Kia Stinger may be on its way out, but several affordable new rear-wheel drive sedans, coupes and EVs should ease the pain
- 1. Mazda MX-5 – from $38,460
- 2. Subaru BRZ – from $40,290
- 3. Toyota GR86 – from $43,240
- 4. Kia Stinger – from $52,750
- 5. Cupra Born – from $59,990
- 6. Genesis G70 – from $63,000
- 7. Tesla Model 3 – from $63,900
- 8. BMW 2 Series Coupe – from $67,700
- Three to look forward to…
- 1. Ford Mustang – due late 2023
- 2. Volkswagen ID.3
- 3. Polestar 2
- Plus four that just missed the cut…
- 1. Nissan Z – from $73,300
- 2. Alfa Romeo Giulia – from $74,950
- 3. BMW 320i and Mercedes-Benz C 200 – from $78,900
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Big, affordable rear-wheel drive sedans and wagons were Australia’s most popular new vehicle type just over a decade ago, but Aussies in the market for a mainstream (sub-$70,000) large car will be down to just two choices after the Kia Stinger is discontinued without a replacement later this year.
And neither the Skoda Superb nor the new Citroen C5 X are rear-drive, let alone sporty V6- or V8-powered vehicles like the Stinger and the homegrown Holden Commodore, which has now been gone for more than five years.
But while the Stinger’s looming retirement means Australian driving enthusiasts will soon have one less affordable rear-drive option to choose from in new-car showrooms, the are several new RWD coupes, sedans and even electric vehicles either on sale now or on the way.
The big Korean sports sedan still has a couple of months left before its production line is repurposed to boost Kia’s EV strategy – led by the brilliant but expensive Kia EV6, which opens with a RWD variant priced from $72,590 – so we’ve included it here but will update this list once it’s unavailable and as new models come to market.
Starting from cheapest and working our way up, here are the eight new rear-wheel drive passenger models you can still buy Down Under for less than $70,000 (excluding on-road costs).
1. Mazda MX-5 – from $38,460
Mazda’s MX-5 is the definitive affordable driver’s car and the world’s most popular two-seat roadster, having notched up more than a million sales over four generations since 1989.
But like almost all new models it hasn’t been immune to price hikes and these days only one variant costs less than $40,000, although all versions are priced under about $52K and now powered by the same fizzy 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine developing 135kW/205Nm.
Those outputs don’t sound like much, but they combine with one of the lightest kerb weights in this list – with either a folding fabric soft-top or metal hard-top (RF) – to yield one of the most engaging driving experiences on the market.
2. Subaru BRZ – from $40,290
The second-generation Subaru BRZ may not quite be as affordable as its predecessor but that’s mainly because the all-new 2.4-litre turbo boxer engine lurking under its bonnet dishes out a heap more power (174kW) and torque (250Nm).
And the extra grunt is joined by an overhauled platform, significantly more convenience and safety tech, and of course that new aesthetic that seems to attract attention everywhere.
The real kicker is the BRZ is now even better to drive than before and could well be the best driver’s car this side of $45K.
3. Toyota GR86 – from $43,240
Funnily enough another contender for that title is the BRZ’s development twin; the second-generation 2023 Toyota GR86, as the Japanese giant’s affordable sports car is now called.
But in a total role reversal compared to the first-gen coupes, the new Toyota 86 is now more expensive than its sibling in terms of entry price.
Under the skin you’ll find a series of subtle suspension differences between the two, giving them slightly different driving characters, but we’re yet to put them back-to-back to compare those differences.
4. Kia Stinger – from $52,750
The Kia Stinger came to Australia’s rescue when the homegrown Holden Commodore SS met its end in 2017 and proudly took over the baton as Australia’s favourite mainstream sports sedan.
A budget-friendly 2.0-litre turbo four (182kW/353Nm) and a V8-killing twin-turbo 3.3-litre V6 (274kW/510Nm) are offered, but not for much longer given the big Korean four-door will go out of production by mid-year.
All versions drive the rear wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission and feature a limited-slip differential as standard, while the top-spec GT adds adaptive dampers among other extra goodies.
5. Cupra Born – from $59,990
The first of two EVs on this list, the Cupra Born is an all-electric hot hatch that bucks the usual trend of front- or all-wheel drive in favour of a rear-drive configuration thanks to its single axle-mounted electric motor.
It might not be as fast as similarly priced internal combustion alternatives, but the Born’s USP makes it feel very different in the way it corners compared to something like a Honda Civic Type R or Hyundai i30 N.
That single motor develops a handy if not ground-breaking 170kW/310Nm and is sustained by an 82kWh lithium-ion battery pack.
6. Genesis G70 – from $63,000
Sharing the same bones and powertrains as the outbound Stinger, albeit in a smaller package, is the Genesis G70 – Korea’s answer to the BMW 3 Series, which doesn’t make this list due to its $78,900 starting figure.
Like the Stinger, the G70 features the choice of a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder (179kW/353Nm) and a twin-turbo 3.3-litre V6 (274kW/510Nm), both of which drive the rear wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission and a limited-slip differential.
But while the bigger Kia is offered exclusively as a liftback, Genesis’ mid-size luxury car can be had either as a traditional sedan or as a niche Shooting Brake (wagon).
7. Tesla Model 3 – from $63,900
The Tesla Model 3 is something of an outlier in this list because only one of the three variants offered in Australia comes with rear-wheel drive – the entry-level Rear Wheel Drive – and the rest are all-wheel drive.
This particular Model 3 relies on a rear axle-mounted electric motor and a 62kWh lithium-ion battery pack for propulsion, resulting in claimed outputs of 208kW/340Nm and an effective driving range of 491km.
It’s pretty handy to drive too, having netted carsales’ Best Electric Car award two years on the trot.
8. BMW 2 Series Coupe – from $67,700
BMW’s 2 Series can be a bit confusing for the uninitiated, but we’ll try to explain it: the 2 Series Coupe and 2 Series Gran Coupe are two completely different vehicles.
The 2 Series Coupe is a primarily a rear-drive two-door while the GC is a primarily a front-drive four-door.
Just one 2 Series Coupe is available for less than $70K – the base 220i powered by a 135kW/300Nm 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine and an eight-speed automatic transmission.
Three to look forward to…
1. Ford Mustang – due late 2023
The current Mustang was excluded from the above list on the basis you can’t actually buy one at the moment, but the new S650-generation is due to arrive deep in the second half of 2023 and will likely start around the $60,000 mark.
2. Volkswagen ID.3
The VW ID.3 is the Cupra Born’s EV cousin and will most likely share just about all of its go-faster goodies in flagship GTX guise, but the kicker is there will be a crop of garden-variety variants too, which should mean similar rear-drive dynamics for less money.
3. Polestar 2
This one could be a little hit and miss on the $70,000 benchmark, but the single-motor 2024 Polestar 2 will be making the switch from front- to rear-wheel drive as part of a wider MY24 model upgrade that will also bring new motors, new batteries and more power.
Plus four that just missed the cut…
1. Nissan Z – from $73,300
While the Nissan Z holds a significant $13,700 price advantage over the Toyota Supra, it’s opening figure is still a couple of grand too high to make the cut for this list, though there’s no denying the old-school driving experience the manual version offers.
2. Alfa Romeo Giulia – from $74,950
Alfa Romeo’s 3 Series and G70 rival could well have featured in this list if the Italian brand hadn’t have done away with the entry-level Sport variant, which used to start from $63,950. Now the range is opened by the dearer but more powerful and better-equipped Veloce.
3. BMW 320i and Mercedes-Benz C 200 – from $78,900
The BMW 3 Series needs no introduction as the German brand’s once best-seller, attracting millions of buyers over seven generations since 1975. The latest G20 range debuted here in 2019 and now opens at close to $80,000 for the base 320i sedan, extending all the way to the M3 (available in base, Competition and all-wheel drive forms) and the limited-edition $250K M3 CS flagship.
Meantime the C 200 opens the fifth-generation (W206) Mercedes-Benz C-Class sedan range that traces its lineage back to 1993 and was released in Australia in February 2022.
The ‘AMG-lite’ C 43 sports sedan has just joined the line-up, which will soon be topped by the four-cylinder plug-in hybrid C 63 flagship (also with AWD as standard), but like the base 3 Series the entry-level C-Class remains rear-drive and costs exactly the same as its German arch-rival.
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Keyword: Eight sub-$70K rear-drive cars you can still buy – for now