Two-Car Solutions for $50K: How We’d Spend It

It’s not easy to cover all the automotive bases—there are so many ways to have fun that it’s tough to cover them in one or two (or three, or four) vehicles and still have something for utilitarian use. When Nathan Petroelje asked the Hagerty Media team if, feet to the fire, we had to pick just two cars and come in under $50K total, the answers he got varied far and wide.

We delved into a Hagerty Price Guide spreadsheet filled with the values of thousands of variations of make and model and each picked out a pair of cars that spoke to us. All of these picks are in either #3 or #4 condition—in other words, either very nice or driver-quality examples. If you asked us to do it again, I think we’d all give different answers—just about everyone who responded added the caveat that they went down way too many rabbit holes during their selection.

A Jeep and a Jag

Although it is incredibly tempting to drop 46 grand on a #4 condition Lamborghini Jarama, which has always been a weird favorite of mine, and then the rest on base Subaru XT, the prospect of living with a #4 Lamborghini is nauseating. So let’s do this: One of my choices has to be a 4×4, and though I considered a 1960s WM300 Dodge Power Wagon and an FJ60 Land Cruiser, the prospect of a rare, wonderful 1960–65 Jeep FC-150 half-ton at $18,800 is entirely too tempting to pass up. So that leaves me with a fun road car to sort out, naturally. Various corner-carving Lotuses from the 1950s to the early ’90s seemed tempting, but then my my eyes fell on the 1975–77 Jaguar XJ coupe, and I remembered how perfect these cars look. They’re so attractive, they’re rare, and they embody all that Jaguar once was. Both the 4.2-liter six, at $17,900, and the 5.3-liter V-12, at $22,900, would be welcome additions alongside my funky Jeep. A Jag V-12 in sweet tune is just about ideal, but only the inline-six came with a manual transmission, and you know what—I’d like that, even if it gives up 82 hp to its sister. So I’ll take an XJ-6 C, please. All of which puts me at $36,700 and leaves $13,300 to donate to the RPM Foundation.—Stefan Lombard

GTV and 190

First I’m going to replace the one that got away with the one I really wanted in the first place, which is an early seventies Alfa Romeo GTV. A few years back, I bought a 1969 Giulia Super 1600 and it was the best classic car I’ve ever owned, but I always had a hankering for a coupe of the same era. That looks like it’ll set me back around $43,000 so with the change I’m getting the cheapest, most reliable runaround I can find for those days when the Alfa is at its most Italian. That will be a mid 80’s Mercedes-Benz 190 for exactly one tenth of the price of the GTV. A diesel no less, which will be both unstoppable and leave me enough for a service and road trip.—Nik Berg

Kyle Goes ’50s and ’60s

I’m lucky enough to have a couple cars currently that cover a lot of use cases, meaning it only feels right to get a few things a little off the beaten path.

I first recognized a Siata while attending the Cobble Beach Concours in 2017. The svelte maroon roadster was one of Siata’s more desirable models, but I was interested to see any Siata priced where I might be able to snag one under this imposed $50K budget. The Amica is Italian through and through with adorable small-car Italian styling and a 500cc Fiat engine. Factory rated at a top speed of 68mph, this thing sounds like it would be really interesting to drive, and just as interesting to stare at in the garage. Just in case those rumors about Italian cars are true.

On the flip side, I chose something that would make for a sweet regular driver. I’ve never owned a Pontiac but the idea of one has been intriguing, and the stacked headlight designs of the early ’60s are my preference. A Catalina sports coupe with a 421-ci V-8 sounds comfortable, powerful, and just fun to drive. Even in #4 condition this would make a simple-ish project car to keep running and enjoying, maybe even turn it into a #3 car along the way.—Kyle Smith

Sports and Utility

I can’t ever spend the entirety of our imaginary budget, because I’m always worried that my imaginary cars that I bought for imaginary money will have imaginary breakdowns that I need to buy imaginary parts for with the extra imaginary money. That’s rational, right?

My two-car solution goes the “work and play” route, with one pointedly focused on the work, and other for the reward after work is done.

I’ll start with a 1987 Ford F-150 long bed 4×4, sporting the durable 300-cubic inch inline six, but with fuel injection for added reliability. You can get one of these mules for $15,900 in #3 condition, which feels like a solid choice.

That leaves $34,100 for the toy car, and while I’d normally never spend more on a toy than I would on an everyday machine, I’m trying to keep the whole “imaginary” part in mind here.

A 1997 BMW M3 Coupe, scooped in #3 condition for $27,100, would make for a ripping good time. Track days, autocrosses, backroad blasts, this thing feels like it has just enough power to handle any of those, but not enough to make said adventures boring.

That leaves me $7000 left over for imaginary track rubber and track brake hardware; should be plenty for summers of fun.—Nathan Petroelje

Same Take, Different Outcome

I had a blast behind the wheel of a 2003 Dodge Viper a couple years back, and it’s a car I could realistically see myself owning. The interior’s nothing to write home about, but those cheap plastics pretty quickly take a back seat to the burly personality. $44,200 will nab a #3 condition car. That leaves just enough for a ’92 Chevy K1500 Extended cab with a 350 ($5K in #4 condition) to handle more mundane trips and inclement weather. Sure, I probably wouldn’t want to take either on a long trip, but that’s what my wife’s car is for.—Eddy Eckart

Cars from Daydreams Past

Turning back the clock here to cars I wanted in college that are fun, fast, and reasonably practical … I think a C6 Corvette Grand Sport (2010-13) is all the performance I’d realistically need to have fun. It has the same engine as a base C6, but 430hp is more than enough, and the Grand Sport came with enough Z06 bits to make the occasional track day or autocross more rewarding. At $31,800 in #3 condition, it leaves a decent amount of money for something a little more usable, and a 2002-07 Subaru WRX wagon would be a great all-rounder at $16,500 in #3 condition. It can handle bad weather and has lots of room in the back, but also has enough pep and personality that it wouldn’t just be a boring daily driver.—Andrew Newton

Two Very Different Two-Doors

I want function, fun, and budget for parts. That takes me to the 2002 Acura RSX Type S and the 1947 Mercury M-47. Basically a Civic Si with a better interior, Acura would make a fantastic autocross and light track car that I wouldn’t mind taking to cars and coffee either. On a set of OZ wheels I think it would really look good, too. These cars don’t need much in the way of maintenance, either. The truck is appealing both for its ruggedness/utility and its Canadian heritage. (My wife is both Canadian and a lover of pickups.) These post-war, Canada-only rigs were rebadged first-gen Ford F-Series trucks. Simple, but in their own way, special. The Acura is $15,000 in #3 condition, and the Mercury is $24,200. That leaves about $11,000 for repairs and upgrades—the aforementioned OZ wheels and brakes for the Acura, plus power brakes for the truck and a bit of interior freshening.—Eric Weiner