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Cheapest RWD Cars to Buy in 2016

RWD is the layout the car was born with. Since the Benz Patent-Motorwagen of 1886, the assortment of rear-wheel-drive vehicles has taken a dive. FWD cars are easier and cheaper to build. Austrian outfit Graf & Stift patented the front-wheel-drive layout in 1900, so don’t go blaming the Citroen Traction Avant for popularizing this arrangement.
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There are advantages and disadvantages to both layouts. RWD equals better weight distribution, better weight transfer and superior traction during heavy acceleration, better braking, better handling if the driver knows how to tame a rear-wheel-drive car, and no torque steer. In terms of drawbacks, RWD suffers from [don’t hate me for saying this] oversteer and fishtailing, inferior traction on snow, ice, and sand, as well as increased weight, less space inside and in the trunk, and so forth.

But let’s be frank here. FWD became king of the hill because of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). The United States of America and everybody else started adopting the layout out of necessity after the 1973 oil crisis. From 1973 onwards, front-wheel-drive cars began to gain attention, especially those made in Japan thanks to their superior fuel efficiency, reliability, and competitive pricing.

Post-1973 America understood that something had to give in order to reduce oil consumption. The oil crisis prompted the U.S. auto industry to concentrate on the 4-cylinder engine and diesel technology as a means to an end. It is as clear as the deep blue sky that 1973 is the year the rear-wheel-drive layout transitioned from norm to exception.

Happily, however, all the automakers in the world understood that RWD is a commodity worth being traded. It was worth defending for the sake of keen drivers and bragging rights. In addition to that reasoning, all full-size pickup trucks in America (including all thirteen generation of the Ford F-Series) are offered with RWD as standard.

With that said, rear-wheel-drive cars are not within the reach of everyone with a driver’s license. The question is, what are the cheapest rear-wheel-drive cars in production today? Our ranking of five starts with a German city car that’s built in France and continues with a kei-sized roadster from Japan, a 3-cylinder engined British lightweight sports car that’s based on a design from 1957, an American icon of freedom, and the best-selling two-seater convertible sports car ever.

2016 smart fortwo - $14,650

2016 smart fortwo
Photo: smart
The third generation of the smart fortwo is not a driver’s car. Its sole purpose is to accommodate two people and some shopping bags, all while being as small as possible for effortless parking in a congested city. With a turning circle of 22.8 feet (6.95 meters), no other car can beat the 2016 smart fortwo in the requirements of modern city traffic.

The smart fortwo is the cheapest car with a rear-wheel-drive layout available in the United States of America. What do you get after paying $14,650 for the Pure Coupe model? Let’s see what’s what: steel wheels, LED daytime running lights, air conditioning, a radio, two power windows, Bluetooth hands-free calling and audio streaming, eight airbags, hill start assist, and that’s just about it.

Seems like a car, though it measures 106.1 inches (2.69 meters) in length and 65.47 inches (1.66 meters) in width. If you pay a little bit extra, the smart fortwo can be upgraded with height adjustment for the driver’s seat ($100) and a double-clutch transmission ($990). Not bad, but what about something a little bit more fun to drive than this?

2016 Honda S660 - ¥1,980,000 (~$17,710)

Honda S660
Photo: Honda
Sorry folks, but the Honda S660 isn’t available in North America. But rumor has it Honda is working on a U.S. market version. If it were to be offered in the U.S., this two-seat kei sports car would cost less than $20,000, and that’s an offer few people in the market for an exciting car can refuse. The Honda S660 is pretty much like its predecessor - the emblematic Beat, in terms of exterior design, the location of the engine, the ridiculous curb weight, and curve cutting credentials.

The manual tips the scales at 1,830 pounds (830 kilograms). It’s 418 pounds (189 kilograms) lighter than a 2016 Chevrolet Spark, so imagine how good that lightness feels from behind the steering wheel. In the Land of the Rising Sun, the mid-mounted 658 cc 3-cylinder is good for 63 horsepower and 77 lb-ft (104 Nm) of torque. The 1.0-liter turbo that’s supposedly earmarked for the United States is expected to churn out more than 125 horsepower. Exciting stuff, I know, right?

When all is said and done and the spec sheet gets dreary with economy figures, what else is there? Well, take a good look at the Honda S660. Try harder. Squint your eyes. That’s right - the S660 is the lovechild of the 2017 Acura NSX and the iconic Honda S2000.

2016 Caterham Seven 160 - £15,995 (~$22,255)

Caterham Seven 160
Photo: Caterham
The Lotus Eleven was designed by Colin Chapman around three coordinates: it had to be simple, it had to be light, and it had to be as thrilling as sports cars got in the latter half of the 1950s. He did it, you know, and the concept of the super-lightweight sports car lives on with the Caterham Seven. The cheapest one is the Seven 160, described by Caterham as the model that “represents the essence of the Seven.

While it may be sold across Europe and in Japan, Catherman isn’t selling the Seven 160 in the United States. The cheapest model here is the Seven 280, which starts at a 2016 BMW 3 Series-rivaling $33,900. That’s a bummer considering that the Seven 160 is back-to-basics in its purest form. For crying out loud, a 12v power socket is an option on this thing. Curious what’s under the hood of this British interloper?

A 660cc Suzuki 3-cylinder with a small turbocharger for added punch. The 79 horsepower and 79 lb-ft (107 Nm) it churns out are enough for a sprint to 60 mph (96 km/h) in 6.9 seconds and a top speed of 100 mph (160 km/h). Now don’t laugh about these stats because 163 horsepower per tonne means business by all accounts.

2016 Ford Mustang V6 - $24,145

2016 Ford Mustang V6 Fastback
Photo: Ford
Ever felt the urge to punch somebody in the face, then hit them repeatedly with a frying pan? That’s what I want to do with the man who decided to make the V6 the entry-level engine choice for the Mustang. Rental companies love these things, though I can’t stand knowing that engineers designed the 3.7-liter naturally aspirated V6 to be inferior to the 2.3-liter EcoBoost just to keep bean counters happy.

On the plus side, the 2016 Ford Mustang V6 Fastback is cheap. Despite its low-born outset, this is still a Mustang, and boy, do you get lots of goodies for $24,145: SYNC, parking camera, an auto-dimming rearview mirror, climate control, leather on the steering wheel, and a name that makes car and non-car people salivate uncontrollably.

The Mustang isn’t a car. It’s a state of mind, a state that makes the driver and passenger feel good. The thing is, the V6 will leave a bitter feeling instead of that sweet sense of “all is right with the world and I’m happy” you get while cruising down Route 66 with your S.O., riding a wave of V8 burble and rockin’ Sweet Home Alabama on the radio. The 2016 Ford Mustang V6 is a cheap car because it also feels cheap compared to the other competitively priced RWD cars on our list.

2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata - $24,915

2016 Mazda MX\-5 Miata \(ND\)
Photo: Mazda
The fourth-generation Mazda MX-5 Miata needs no introduction. What you get is everyday usability, the looks to kill, and a responsive chassis. If it weren’t for drawbacks such as some plastic trim and the 4.6 cuFT (130-liter) trunk, the Mazda MX-5 Miata would be excellent.

Alright, I admit, I can’t ignore the elephant in the room. What I’m on about is the 2.0-liter engine that develops 155 horsepower and 148 lb-ft (200 Nm). I don’t use one, but I heard that food blenders these days are more powerful than that. The truth is, the MX-5 is a great performer as is and it doesn’t need more power like a Scion FR-S does. It’s not fast, not by a long shot, but the excitement you get from the driving experience more than makes up for that. It’s the most expensive cheap car on our list, but then again, the entry-level 1.5-liter model isn’t on sale in North America.

The lesser model could cost about $22,000 if it were to be imported here. If my money were at stake and I were in the market for a cheap rear-wheel-drive sports car, I’d spent my hard-earned cash on a Miata with 129 horsepower and 111 lb-ft (150 Nm) of torque. I’m mad, I know, but I can’t seem to remember any owner of the 1990 Mazda MX-5 Miata 1.6 trash-talk about how underpowered and boring his little sports car is.
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About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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