The performance tier, open from age 20: two generations of BMW M3 Competition, Ford Mustang GT, Chevrolet Camaro 2SS, Mercedes-AMG C63 S and the Porsche Taycan Turbo. Reviews, rival comparisons, the best Sydney roads, and the age and excess rules explained.
A 294kW five-cylinder hatch or sedan that reaches 100km/h in 3.8 seconds and sounds like nothing else at the price. Hire it from 20 on a full licence. Honest review, real numbers, confirmed by request.
A 331kW twin-turbo V6 coupe or Sportback that reaches 100km/h in 3.9 seconds and never raises its voice. The fast car for people who would rather not be noticed. Honest review, confirmed by request.
The mid-size AMG SUV from the years when it still had a hand-built twin-turbo V8. 375kW, all-wheel drive, five seats, 0-100 in 3.8 seconds and a boot big enough for the school run. The current car is a four-cylinder hybrid; this page is about the one before it.
The F40 M135i is a 225kW all-wheel-drive hatchback that gets to 100km/h in 4.8 seconds and parks in a Surry Hills laneway. It is also not the rear-drive six-cylinder that came before it, and that is where the honest conversation starts.
The G82 M4 Competition is the two-door version of the current M3, with a carbon roof, a 375kW twin-turbo six and a choice between rear-wheel drive and xDrive that changes the car more than the badge suggests.
Three very different cars under one name. The base F-Type is a pretty two-seater with a supercharged V6, the S is the same car with more of it, and the R is a 5.0-litre supercharged V8 that changes the conversation entirely.
The new C63 has a four-cylinder engine, a rear electric motor and 500kW. It is quicker than the V8 it replaced in every measurable way and sounds nothing like it. Whether that is a trade worth making is the question.
375kW from a hand-built twin-turbo V8, driving the rear wheels, in a car with four doors and a boot. The last of a breed, and the most usable way to hire this much engine.
A 6.2-litre V8 in a car that was never officially sold here in any number. Rarer than a Mustang on Sydney roads, louder, and with one limitation nobody mentions until you open the back door.
A 5.0-litre V8, rear-wheel drive and no turbochargers, in a fleet where almost everything else is boosted. The most car you can hire in Sydney per dollar, and the honest limits of that.
