The Ideal $300 a Month Car

A good buddy of mine (who's also one of the only people who actually read this blog) just got a $300 per month car allowance. He's asked me what new (or relatively new) car would I go for with a payment in that vicinity. So here's my quick hit list of cars that strike the balance between sport, style, usefulness, economics, and fun:

5. Volkswagen GTI

So yeah, despite VW's current turmoil, I'm still a massive fan of this car. It's a fast, fun, near-perfect vehicle and is more or less the first option that comes to mind. No surprises here.

4. MINI Cooper S 4 Door
I've recently been spotting some new 4 door MINI's and I kinda dig 'em. Now I'm not talkin' about the Countryman or the new Clubman. I mean the Cooper S 4 door. At first I hated the idea of this, but seeing them on the road, with a pair of bikes strapped to the top, I kinda love this wagon-esque super Cooper.

3. Fiat 500 Abarth
The Abarth (pronounced either ah-BART or AY-bart) is the perfect pocket rocket. It's fun factor is through the roof and would be an absolute blast to own for a bit... mainly because I haven't yet : )

2. Ford Focus ST


I'm really intrigued by this little guy. It's way too fast for it's own good. It's agile AND functional and you can't find a single auto reviewer who will talk crap about it. Not to mention it looks fantastic with a bike rack.

1. Hyundai Elantra GT + BMW G650 GS 
Let's face it, a base model Elantra GT is by no means a bad looking ride and it's beyond affordable too. So much so that you can probably swing a payment on a G650 GS as well and still be close to on budget.

It looks like a fun little combo, if you ask me.