Article by Justin Pritchard

I get asked a lot of questions.

“Justin, where’s that story you were supposed to file last week”?

That’s from the boss.

Or “Sir… you want HOW MANY cheeseburgers”?!

That’s from the drive-through people at the nearby Wendy’s. I’m a man. I have needs. And one of those needs is sequential cheeseburgers.

“Why haven’t you called me today?!” Is a common question from my mom.

And this one, from the dog: “DAAAAAAAD!!! When are we going to the soccer field so I can chase my ball and be super goofy and munch on goose-turds when you’re not looking??”

He can’t actually talk, but I’m pretty sure that’s what he’s asking. Every 42 seconds. And often at 3 am.

I also get asked this one a lot: “What’s the best luxury performance car?”

A simple reply follows. There is no best car. It all depends on what you want. So, I get to ask some questions back. “How much can you spend? What are your priorities? Are you driving it all year round?” And so on.

Since it’s usually folks around my age, we’ll say, children of the ‘80s and ‘90s that come asking, some fairly standard criteria are typically put forth. The luxury performance car in question can’t cost too too much money, should be half-decent on fuel, and be flashy and affordable and quick and fun and styled to give the owner instant baller status with a big-deal look that tells fellow motorists what’s up.

Apparently, value is a big thing that people like, and it’s trendier than ever to get a ride that looks good, drives fast, is comfortable and makes you look like a big-dollar shot-caller on the cheap.

And when it comes to these criteria, I find myself frequently coming up with the same short list of three rides I want the folks asking the questions to check out on a test drive. Here’s a look.

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