While buying a clean car doesn’t mean that you’ll be missing out on performance, another impossible triangle has come to fruition as we approach Clean Car fines in April.
So, a fast, clean or cheap car? You can have two of the three… but you probably can’t have all after April 1.
Buying fast and clean means a car probably isn’t going to be cheap; meanwhile, a cheap and clean car isn’t going to be fast.
With this in mind, there are a number of vehicles that an enthusiast could consider buying right now, to beating the looming fees.
First up is Kia’s cut-price performance princess – the Stinger GT. For as long as this performance sedan has been on sale, it has received praise for being incredibly fun to drive without breaking the bank.
In this instance, we’re skipping over the 2.0-litre GT-Line model, and are going straight to the full fruit V6 GT.
It gets a hefty 274kW sent to the rear wheels from its 3.3-litre twin-turbo V6, which makes for a great practical performance option.
View Kia Stinger listings on Driven
Speaking of practicality, it’s hard to go past a good SUV these days, and the Jeep Grand Cherokee is a great example.
In New Zealand, buyers have a lot of choice when it comes to a Grand Cherokee with specs ranging from the handsome Limited, to the capable Trailhawk, and the very aggressive SRT.
If performance is what you’re after, the SRT is what you want. It gets a 6.4-litre Hemi V8 that sends 354kW to all four wheels. Given that this model will hit 100km/h in 4.5 seconds, it’s more than enough for most.
Click here to view Jeep Grand Cherokee listings
BMW M3/M4
Last but not least, we can’t talk about performance icons without bringing up BMW’s M3.
Unlike Audi Sport and Mercedes-AMG, BMW’s M division left a hybrid system out of the latest iteration, which is great for petrol-headed purists, but not so great for a looming clean car fee.
In the M3 Competition, the 3.0-litre twin-turbo engine sends 375kW to the rear wheels, which makes for one of the most enjoyable driving experiences in modern times.
So if you’re able to look past those questionable nostrils, you’ll have the time of your life.
- In partnership with Andrew Simms
