Porsche Boxster and Cayman
The hallmark of a true sports car is how well it involves its driver in the driving. Although the Boxster and the Cayman differ in character—roadster versus hardtop—they’re alike in terms of how well they communicate every nuance of mechanical information to the pilots and how accurately they convert driver inputs into response. This is the essence of the car-and-driver connection, and few sports cars do it better.

Volkswagen GTI

It’s been a quarter-century since the first GTI put an exclamation point on Volkswagen’s Rabbit lineup, and 25 years of continuous development through five generations have yielded a car that still defines the class it established in that other century.

Jaguar XF -

In our first hands-on report concerning this new car [March 2008], we described the XF as “an athletic five-seater that defies ancient traditions.” That’s a key point, because Jaguar had been mired in a styling rut, perpetuating past designs to the point of irrelevance. We’ve heard a few pundits suggest the XF “doesn’t look like a Jaguar.” To which we say: Right, and none too soon

Mazda MX-5 Miata

Mazda modernized the concept of the classic British roadster with the original Miata in 1989, and two decades later, the process is still in progress. Suspension tuning strikes an inspired balance between everyday comfort and track-day readiness, there’s enough power to make a track day rewarding, the transmission is race-car crisp, and the steering provides that rare sense of connection that makes the car an extension of the driver’s will.