There are some cars that were designed just for driving, and this bank holiday weekend may just be the perfect time to use them.
For fans of all things four-wheels,, there is nothing better than just going for a drive in your car, and when the weekend is prolonged by an extra day for a bank holiday there’s even more time to explore.
Modern cars are getting bigger, safer and less involving to drive, but take a trip down memory lane and there are many vehicles that tick all the right boxes for the perfect weekend toy.
Here is our guide to some of the most entertaining and enjoyable cars for the weekend.
Honda S2000 (1999-2009)
The S2000 was Honda’s fiftieth birthday present to itself and now 25 years after its release, it’s crept into the modern classic category.
The two-seater rear-wheel-drive sports car had a 10-year production run and in that time it went through minor changes to help it stay fresh.
It came as standard with a six-speed manual gearbox, a 2.0-litre four-cylinder VTEC engine that produced 242bhp and had a top speed of 155mph.
A redline of 9000rpm, razor-sharp handling and the open-top wind in the hair thrills and you’ve got a pretty special car. Not only that, but S2000s don’t break, meaning you can drive them hard and they just keep on giving.
Ford Fiesta ST MK7 (2013-2017)
It was a great shame when the Blue Oval announced that it was dropping its beloved Fiesta in 2023.
The best-selling car in Britain for over a decade was gone in the blink of an eye, but happily however, because they were so popular, it means that we will still see thousands of them on our roads for many years to come and the sweet spot in the Fiesta range was the MK7 ST.
When launched, the ST brought so many smiles to car enthusiasts’ faces, because it had an affordable price tag, fantastic driving dynamics and one of the best sought-after chassis of any hatchback.
Under the bonnet was a 1.6-litre turbocharged Ecoboost engine that produced 179bhp, a little less than its rivals from France but nonetheless, the Fiesta was the better drive.
This is one car that is destined to be a future classic and should certainly be a candidate for our bank holiday weekend blasts list.
Toyota GT86 (2012-2021)
Built-in conjunction with Subaru, the GT86 stole the hearts of many drivers for its excellent handling and rear-wheel-drive layout.
Now over a decade on not only have they become affordable, but they are still great fun on a twisty road and running costs are not too high, either.
The GT86 was the same car as the Subaru BRZ. They both used 2.0-litre four-cylinder Boxer engines that produced 197bhp and though that doesn’t sound like a lot, they only weighed 1270kg – making them very light.
Porsche Cayman GT4 (2015-2016)
The Cayman 981 was released in 2012, not only was it better looking and more high-tech than the original that was released in 2005 – they also made some pretty special models such as the GT4.
The Cayman GT4 981 was only on sale for one year, and that’s no bad thing as it made them rare.
The engine was a 3.8-litre six-cylinder engine that produced 390bhp, had a top speed of 182mph and did 0-60mph in 4.2 seconds.
Not only was it fast, but it also had a limited-slip differential, a six-speed manual gearbox and was designed and engineered to be the perfect driver’s car.
Mazda MX-5 (1990-)
Any generation, specification or colour, the Mazda MX-5 could well just be the perfect car for your weekend needs.
Not only was and is affordable, but its simplistic rear-wheel-drive layout and superb handling have made it become one of the best and recognisable sports cars ever made.
The MX-5 is now in its fourth generation and in that time its recipe has hardly changed. It might have more safety equipment and driver aids, but the back-to-basics no-nonsense fun strategy is still there.
A light body, low power and snickety gear change make it a very user-friendly sports car, while being cheap to maintain and allowing you into convertible motoring for not much money – just make sure that you do all your checks with earlier cars as they can suffer from rust – but if you can find a good example, you can’t go wrong with one of these excellent little sports cars.
By Cameron Richards