Don’t you think we’ve all forgotten what having a bit of fun behind the wheel actually looks like? Right now, our roads are dominated by incredibly competent but soul-destroying dull crossovers, SUVs and minivans. Yes, they excel at transporting kids, dogs and the weekly shop, but don’t really get your blood pumping. Fortunately for the gear heads and driving addicts, who perceive a twisting road not as an impediment, but a personal challenge, there is a glorious, shimmering universe of truly outstanding cars on offer designed with one pure and undeniable purpose in mind: unadulterated fun.

This is not, we repeat, NOT an edit of the sensible vehicles currently in showrooms, but instead an ode to get away cars, the weekend warriors, the rides which reignite the very reason we learned how to drive in the first place. In the following list of automotive stars, we’ll be bringing you a comprehensive overview of cars that make us crave the long route home, ensure you catch the adoring looks of delighted kids, and provide a driving sensation that is much more than a means of travelling from point A to point B. From the unbridled noise of a powerful V8 to the instant, silent kick of an EV the following are the contemporary marvels that are hard to ignore.

1. Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Brings Exotic Looks to Reach

There has been no doubt in my mind that the Corvette is “America’s sports car,” and with the new generation it finally has looks that are a perfect compliment to the roaring V8, and it also comes with a surprisingly manageable sticker price around $64k. What this gives you is a supercar appearance without the supercar pricing. This is one of the easiest exotics to get your hands on, and this will attract both brand-new performance enthusiasts, or the veterans looking to rein in the wild horses when needed via the drive mode selector.

Under the hood thrills:

• Entry price around $64,000
• 0-60 in just 2.9 seconds
• Selectable drive modes available
• Removable roof panel solo
• Premium American performance interior

Don’t be fooled into thinking that its new levels of adjustability have taken all the fight out of this car, though. The C8 Corvette Stingray retains an immensely capable powertrain that rips it to 60mph in a thoroughly satisfying 2.9 seconds; enough to physically rearrange the furniture in your stomach with a mere twitch. The cabin has been designed to surround you with all the class-leading luxury that American high-performance motoring demands while also keeping you aware of the road and perfectly functional on the school run.

2. Toyota Supra Returns With a Proper Manual

It was a whisper. It was once a name relegated only to hushed, reverent tones by the faithfully devoted of car fans. But now, it’s returned. The legend is reborn and Toyota threw some oil on the flames of our anticipation when it declared that a manual GR Supra was on the way and because the GR Supra was developed hand-in-hand from its inception with BMW on the powertrain, the ride quality is something special.

Why purists are smiling:

• Base price around $44,000
• Manual built specifically for car
• Co-engineered mechanicals with BMW
• Defines sporty luxury affordably
• Pure driver engagement emphasized

The manual transmission is the star of the show. As one writer discovered, this is not a transmission pulled out of another car and slapped into the Supra. This transmission was designed and tuned specifically for the car, and in turn the car was adapted to the transmission. This attention to detail creates a pure and engaging connection between driver and machine that feels refreshingly honest.

3. Ford Mustang GT Blends Muscle With Modern Tech

You simply cannot have a conversation about exciting cars without mentioning the original pony car. The Ford Mustang GT continues its legacy, but the newest iteration scales up the classic with an all-new engine, interior, and exterior design. For a starting price of around $42,000, you get to command the glorious roar of a 486 hp engine that puts out 418 lb-ft of torque to the rear wheels.

The numbers that roar:

• Starting price around $42,000
• 486 horsepower from new engine
• 418 lb-ft of torque
• Large tech-forward dashboard screen
• Blends muscle attitude with tech

The interior has been brought firmly into the modern era with a simplified and tech-forward approach throughout the cabin. A large screen stretches across the dashboard, becoming the command center for most of the cockpit’s vital functions, from the driver information cluster to the multimedia system. It is a blend of raw muscle car attitude and cutting-edge technology that keeps this icon relevant.

4. Dodge Challenger Hellcat Roars Into Its Final Year

While other cars hint at their prowess with a subtle murmur, the Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat is a screaming, supercharged declaration, the V8 howl can be heard from at least the next county away. It’s tough, like its name, an unpretentious tribute to days of unadulterated straight line power. The entry-level Hellcat churns out 717 horsepower, and the expensive upgrades are capable of cracking 800 horsepower.

Raw fury by the numbers:

• Base model packs 717 horsepower
• Higher trims exceed 800 horsepower
• Supercharger whine is unmistakable
• 2023 was final production year
• Surprisingly spacious for muscle car

This is a car for the person with true speed demons in their soul, one that requires deference for fear of being slung out the back as they try and wrestle its considerable torque out of the streets. This is muscle in a relaxing, relatively roomier interior that simply cannot shake the desire to go fast, really, really fast, it also just so happened to be the very last year this supercharged, unadulterated American icon has been produced by manufacturer Dodge in 2023.

5. Porsche Taycan Proves EVs Can Have Real Soul

Electric sports sedan Not that you need anyone to tell you electric cars dont have to be bland, functional appliances. Porsche absolutely shredded those concepts with the Taycan. The Taycan is no little two-seat niche product; this is a bona fide sports sedan with all-you-need-it room to bring your significant other and your significant others other other significant other out to eat. You can save the world in this gorgeous, wicked fast sports sedan and look good doing it.

Electric without compromise:

• Starting price around $153,000
• Charges 60 miles in five minutes
• Proper four-door sports sedan
• Combines speed with sustainability
• Breathtaking electric performance delivered

Not only will you never gasp before every turning curve the way you will at the acceleration of the Taycan, you won’t even bat an eye when it comes to plugging it in again. The car provides a 60 miles addition to range in just five minutes that would mean that after one quick cup of java back home the day wouldn’t come before this car was recharged and ready for the commute in the first five minutes. Such impressive technology as this does, unfortunately, not come in cheaply but then, no product with so much electric-enthusiastic excitement ever will.

6. Nissan Z Blends Heritage With Modern Performance

It appears the new Nissan Z is one truly great lesson in merging past and present into an entirely unified whole. Not just an exceptional restyle of the famed Nissan Z family of sportscars-it is a careful marriage of heritage styling with Nissan’s most progressive styling themes into an utterly new package. You look at this one and feel that it’s both brand-new and as classic as an antique. Hardly surprising it was honored as one of three finalists for World Performance Car of the Year.

Old soul new skin:

• Price ranges from $40,000 to $50,000
• Finalist for World Performance Car
• Available with manual or automatic
• Blends classic heritage with modern
• Incredibly fun on curvy roads

Get into the cockpit and you can finally see the light, it doesn’t matter if you go for the automated gearbox or the stick shift which purists will prefer. But either way, you quickly come to appreciate how much people like to get excited about this particular car the Nissan Z is very entertaining to drive, offering an ideal option to put a smile on your face when navigating winding sections of road. With incredible performance at a price that’s frankly reasonable for the sector, the car has found a great many fans already.

7. Lamborghini Huracan is an Event Not Just a Car

It is a spectacle every time. The Huracan isn’t quiet; it’s noisy, and the suspension is brutally unforgiving it jolts and bounces its way around the country. Driving it demands a good pair of shoes and a certain acceptance that you own an absolute scene of a machine. The Huracan will feel utterly and wonderfully unique to anything you have ever driven.

The spectacle explained:

• Price nears $300,000
• Loud bumpy and gloriously impractical
• Creates joy wherever it goes
• Strangers wave and ask for photos
• Pure distillation of supercar dream

No matter what city, road, or day, the Huracan generates pure happiness all around it. It generates constant wave, smiles and kids wanting photos! People on other cars pull over to just chat when we’re all just on the road trying to do nothing special in life! Even with its insane price tag, it is completely worth it to see the all of the miles and smiles that go along with owning one of these marvels.

8. Acura NSX Delivers American Supercar Engineering

Still in on the thrill ride, it was time to hop inside a completely domestically produced (from the ground up) exotic. The Acura NSX is simply something. Cornering capability with All-Wheel drive and an instant surge of acceleration anytime the pedal asks for it behind the steering wheel provides for an exotic driving experience that one might find quite tranquil. Its interior and body is tight and quiet.

Homegrown horsepower facts:

• Price approaches $200,000
• All-wheel-drive curve handling
• Remarkably quiet cabin design
• Alcantara leather and carbon fiber
• Paused in 2023 returning electric

And that excellence is matched in the sport-lux interior. Here, you’ll have your mitts wrapped in Alcantara suede, plush leather, and carbon fiber; the space simultaneously feels both cutting-edge and oh-so-comfy. While Acura put the nameplate to bed in 2023, the company plans to reincarnate the flagship in fully electric form down the road.

9. Lexus LC 500 Is Pure Automotive Elegance

This car ensures that every time you drive it, people look at you. The Lexus LC 500 is one of those head-turning machines with such an exquisite exterior design. As the LC’s reviewer in our test drives put it: “Frankly, I sometimes felt a bit underdressed driving this thing just on an everyday errand around town.” There’s luxury in everything- from its smooth flowing exterior shape down to its glove-soft leather interior.

Beauty with a backseat:

• V8 or hybrid powertrain choice
• Surprisingly roomy rear seating
• Car-seat compatible practicality
• Sleek flowing exterior design
• Buttery-soft leather interior throughout

But perhaps the biggest thing differentiating the LC 500 and probably the biggest weapon in its arsenal, in fact is the surprising dose of practicality. Of all its competitors the 500’s interior feels cavernous; not only do you have a capacious back seat big enough to squeeze a couple of people into if required (it’s car-seat compatible, no less!) but the whole thing functions like a proper luxury touring sportster, not just a weekend fling machine.

10. Bentley Continental Is an Arrival Not Just a Drive

Others simply arrive: the Bentley Continental arrival is an occasion every time it shows up, or a reason for spontaneous, bright smiles and the flash of smart phone cameras to greet it in a crowded parking lot, as well it would. The understated profile conveys classic class, from its seductive sweep of roofline down to the welcome glint of the crystal-lined headlights. (They’re real).

Power behind the polish:

• Price nears $300,000
• 771 horsepower hybrid powertrain
• Most powerful Bentley ever
• Crystal-framed headlight detailing
• Silent electric or roaring sport mode

And yet the other-worldly part really kicks in when you hit the “start” button for the first time. With the 771bhp hybrid system, it’s already the most powerful Bentley produced to date; it glides around in utter silence in electric mode for an under-the-radar escape, or it lets rip with a great big burbling roar when set to “Sport”.

11. Mercedes-Benz CLE Cabriolet Mixes Fun with Practicality

You can hardly do better when it comes to sophisticated driving to the tune of wind blowing through your hair in this cabriolet by Mercedes-Benz. This particular CLE Cabriolet manages a rather skillful fusion between dynamic performance and comfortable four-seat capacity. Therefore you can have daily practicality and a lot of fun without compromise! Choose either an energetic 255 horsepower four-cylinder or a potent 375 horsepower six-cylinder that propel its rounded and shapely contours.

Clever tricks up its sleeve:

• 255 hp or 375 hp engines
• Ten different paint colors offered
• Air Scarf warms your neck
• Air Cap protects your hairstyle
• Voice-activated multimedia system included

In the cockpit, a minefield of clever Mercedes tech for top-down pleasure awaits. Air Scarf is available for your neck on cooler evening drives; the innovative Air Cap effectively saves your blow-dry when the hood is down at a brisk pace. And the active media system with a voice activation button lets you alter ambient lighting, should you need to match it to a particularly daring thought.

12. Porsche Cayenne Proves an SUV Can Thrill

An SUV on a list of fun sports cars? Absolutely, when it is a Porsche built with real intent. The Cayenne is proof that you can have thrilling performance and family-friendly space in one stunning package without compromise. This is not your average grocery-getter; it is a vehicle that, as one driver experienced, inspires you to be your best self behind the wheel every single time.

Practical never felt this fast:

• Thrilling performance in SUV form
• Redesigned elegant interior layout
• Distinctive sleek and sporty grab handles
• Family-friendly space with real thrills
• Ultimate do-it-all enthusiast machine

Following a redesign, the interior is more elegant, functional, and intuitive than ever before, feeling quintessentially Porsche throughout. The dashboard and distinctive grab handles are the perfect blend of sleek and sporty, constantly reminding you that you are in something special even on a routine drive. It is the ultimate do-it-all machine for the enthusiast who needs more than two seats.

13. Lexus LS 500 F Sport Hides a Wolf Inside

Here is a car that loves to shatter expectations the moment you least expect it. At first glance, the Lexus LS 500 F Sport sedan appears to be a supremely refined and lavishly appointed luxury vehicle built purely for comfort. One writer anticipated a perfectly pleasant but ultimately mundane week behind the wheel. Then, on a simple errand, she engaged Sport+ mode and the car’s entire personality transformed instantly.

The sleeper agent’s secrets:

• Sport+ mode transforms the car
• Described as a true sleeper
• Supple leather and sophisticated design
• Lighted mirrors for rear passengers
• Luxury and excitement coexist beautifully

This is the ultimate sleeper, a wolf in sheep’s clothing hidden beneath beautiful leather and wood trim. Beneath its sophisticated design and supple leather interior lies a machine capable of delivering genuine driving thrills when called upon. The cabin is a sanctuary for passengers too, with thoughtful touches like lighted mirrors for those riding in the rear seats during evening drives.

14. Kia EV6 GT Delivers Shocking Electric Thrills

Just when you thought you knew what an electric car was capable of, along comes the Kia EV6 GT to blow the doors off your perceptions entirely. This is the car that caught test drivers completely off guard on the track during initial testing. Its remarkable silence is deceptive, hiding a reservoir of ferocious power, blistering speed, and instantaneous acceleration that pins you firmly to your seat.

Silent but seriously savage:

• Boost mode unleashes full power
• Caught test drivers off guard
• Silence hides ferocious acceleration
• Comfortable spacious daily interior
• Ultimate dual-threat modern vehicle

And then there is Boost mode, a simple press of a button that unleashes the car’s full potential in an instant. A surge so intense that, as the test team noted, you will want that helmet ready. Yet for all its track-day prowess, the EV6 GT boasts a modern and appealing interior that is comfortable and spacious enough for daily family duties without compromise.