11 £10k small classics for winter fun

Pint-sized classics at pocket-sized prices

You might think that classic cars and the cold chill of winter might not work together – in fact, many classics end up in hibernation until the spring.

However, what better way to blow away the midwinter blues than a blast in a small but perfectly formed classic car? Of course, you’d want some protection – for you and the car – but it has to be more interesting than watching the same old movies again and again.

With a set of winter tyres, some underseal to keep the ravages of salt at bay and several layers for you and your passengers, these tiny fun machines are highly tempting for less than £10,000. Let’s take a look…

1. MG Midget

Why not start with a car that’s small in name and size – the MG Midget?

A perennial favourite on the classic car scene, the mixture of light weight, zesty performance and simple mechanics means its appeal remains evergreen.

As such, we’ve seen prices for the desirable chrome-bumper models advance over the past few years.

MG Midget (cont.)

While a chrome-bumper Midget might be out of our £10,000 budget, you can have much of the same fun with a rubber-nosed version.

We found a 1979 example in Derbyshire on 55,000 miles in Mallard Green for £7495. Granted, the lack of chrome for our budget might be a shame, but there’ll be no shame in the massive grin it will plaster across your face.

2. Fiat 126

While there might be some of you reading this thinking the Fiat 126 is a mere hatchback, for many it’s a symbol of social mobility.

Its biggest fans might be from Eastern Europe, but that enthusiasm for these cheeky little cars has started to rub off over here. There’s an entire scene dedicated to tuning and enhancing these angular machines. 

Fiat 126 (cont.)

While prices vary wildly below £10,000 and a lot of cars are left-hand drive, absolute minters in right-hand drive do turn up occasionally.

We found a 28,500-mile 1985 126 FSM in RHD in a fetching shade of blue in west London for £7495. Small, fun to drive and just the right size for city streets – find a ULEZ-exempt model and you’ve got a cute classic city runabout.

3. Honda Beat

The Honda Beat is part of a group of Japanese motors called kei cars. Between 1990 and 2014, it referred to cars with engines smaller than 660cc, with no more than 63bhp and no faster than 87mph. They also had to be 3.3 metres long (rising to 3.4 metres in 1998).

The Honda Beat was slightly different to a lot of kei cars, in that true to Honda fashion, it didn’t have a turbocharger or a supercharger.

Honda Beat (cont.)

Instead, it used individual throttle bodies for each of the three cylinders, and the top speed was limited to 84mph.

Its distinctive look came from Pininfarina, no stranger to rear-wheel-drive, mid-engined sports cars (ahem), who sold the design to Honda.

We found a 1993 example in Hertfordshire on 85,000 miles for sale at £4750 and finished in grey – a Version Z no less, with additional front foglights and airbag.

4. Austin-Healey Sprite

Intended to be a low-cost sports car “a chap could keep in his shed”, the Austin-Healey Sprite became famous for its cute appearance and giant-killing efforts in motorsport.

A ‘Frogeye’ Sprite will cost far more than our budget allows. However, the Mk2’s entirely revamped bodywork removed some of the cuteness for a shape that shared much with the badge-engineered variant, the MG Midget.

Austin-Healey Sprite (cont.)

While the Midget would become more popular than the Sprite, largely due to a wider variety of more powerful engines and a more focused marketing effort, this means that you can get a chrome-bumper Sprite for the price of a rubber-bumper Midget.

We found a 1965 Austin-Healey Sprite for sale in Devon – it has covered 40,000 miles and wears a £8495 price-tag.

5. Mazda MX-5

The Japanese take on the classic British sports car revolutionised interest in cheap, wind-in-your-hair motoring after years of hot-hatchback heroes.

For many years it wasn’t deemed an enthusiasts’ car by those who’d never driven them, but as prices became cheaper more people learned just how entertaining its front-engined, rear-drive and roofless recipe was. Those hairdresser jibes are now long gone.

Mazda MX-5 (cont.)

While you can still find project MX-5s for just a couple of grand, the very best are starting to become collectible, especially the Mk1 (NA) models.

We found a 1996 Mazda Eunos Roadster 1.8 with just 20,200 miles on the clock, finished in Mica Merlot Burgundy with beige factory leather seats in Essex, listed at £7495.

6. Alfa Romeo Alfasud

While hot-hatchback heroes usually fall into two camps – VW or Peugeot – the Alfasud is an often-forgotten name. Its raspy engine and superbly set-up front-wheel-drive chassis make this Italian an absolute hoot.

Of course, these cars were known for rusting as quickly as they accelerated, but any survivor is likely to be a cherished example that with extensive undersealing should be able to see off a gritting lorry.

Alfa Romeo Alfasud (cont.)

Well, you’d probably still have to be brave, but the driving experience is absolutely worth it. It is hard to believe these models were launched half a century ago.

With more vaunted hot hatches accelerating over the £20,000 horizon, it’s refreshing to find a genuine ’80s hero available for less than half that. We found a metallic green example on just under 50,000 miles in Preston dating from 1984 for £7900. 

7. Citroën 2CV

The Citroën 2CV has never been about being a sports car, but few cars can garner so many grins with so little.

It’s been lauded as one of the finest examples of rational thinking in motor cars, but the love it engenders doesn’t care one jot about being rational.

This is a car you feel immersed in, feeling part of the experience. Seasoned motoring journalists more used to hyper-horsepower supercars have them in their personal collections – that should tell you a lot.

Citroën 2CV (cont.)

While early examples have increased in value, you can still find late-model 2CVs for sale within our modest £10k budget.

We found a 1987 2CV6 Bamboo in Gloucestershire on 104,000 miles; finished in a vibrant shade of green, it was stickered at £9750.

There are some who will never see the appeal – but they just need to drive one.

8. Mini Cooper

The Mini Cooper is a defining tenet of British motoring, and its appeal transcends car enthusiasm – it is a folk hero recognisable through the ages and across the world.

There have been many cars that have taken inspiration from its layout, but the love for this cheeky little car lives on – largely because it’s still fantastic to drive. That’s driven prices up for ’60s Minis.

Mini Cooper (cont.)

While an older Mini Cooper is out of our price range, you can pick up a 1990s example for our target figure.

The MkVII, built between 1996 and 2000, benefits from twin-point injection and a front-mounted radiator; there’s even an airbag.

We found a 103k-mile example from 1996 in Northamptonshire. Finished in British Racing Green, it was listed for £9995. It might not be quite as iconic as the earlier models, but it still fizzes with fun. 

9. Peugeot 205 GTI 1.6

There’s a lot written about 205 GTI prices climbing past £15,000 and beyond, but you can still find a way into perhaps the finest-handling hot hatchback of the 1980s.

Mint examples of both the 1.6 and 1.9 will cost you more than our budget, but if you take an open-minded approach to high miles or fancy a convertible version, you can still get a taste of the GTI experience for less than you might imagine.

Peugeot 205 GTI 1.6 (cont.)

While there’s some appeal to the CTI convertibles, the original and best tintop offers nostalgia and great handling.

However, with our £10k budget you’re looking at a high-mileage example – but find the right car and, importantly, the right owner, and you might get yourself a high-mileage gem that’s been doted on all its life. There’s a good chance it’ll be raring to go, too, rather than needing some work like a low-mileage ‘exhibit’…

We spotted a Cherry Red 1986 Peugeot 205 GTI 1.6 for sale in Surrey at £7250 – it has done 193,285 miles, but the owner claims to have given it a £2000 mechanical overhaul.

10. Toyota MR2 Mk1

This mid-engined marvel offers supercar dynamics for less than the price of a paint protection film wrap on a Ferrari’s snout.

Of course the tiny Toyota might not be as quick on paper, but in the real world the MR2’s light weight, sharp throttle pedal and well-balanced, Lotus-tuned suspension means you’ll be having far more fun on the average British B-road.

Toyota MR2 Mk1 (cont.)

Then there’s the look of the thing – it really does look like a Ferrari Testarossa has shrunk in the wash.

Despite its size, it’s relatively spacious inside, even for six-footers. We found a 1991 example on 70k miles in Devon for £9995. Finished in light-blue metallic, it has recently received a full windows-out respray and a new clutch. 

11. Nissan Figaro

This might be a controversial one for some readers – the Nissan Figaro has some lovely classic styling (does anyone see hints of Nash?), but with the underpinnings of the Nissan Micra.

Just over 20,000 examples were built in a single year, with a mere four colours available that represented the four seasons. Despite not being officially imported to the UK, grey imports have found their way over here and have found a dedicated following.

Nissan Figaro (cont.)

With a three-speed automatic gearbox and just 75bhp, this is not a car to thrill you, but as a great way to take a chilled-out cruise through the countryside without the fear of imminent breakdown that might be a worry in the traditional classic cars that provided its inspiration, the Nissan Figaro makes a lot of sense.

We found a 1991 example for sale, finished in Topaz, a rare colour according to aficionados. It had covered 70,000 miles, was up for grabs in the West Midlands and was listed for £9995.