After all, there were several landmark cars that decade. And defining 2000s features — manual transmissions, naturally aspirated motors, crossovers not being overwhelmingly popular yet — should age well moving forward. Here are some future classics you can land before they blow up on Bring a Trailera few years down the road.
The torque-heavy 2.3-liter turbo four’s output figures of 250 hp and 258 lb-ft were reportedly significantly understated. It could also be fitted with a five-speed manual.
Subaru finally gave in and brought the rally-inspired Impreza WRX to the U.S. in 2002. With bug eyes, blue paint and gold rims, the WRX was both a havoc-wreaking enthusiasts’ dream and a segment-redefining compact car, offering 227 hp and all-wheel drive at a tantalizingly affordable price that had every wannabe rally driver in high-school dreaming.
GM gave the Pontiac brand the boot during its post-bankruptcy restructuring — sadly, just as it was producing fun, intriguing cars. The Solstice was a classic two-seater, available as a coupe or a convertible.
The GXP version had a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four putting out 260 hp and 260 lb-ft (though it could be tuned beyond that at the dealer) and an available five-speed manual. It weighed less than 3,000 pounds, and accelerated from 0-60 mph in 5.5 seconds. (The car also included some period-perfect GM cost-cutting measures, but we won’t hold that against it.)
Whether you're talking the 1992 original or the final versions of 2017, the Dodge Viper was the proud antithesis of the modern sports car. It had a stupidly large engine, a manual transmission, and no driving aids whatsoever.
The second-generation SR II Viper had an 8.0-liter V10 putting out 450 hp and a six-speed manual. It kept the original's distinctive styling and stripped-down feel, but in addition to a power upgrade, the later model added features like airbags, standard AC, and anti-lock brakes — things any sane driver would want.
When new, it was the fastest four-door vehicle in the world; it accelerated from 0-100 mph in less than 10 seconds, more than a second quicker than the Audi RS6 and faster than the Corvette Z06 of the time. It only offered a five-speed automatic because Mercedes’ seven-speed at that time could not handle that much torque.
The R32 is among the all-time standouts from the Volkswagen Golf lineage. It was VW’s halo Golf for the Mk4 generationand only sold in the U.S. for the 2004 model year.
The R32 had every option, a massive (for a hot hatch) 3.2-liter VR6 engine putting out 238 hp and 236 lb-ft of torque and all-wheel-drive. It came with a six-speed manual in America or, in Europe, the first mass-market dual-clutch automatic transmission.
Some uber-purists believe that BMW lost its way in the early 1990s. For everyone else, the early 2000s were the apex with that era's cars providing a perfect fusion of modern engineering, classic BMW driving dynamics and somewhat conservative styling.
The E46-generation M3, one could argue, is the best car BMW has ever built (and one of the best-looking). It packed the S54 3.2-liter naturally aspirated inline-six engine, with 338 horsepower and an 8,000-rpm redline. Whether it would come with a six-speed manual was a question one need not bother asking.
With the S197 — better known as the fifth-generation Mustang — Ford decided the 'Stang should look like a Mustang again. The company emulated the boxier style of the first generation and produced the best-looking Mustang since the original. It was not a mind-blowing performance upgrade over the fourth-gen, but it held true to Ford’s initial vision for a car that looked awesome, made a lot of noise and came at a price nearly everyone could afford.
Indeed, it may have been too affordable: Ford opted not to include the independent rear suspension that would have improved the ride significantly but made it much more expensive, saving that upgrade for the sixth-generation model.
The Honda S2000 may be the ultimate purists’ roadster. The original version had a naturally aspirated 2.0-liter VTEC putting out 247 hp — an impressive 123 hp per liter. It only came with a six-speed manual, 50/50 weight distribution, and rear-wheel drive.
With a 9,000-rpm redline (in original form, at least; later ones dropped that down to a mere 8,200) and a power curve that topped out right near that limit, it was built to be driven hard. It’s also not bad to look at, whether before or after the 2004 facelift.
