Jack Williams

7 Affordable Exotic Cars

So you think that affordable and exotic are incompatible terms when describing sports cars? Not necessarily. Here are seven more affordable favorites of researchers at autotrader.com that offer dependability and high performance, as well as an eye catching look without the high cost typically associated with rare sports cars.

1991-2005 Acura NSX - A mid-engine exotic with 2 seats and a V6 engine. A more reliable alternative to the best models from Ferrari. Manual or automatic transmission. Can be $30,000 or more, but most NSXs have stopped losing value.

2015 Alfa Romeo 4C - Alternative to Porsche and BMW. Power isn't that impressive, with the car's turbocharged 4-cylinder engine putting out just 237 horses, but the 4C's lightweight chassis means that it will still reach 60 miles per hour from a standing stop in just over 4 seconds. Handsome styling and wide, aggressive stance. Starts at a reasonable $55,200 with shipping, although getting your hands on an early model will require spending almost $15,000 more in order to secure a 4C Launch Edition.

Chevrolet Corvette Z06 - Puts out an impressive 505 horses from its 7-liter V8 engine. Offers bold styling, a wide body stance, an excellent speed manual transmission, and our favorite feature, a supercar-rivaling 0-to 60 time of around 3.5 seconds. Less than $50,000 for an earlier model.

2003-2010 Dodge Viper - Gets 12 miles per gallon in the city and 21 mpg on the highway. 0-to-60 times of around 4 seconds thanks to the big power plant and highly enjoyable 6-speed manual transmission. Good looks, with its huge front end and wide, flat body lines. Around $50,000 or less for an early model.

2005-2011 Lotus Elise. Only 150 inches long, for instance -- about 3 feet shorter than a Toyota Camry. Uses a 4-cylinder engine, and returns a respectable 21 mpg city/27 mpg hwyExotic-car styling, virtually no cargo space, and a high-performance mid-engine layout that affords it near-perfect balance. Reliable 1.8-liter engine sourced from Toyota. Around $35,000, which is the going rate for a well-kept early model.

Lotus Evora - Larger coupe with 2 front seats and 2 small rear seats. Lightweight design and much of the Elise's eye-grabbing styling. Has more power, boasting 270 horses. Quick-shifting automatic transmission for drivers who don't want to row their own gears. Also uses a Toyota engine for maximal reliability. Early examples are available on the used market in the low- to mid-$40,000 range.

2005-2012 Porsche 911 - Bold styling, impressive performance, and bulletproof reliability. Our favorite modern model is the 997 version, which came out from 2005 through 2012. The 997 911 offers 325-345 hp in base form and a slick-shifting manual transmission, though later models also offered an enticing dual-clutch PDK. Available in a wide variety of versions -- from coupe to convertible, 2-wheel drive to 4-wheel drive -- many of which can be had today for under $40,000.

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