involvement is guaranteed. That’s because the MX-5 is still every inch the same zesty and inimitable car that it always has been. 

Best for: Hardcore driving

When BMW's M division decided to wrap M4 mechanicals in a smaller package and then retune what resulted to suit even keener enthusiast tastes, it hit on a winning recipe for the second-generation M2.

The M2 now feels like a much better whistle-wetter for everything BMW’s M division has become in 2023 and all that it offers. And, ironically enough, you might like it best because it also has a certain old-school charm.

Matt Saunders, Road test editor

The sense of technical inferiority that hung around previous iterations of this car was banished, and while the M2 grew as a result it gained a sense of maturity and completeness as a modern M car. 

The M2’s 'S58' turbocharged straight six makes 473bhp and 443lb ft of torque (406lb ft if you choose the six-speed manual gearbox) for a 4.3sec dash to 60mph. 

To drive it a simpler, purer driver’s car than its large M-badged siblings. It's fast, balanced and involving yet also versatile, capable and very instantly driver-configurable. 

As a proper, classic M car with sublime ride and handling, the polished M2 CS is one of our favourite driver’s cars. 

Best for: Daily driving

Porsche really knows what it's doing when it comes to screwing together a sensational sports car.

The 718 Cayman S is by some distance the most complete sports coupé on sale and easily talented enough in the handling department to overcome slight misgivings about the way the crank is now turned.

Matt Saunders, Road test editor

Production of all standard 718 models has come to an end, but you can still buy one from stock, so for the time being it stays in the mix here.

While the four-cylinder derivatives of the 718 are more affordable, the naturally aspirated six-cylinder boxer engine is an utter joy and the one to have.

Long-feeling gearing makes the six-speed manual versions slightly less appealing to drive in some ways than the seven-speed paddle-shift automatics, but the three-pedal versions are hard to beat for driver interaction. 

Poised handling, effortless body control at speed, and excellent everyday usability, the 718 is one of the most complete driver’s cars there has ever been, particularly in GTS 4.0 form.

Best for: Old-school Brit charm

The Aston Martin Vantage is technically the brand's entry-level model, but you wouldn't think so when looking at its on-paper performance figures. 

The Vantage has clearly moved up a step dynamically. It has more poise and predictability than before, meaning the excitement it delivers always comes on the terms of the driver.

Richard Lane, Deputy road test editor

Powered by a sumptuous 4.0-litre, twin-turbocharged V8, the Vantage pumps out 656bhp and 590lb ft and will sprint from 0-62mph in just 3.4sec. It will also go on to a top speed of 202mph.

The Vantage boasts a 50:50 weight distribution, which supports a seriously measured driving experience. Its handling inspires confidence and it certainly has a playful side.

There's also a drop-top Roadster version for those who want wind-in-the-hair thrills and a chance to get closer to that bombastic V8.

Downsides? Well, even for a sports car the ride verges on the uncomfortable over the worst road surfaces (which is most of them here in the UK). It's also the most expensive car on our list by some margin. 

Best for: Driver involvement

From its junior exotic looks through to a chassis that maintains the decades-long tradition of Hethel handling greatness, the Emria is a true Lotus sports car. 

As a driver’s car, the Emira is mostly great. On challenging stretches of road is where it’s absolutely at its best, in fact.

Matt Prior, Editor-at-large

Power is supplied by either a Mercedes-AMG turbocharged 2.0-litre four, with an automatic gearbox, or a supercharged Toyota 3.5-litre V6, which uses a more engaging six-speed manual. 

Using a massaged version of the German four-banger, it's not short of power or pace, packing 400bhp and a 0-62mph time of 4.0sec. It can’t match the V6 for character, however. 

More importantly, the Emira drives like a Lotus where it matters: in the corners. Despite being heavier than the 718 Cayman, it’s beautifully balanced and well damped. 

The steering is quick and feelsome, and as a result the Emira dives through bends with quick-witted agility, its ability to shrug off unsettling bumps further boosting your confidence.

Best for: V8 power

The Ford Mustang with a 440bhp V8 engine can still be yours for just under £60,000. 

We would recommend the manual over the auto, and the standard GT is more than powerful enough and ultimately nearly £12,000 less than the Dark Horse.

Jonathan Bryce, Social Media Executive

That said, the Mustang ownership experience has a few drawbacks in the UK. The car’s sheer size means you have to think twice about where to park it in town and what kinds of country lanes you might seek out with it. 

With its dipsomaniac 5.0-litre V8, meanwhile, you will need to factor in more frequent visits to the pumps than your peers in their German sports cars.

The Mustang is a throwback of a sports car yet few direct rivals have such obvious likability. Its powertrain brings with it an appeal that engines with fewer cylinders simply don't muster, and its rear-drive chassis balance is pretty peachy too.

Best for: Retro charm

Individuality, heritage, style and craftsmanship: these are key ingredients of the sports car recipe, and no car showcases them more than the neo-retro Morgan Supersport. 

Most drivers should acclimatise quickly and will find a sports car that is ideally suited to British B-roads.

Illya Verpraet, Road Tester

It's easily the most complete Morgan product to date, with greater ease of use and more practicality than Malvern-made models of the past. 

Thanks to its stiffer chassis, controlled dampers, clever differential and improved steering, the Supersport is a joy to pilot down a twisty road.

The increased refinement and general comfort of the interior has also helped the Morgan feel more civilised at higher speeds. 

That Morgan has been able to create such a rounded driver’s car without harming its desirability and character is a real achievement. 

It doesn’t quite have the duality of the Porsche 911, though, and once you’ve added your preferred paint, interior colourway and optional extras it can cost more than £120,000.