Many second-hand sports cars can be yours for a modest price, but are they worth it?

Many of us, car enthusiasts, have at some point dreamed of getting our hands on a sports car, a radical one, capable of putting a smile on our faces every morning. Unfortunately, our wallets don’t always allow us to indulge these whims, but we have all searched used-vehicle websites in the hope of finding an affordable sports car at a good price. I’m sure our eyes have popped out of our heads when seeing certain models at a really attractive price, but are they worth it?

Sports cars with the AMG, M or RS badges show up in hundreds of used-vehicle search results, creating a unique opportunity to get our hands on a very special model. However, getting into these high-flying cars for a modest price has its consequences, which we will analyse below with real examples. This is largely due to the steep depreciation that certain sports cars have suffered, although if we play our cards right, we may end up with a vehicle that will appreciate considerably in the future.

If we dig around a little online, we can come across models from Mercedes at very interesting prices. An SL 55 AMG can be ours for the same price as a brand-new Volkswagen Golf GTI; we would need to pay “only” around 30,000 euros. For that figure of hot hatch money, we can have a genuine German supercar under our control, which in its day was one of the most prestigious and the passing years have not changed that.

Specifically, a 2002 example with close to 100,000 kilometres could be ours for 29,500 euros. Under the bonnet of this flagship SL 55 AMG we find a powerful supercharged V8 capable of producing 500 CV of power and 701 Nm of torque. Figures that, even today, still appear in vehicles in the segment, such as its successor, the AMG GTS. This SL could be perfectly suited as our weekend car, but if space is a problem, there are also several solutions.

The world of sports saloons is very appealing, since they offer great versatility and performance very similar to that of vehicles like the SL 55 AMG. If we spend some time looking for an M5 on the used market, we can find E60 examples hovering around 28,000 euros. Within it resides a naturally aspirated V10 capable of producing a heavenly melody, making it the perfect car to take our family along and head to the track for some fun.

However, these vehicles do not have the running costs of a compact or saloon costing 30,000 euros, unfortunately. Their prices were around 150,000 euros when production was still active and, therefore, any setback we might have with a car of this kind could prove fatal for our finances. Even in more everyday expenses, such as fuel, servicing, tyre changes or insurance, we would still find figures befitting what they are: supercars.

For example, the SL 55 AMG has an average combined consumption of 14.5 litres and more than 20 litres when our driving style is a little more mischievous. Without a doubt, these are not low consumption figures and, consequently, everything related to this type of vehicle carries a high cost. With this, we conclude that we must be very cautious when acquiring a supercar for a reasonably affordable price, since we face the situation turning against us.