The best sports cars – driven, rated and ranked

The most obvious part of the new car market eyed up by petrolheads is the sports car segment. 

It’s home to some of the most memorable cars ever built, with car makers including Porsche, BMW, Mercedes and Alpine investing heavily to produce some seriously capable models on sale today. 

And even as so many other segments undergo such rapid change, this one still deals in big power, lightweight engineering, high-revving combustion engines and outstanding handling dynamism.

A genre that’s almost as old as the car itself, sports cars were first developed to bring some of the speed and excitement of early motorsport machines to the regular driver on the road. Now, they’ve matured and can be driven every day. 

For this list, we’ve included the best full-sized sports cars with deep-chested acceleration and uplifting handling, that are as at home on the road as the track. However, that’s not to say there isn’t room for variety, which is why front, rear and mid-engined contenders make the cut here.

We think the best sports car on sale today is the Alpine A110, but which other models make the cut? Read on as we list the best sports cars still on sale in 2024.