Most things four-door, four-wheel drive and Japanese are expensive - not all of them, though...
As enthusiasts, it can be disheartening watching the cars we adore soar in value. Just as we’ve got the money together, so they’ve climbed again. Perhaps no segment has enjoyed more appreciation of late as the rally rep: if it’s fast, four-door and four-wheel drive, it can seem like the sky’s the limit at the moment. Imprezas and Evos were never super cheap cars anyway, but they always seemed accessible - even the special examples.
All is not lost, however. Because if you want a Japanese fast car based on a very ordinary saloon, with a potent four-cylinder turbo engine, four driven wheels and a great manual gearbox, then there is an alternative - the Mazda 6 MPS. Now, of course, it doesn’t have the motorsport kudos or icon status of the Mitsubishi or Subaru - it’s pretty anonymous to all but the most clued up - though it’s hard to argue with the value on offer.
The MPS was always a niche choice, even back in the day when the performance saloon below an M3 was still a thing. In the UK we liked our 260hp, £25k cars with a hatch - the 3 MPS was always more popular - just as we liked our Mazdas as MX-5s and we liked our fast four-doors with German badges on them. All of which conspired against the success of the 6, especially as in 2006 you could still buy an actual Impreza or Evo saloon.
But the hot 6 was well received in period, the effort Mazda has expended - with upgrades like a stiffer body, firmer suspension, a limited-slip rear diff in the four-wheel drive - paying off with a capable, engaging sports saloon. It wasn’t as wild as the rally cars, but it was more interesting than a £24k 3 Series would have been at the time - and most definitely better than a Vectra VXR.
Alright, £5,990 to be exact - but still. When any performance car of note has soared in value over the past couple of years, that something as interesting, rare and generally decent as the MPS can be yours - in good condition, moreover - for this money looks pretty tempting. It’ll use a lot of fuel and emit a lot of CO2, yes, but it would surely be easier to justify expenditure on something this nice rather than a year’s VED being a third of the car’s value.
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