It seems as soon as the sun comes out, the desire to enjoy it at every available opportunity gets increasingly strong. The dealers pull the dust sheets off their convertible stock, and the buyers come flooding in.

The good news is that open-topped motoring doesn’t attract a premium, and you can enjoy your summer thrills from a few hundred pounds. And if you look beyond the obvious, you will be surprised at how little sports car motoring can cost.  The little Fiat X1/9 is a case in point, and even for the nicest early examples you’re looking at the kind of money that Ferrari owners put aside for an annual cambelt service.

Further up the scale is equally interesting, as our classic choices here clearly show...

£25,000
SUNBEAM TIGER 260

It was the rootes group’s riposte to the AC Cobra, and as such offered similar Detroit V8-powered thrills for less money. Today this is still the case, with the best cars in the UK coming in at rather less than £25,000 – but supply is limited due to the sheer number having been exported to the USA. The Tiger’s a handful to drive at speed but lots of fun. Four-pot Alpine is much cheaper.
£2500
Fiat X1/9
When it was launched the X1/9 was seen as nothing less than the total reinvention of the affordable sportscar. Its mid-engined layout and razor-sharp Bertone styling had a whiff of Urraco about them.

The driving position and interior styling certainly give the X1/9 a baby supercar feel, as does the twitchy on-limit handling. A real bargain currently, and well worth finding the best you can just to enjoy on high-days and holidays.

£5000
TVR 350i
who’d have thought that the Middle East’s disdain for US company Ford in the early 1980s would be the making of TVR? But so it proved, after the Blackpool company dropped the Rover V8 into the Tasmin to replace the Granada V6 and avoid offending political sensibilities in a major export market.

Performance is excellent, as is the soundtrack, and specialist support is extensive. £5000 buys a good one.

£12,000
ALFA ROMEO DUETTO
for many, the original Duetto is the nicest of all the Alfa Spiders, and in terms of styling it’s hard
to argue against this assertion. Underneath, it’s good news, too, since the Duetto’s based on the 105-series platform and powered by a rorty little 1570cc twin-cam.

Later cars were powered by the 1750cc twin-cam and were even better to drive. Rust is always a worry but at this price cars are well cared for – and supported by a great specialist network.