12 of 2003’s high-performance star cars

20-year-old heroes

It is hard to believe that 2003 was 20 years ago! Still, it is a great excuse to look back.

And whether it was Bentley making an all-new model, Ford producing a follow-up to its legendary GT40 or Mercedes-Benz dusting off its SLR suffix, 2003 gifted petrolheads some truly mouth-watering high-performance models.

Not that it was all top-end stuff, either. Nissan and Mazda got back to producing affordable sports cars, and even Chrysler had a crack at power for the people.

Two decades on, we’re taking a look back at the high-performance highlights from a vintage year. Today, many of these cars are already firm favourites with collectors and fetch six-figure values, while others languish at the bottom of their depreciation curves and represent seriously affordable fun.

Here, then, in alphabetical order are our top 12 performance picks turning 20 this year.

All prices correct at the time of writing

1. Alfa Romeo GT

Used value: £2000/$2500

With its understated Italian tailoring by Bertone combined with five-seat practicality, the Alfa Romeo GT is a true cake-and-eat-it two-door coupé.

The GT is based on the impressive 156 saloon’s front-wheel-drive platform and also closely related to the stylish 147 hatchback of the era, which means double-wishbone front suspension and a dextrous multi-link set-up for the rear.

Those rear seats are genuinely usable, plus the boot is actually a full hatch, opening to reveal a surprisingly commodious luggage bay and handy split-folding seats.

Alfa Romeo GT (cont.)

There are plenty of sensible engines, too, including 1.8- and 2-litre four-cylinder petrols, and even the 1.9-litre Multijet turbodiesel, but the one you really want is the 3.2-litre V6.

Today the four-pots start from under £2k, while you’ll need £6k and up for a nice 3.2.

The car pictured is an Autodelta-tuned model, with a stretch to 3.7 litres and a supercharger conversion. It sold on Collecting Cars two years back for £7250 plus fees.

2. Bentley Continental GT

Used value: £20,000/$25,000

The Bentley Continental GT arrived in 2003 as the first car on Volkswagen’s watch, and shared precisely zero components with any of its predecessors, though there were hints of the 1952 R-type Continental to its elegant body, designed under Dirk van Braeckel.

Highlights include an air-sprung chassis, all-wheel drive and a 6-litre W12 twin-turbocharged engine that whooshes the 2.3-tonne GT along – the engine is effectively two narrow-angle VR6 engines on a common crank, like you’ll find under the bonnet of a Golf R32. Bentley claimed 198mph flat out.

Bentley Continental GT (cont.)

Before the Continental came along, Bentley was producing fewer than 1000 coachbuilt cars per year.

Once the Conti (quickly) got into its stride, it helped propel the Pyms Lane maker to almost 10 times that number – not least thanks to related spin-offs in the form of the Flying Spur saloon and a convertible.

It stayed in production until 2011 before the closely related second-generation model arrived.

The car shown was first off the line when it was built in December 2003. Cypress Green with a Saddle interior and Burr Walnut trim, it’s been owned by Bentley ever since.

You probably won’t twist their arm, but cars of a similar vintage start from under £20k today, occasionally dipping as low as £15k.

3. BMW 6 Series

Used value: £5000/$6300

After a 16-year hiatus, BMW brought back the 6 Series coupé for 2003.

It was based on the advanced E60 5 Series platform of the era and designed by Adrian van Hooydonk under Chris Bangle – hence the trademark flame-surfaced design and the ‘Bangle Butt’ rear, but we reckon it’s aged rather well.

Both coupé and (fabric-roof) convertibles were offered, with petrol engines ranging from the 3-litre straight-six in the 630i through to 4.4- and 4.8-litre V8s in the 645Ci and 650i respectively.

Turbodiesel power is available, too, in the form of the 635d, with the range facelifted from 2007.

BMW 6 Series (cont.)

Most desirable of all, however, is the M6, with its carbonfibre roof and S85 5-litre V10, with its block cast in the same Hinwil foundry as BMW Formula One cars of the era.

It produces up to 500bhp at a shrieky 7750rpm, with rapid-fire shifts (at least when you’re flat out) from BMW’s automated manual SMG gearbox.

Today you’ll pay from £5k for a 630i with well over 100k miles, and from £15k for the V10 M6 with circa 80k miles.

4. BMW M3 CSL

Used value: £90,000/$115,000

When the E46 M3 CSL launched in 2003, people wondered how, at £58,455 in the UK, the lightweight special could be worth £17k more than a standard M3.

CSLs depreciated, speculators got their fingers burned and values briefly dipped as low as £20k in the jaws of the financial crisis.

But ever since they’ve been on a strong upwards trajectory. When one sold online for £73k plus fees in 2021, it seemed strong. Today they tend to be £90k and up.

BMW M3 CSL (cont.)

Exterior changes for the CSL include a new front bumper, carbonfibre roof, ducktail bootlid and unique 19in alloys offered in period with semi-slick Michelin Cup tyres. The only colours available were Silver Grey or, less commonly, Sapphire Black.

Inside, there was a new interior with bucket seats and carbonfibre door cards but, usefully, a (lighter) rear bench remained in place.

Mechanical changes were wide-ranging, and included a revised chassis, faster steering rack, a 110kg weight reduction and the 3.2-litre S54 straight-six uprated with a glorious honk of induction thanks to a carbonfibre airbox and 7900rpm redline.

There’s also a bespoke tune for the automated manual SMG gearbox that alternates between dozy at a cruise and brutal at full tilt – though lifting the throttle during gentler shifts helps.

5. Chrysler Crossfire

Used value: £3000/$4000

‘Stunning American design with proven German engineering,’ said the Chrysler Crossfire press blurb. ‘Route 66 meets the autobahn,’ it continued. According to CEO Dieter Zetsche, the two-seat sports car showcased the best of the DaimlerChrysler merger.

The more prosaic truth was that Mercedes had given Chrysler the SLK’s R170 platform just before it was replaced, while the Americans had reclothed it in retro bodywork intended to stress the link to those other retro-inspired Chrysler designs of the period – the Viper and PT Cruiser.

Chrysler Crossfire (cont.)

Developed in 24 months following the concept’s unveiling at the 2001 North American Auto Show, the Crossfire’s construction was outsourced to Karmann in Germany.

It featured double-wishbone front and multi-link rear suspension, with a 3.2-litre Mercedes V6 with three valves per cylinder but only a single cam per bank. The SRT-6 added a supercharger for extra ammo.

Both coupé and convertible versions were offered (the latter with a fabric roof unlike the folding-hardtop SLK), but the Crossfire wasn’t a success, with production ending in 2008.

6. Ford GT

Used value: £400,000/$500,000

Ford’s follow-up to its legendary GT40 first saw the light of day in 2003 as a celebration for the Blue Oval’s 100th anniversary, though production cars didn’t make their way to buyers until the following year.

This time the name was simply ‘GT’, perhaps logically given this mid-engined Ford was 44 inches tall, rather than the 40 of its 1960s predecessor, but really Ford didn’t have any choice in the matter – a canny producer of continuation cars had trademarked the name years earlier.

Despite being a follow-up to a car specifically created for Le Mans – and which indeed won it four consecutive times from 1966 – the 2003 GT never raced.

Ford GT (cont.)

The GT’s was a complex build process, one that began at Mayflower Vehicle Systems in Ohio, continued at Saleen Special Vehicles in Michigan, with the powertrain and interior completed at Ford SVT, also in Michigan.

Cars were built around a superplastic-formed frame with aluminium body panels, and the GT used an all-alloy, dry-sump, supercharged 5.4-litre V8 – remember, this mid-engined, rear-drive sports car featured no electronic stability aids whatsoever.

A pretty healthy 4038 GTs were built in total, even if that fell short of Ford’s target of 4500. 

7. Lamborghini Gallardo

Used value: £65,000/$82,000

During its 40th-anniversary year in 2003, Lamborghini launched the Gallardo, the second model conceived under Audi ownership, the first with a V10 and the last ever offered with a manual gearbox.

The Gallardo design evolved (substantially) from the Cala concept shown in 1995, and was the work of Luc Donkerwolke at Lamborghini’s in-house Centro Stile.

An enticing mechanical spec married a 5.2-litre 90-degree V10 engine with all-wheel drive and a choice of manual or e-gear automated manual transmissions.

Lamborghini Gallardo (cont.)

The facelift arrived in 2011. Dubbed LP560-4 (Longitudinal Posterior, 560PS, four-wheel drive) it switched from an even-firing V10 to an odd-firing replacement and eventually paved the way for the Balboni – a rear-wheel-drive model produced in honour of retiring long-time test driver Valentino Balboni.

When the Gallardo left production in 2013, 14,022 units had been produced – almost half of all Lamborghinis ever built up until that point.

Today you can pick them up from £65k.
 

8. Mazda RX-8

Used value: £4000/$5000

Designed by Ikuo Maeda (son of Matasaburo, lead designer of the original RX-7) the Mazda RX-8 drives as well as it looks, but it’s also a technically interesting car, with aluminium double-wishbone front suspension, a multi-link rear and near 50:50 weight distribution – the latter balance in large part because the rotary engine is pushed back in a front-mid position, and the fuel tank tucked ahead of the rear axle. The propshaft is made from carbon composite.

The RX-8 is also a genuine four-seater, with clever rear-hinged rear doors removing the need for a B-pillar and making it easy to jump in and out.

The twin-rotor engine is 40% lighter and smaller than an equivalent four-cylinder, and revs to 9000rpm.

Even the Mazda handbook says check the oil level after every two tanks of fuel.

Mazda RX-8 (cont.)

While it was launched in its domestic market in 2002, the RX-8 arrived in the UK for 2003.

The facelift made its debut in 2008 (by which time Mazda had shifted 167,000 of the things worldwide) and it lived on until 2012.

One of the most desirable UK models is the pre-facelift Prodrive-fettled PZ, with OZ Racing alloys, Bilstein dampers and Eibach springs.

Values are picking up a bit now (probably because so many have been scrapped), but the RX-8 is still affordable, from £4k for a decent one.

9. Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren

Used value £380,000/$480,000

Developed as a joint project with McLaren, the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren harked back to the two-seat roadster famous for Stirling Moss’s 1955 Mille Miglia win.

Its design was also apparently inspired by the SLR-derived Uhlenhaut Coupé, now famous as the most expensive car ever to sell at auction.

Gordon Murray played a pivotal role in its creation, but the project lacked the single-minded focus and fleet-footed decision-making of his previous smash hit, the McLaren F1.

Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren (cont.)

Nonetheless, while Mercedes took care of the design, McLaren was permitted to crack on with all engineering work, crash-testing, durability and more.

The body featured carbonfibre construction, and the 5.5-litre supercharged V8 sent 617bhp and 575lb ft of torque through a five-speed auto to the rear wheels alone.

In his book One Formula: 50 Years of Car Design, Murray revealed he had moved the engine back one metre from where Mercedes had initially placed it.

Mercedes officially capped production at 3500 units, but only 2157 coupés and roadsters were built in total. The most affordable we could find today are £300k, but closer to £400k is more typical.

10. MG XPower SV

Used value: £60,000/$76,000

If the MG XPower SV was a mad thing to make, it did have its roots in pragmatism.

The ‘Phoenix Four’ consortium had bought MG Rover from BMW and was heading down a kind of BMW M Power meets TVR voyage of discovery. It wanted a sports car – quickly.

So it bought Italian maker Qvale, who’d engineered the Mangusta two-seat, front-engined sports car. The graft had been done, and the Mangusta was even federalised for the US market.

MG employed Peter Stevens to carry out an aggressive redesign for the carbonfibre body, and offered two versions – a base SV with a 4.6-litre Ford V8, which was later followed by the SV-R with its 5-litre supercharged V8.

MG XPower SV (cont.)

Chassis were made in Italy, the carbonfibre produced in the UK then sent to Italy for fitment to the body, with final assembly at Longbridge the last link in a convoluted chain.

Only 82 XPowers were produced before MG Rover went bust, 42 of them SV-Rs.

When new, you’d pay £65k for the SV, £83k for the SV-R. The few available used today make it difficult to gauge prices, but the two we found suggest a similar stretch – one £60k, the other £90k.
 

11. Nissan 350Z (arrived in the UK 2003)

Used value: £8000/$10,000

After its tech-heavy R34 Skyline GT-R and 300ZX, Nissan found itself rather chastened by the Japanese recession of the late 1990s, so the 350Z that followed was a simpler, more affordable kind of sports car – one built in the image of the original Datsun 240Z. 

It featured a 3.5-litre V6 engine, six-speed manual or auto gearbox and rear-wheel drive. No rear-wheel steering, no twin turbos – the 350Z was back-to-basics and brilliant for it.

Those wanting a few extra luxuries could choose the GT pack, with electric heated leather seats, Bose audio and cruise control – later, it also bundled in desirable (and previously optional) Rays alloys.

The roadster version features an electric fabric roof that drops in 20 secs.

Nissan 350Z (cont.)

The original VX35DE engine produces c287bhp, later c300bhp, but the VX35HR upped performance in 2007 and, more importantly, lifted the rev limiter – it feels surprisingly and frustratingly low in earlier models.

You’ll find examples out there for £8k and less, with £10k and more getting you into some really tidy stuff.

Hotter Nismo (Nissan Motorsport) versions are extremely desirable but still affordable – the 120k-miler with full Nissan service history shown here went for £10k on Collecting Cars in August 2021.

12. Porsche Carrera GT

Used value: £1m+/$1.25m+

Porsche supercars are the Halley’s Comet of the automotive world, and its Carrera GT of 2003 was only the second in its 55-year existence up to that point, picking up where the 911-based 959 had left off.

Unlike the 959, however, the Carrera GT was an entirely pure-bred supercar, one that was both highly advanced for its time yet also refreshingly minimalist.

Porsche Carrera GT (cont.)

Built in Porsche’s Leipzig plant, the two-seat roadster features a full carbonfibre chassis, double-wishbone pushrod suspension and a naturally aspirated V10 engine originally designed for but never raced in Formula One.

There’s no traction control, so it’s just you, a manual gearbox and rear-wheel drive to hustle 604bhp.

In all, 1270 examples of the Carrera GT were hand-assembled at Leipzig.

Today, the few adverts that list a price are well over £1m, the remainder signing off with an even more terrifying ‘POA’.