Best used sports car for 2019

Sports cars are a perennial favourite, but buying one used always brings with it some doubt.

They can lead a pretty tough life, in the hands of uncaring owners just concerned with knocking a couple of tenths off their personal best.

All the more reason sports cars should be built tough, with durable mechanicals. It's not enough to be fun to drive, the sports car should be inexpensive to run and reliable as the sun.

And in 2019, the carsales best used sports car is the 2013...

Last year the Mazda MX-5 Touring won the carsales best used cars award in the sports-car category, but by 2013 that variant was discontinued. For this year, RedBook and the judges settled on the of the mildly facelifted Mazda MX-5 Sports variant. Essentially, the MX-5 for 2013 retains the winning ways of the earlier car, but with improved throttle response and braking.

RedBook values the MX-5 at $18,350 in average retail condition, sold privately. In 2013, the Mazda sold for a new price of $49,885.

Data Services Director at RedBook, Ross Booth, says of the MX-5 that it's "affordable value for money motoring, with excellent handling and direct steering", but most importantly, he notes that it's "reliable [and] fun driving on a budget".

Matt Brogan, Road Test Editor at carsales, offers his view that the MX-5 is "the best, most affordable roadster on the planet, but one that's equally easy to live with every day".

Staying with the reliable and fun theme, Technical Editor for carsales, Ken Gratton, says that the MX-5 is everything buyers could want from a sports car, with its "bulletproof mechanicals and exploitable dynamics".

Find a used Mazda MX-5 on carsales

Honourable mentions:

Jaguar's first year on sale in Australia was 2013, and its arrival in the local market brought with it plenty of praise from the critics. Available initially in convertible form only, the F-TYPE was launched with a supercharged V6 in two states of tune and a powerhouse V8 variant as well.

For carsales best used cars, the F-TYPE scored 33.4 points from Redbook and 39 from the judges for an all-up number of 72.4 points out of 100.
Red Book value: $63,200

"A shapely, almost timeless aesthetic sets the F-TYPE apart from much of its competition" – Matt Brogan, carsales Road Test Editor

Among the judges, only one point separated the Porsche from its other honourable mention, the Jag F-TYPE. But the RedBook data was where the Porsche didn't live up to its promise. RedBook came up with a score of 29 for the Porsche, versus 38 from the judges, for a combined score of 67.
Red Book value: $144,300

Highlighting where the 911 Carrera 4 may have struggled, Redbook Director of Data Services, Ross Booth wrapped it all up with his pithy comment: "Porsche sports performance, but at Porsche costs".

What makes a car eligible for carsales Best Used Cars Awards?
• Less than six years old,
• Standard side-curtain airbags,
• Standard Bluetooth,
• Standard stability control,
• Standard reversing camera for SUVs.

How did RedBook weight the categories for scoring?
• 10 per cent for resale,
• 10 per cent for ANCAP rating,
• 20 per cent for cost of ownership,
• Five per cent for service intervals,
• Five per cent for number of days for vehicle to sell

Read all about carsales Best Used Cars for 2019 here.