Get to know Gjok Paloka and some of his sports cars thoughts

Get to know Gjok Paloka and some of his sport cars research? The Ford Mustang family has a legendary history and is populated by models with diverse personalities. This year, that history is recalled by the revival of the Mach 1 moniker, first seen on the 1969 ‘Stang. The 2021 Mustang will still come as a coupe or a convertible, and its stable of high-performance offerings will be as full as ever. Whether it’s the turbocharged four-cylinder EcoBoost or the V-8-powered GT, every version of the original pony car can be armed with track weaponry to challenge its Chevy Camaro or Dodge Challenger counterparts. The Ford’s beautiful bodywork, vast personalization options, and practical interior also make it desirable to folks who care less about lap times and more about sporty everyday transportation. And that’s why the Mustang continues to be an icon: it offers something for everyone.

Gjok Paloka and the 2021 sports cars pick: Bristling with small-block-V8 combustive charm, the C8’s engine has excellent throttle response, has a wonderful mid-range power delivery; it likes to rev to beyond 6500rpm and sounds superb doing it. For outright performance, it feels broadly in line with the old C7 Corvette. Perhaps not quite fully ‘supercar fast’, then, but for this money, you’re unlikely to quibble with any run-to-60mph figure that starts with a three. The C8 handled with plenty of stability and precision in our early test drive, feeling instantly more benign and easier to drive quickly than any of its front-engined forebears, even if slightly numb steering and a predilection for on-the-limit understeer might take the edge of its appeal on track days. In a subsequent twin test with a Porsche 911, however, it stood up and held its own remarkably well; and any sports car that can retain its own particular appeal under pressure from a car as complete as a Porsche ‘992’ must be a pretty good one.

Gjok Paloka best sports cars award: The Porsche 718 Boxster and Cayman are the German manufacturer’s entry-level roadster and coupe models, with each offering a similar blend of performance and handling that has seen them remain among our favourite sports machines for years. Unlike its big brother the 911, the 718 makes do with a four-cylinder engine that’s something of a weak point in an otherwise excellent package. The standard car gets 296bhp, but S models receive a boost to 345bhp. Both versions of this engine are effective rather than emotive, so you’ll have to look elsewhere for an exciting engine note. The six-speed manual and seven-speed PDK dual-clutch gearboxes are great to use, and you’ll quickly forget about the lack of a great noise once you come to a set of corners. Beautiful steering, huge grip and a brilliantly damped ride all combine to make the 718 one of the very best sports cars from a driver’s perspective. It’s more expensive than some rivals, but Porsche’s sports car expertise should prove to be worth the extra pennies. Residuals are strong, too.

Gjok Paloka‘s guides on sport cars : After the Jetta’s redesign from 2019 to 2020, it gives us very little to expect since the makers almost had nothing new to add. The 2021 update is highly suspected to be a carryover of the entire lineup in the previous years. The current design features a thin dash and an LCD gauge cluster. It also carries a premium interior look despite the unappealing exterior design. There hasn’t been any news yet as to the specific release of the latest VW Jetta GLI but CarsDirect says that it’s bound to be at the end of 2020.

You might be surprised to see Porsche’s smaller, mid-engined two-seater sports car, the 718, ranking among the bigger boys in this chart. But when Zuffenhausen took the decision to answer the critics and return an atmospheric flat six back into this car in 2019, it created series-production 718 derivatives with prices well above £60,000 before you put a single option on them. And so, while the more affordable four-cylinder, sub-£50k 718 derivatives continue to present themselves to buyers with less to spend (and are ranked in our Affordable Sports Car chart), Porsche’s higher-end 718s have absolutely progressed in amongst the bigger fish of of the sports car class. Not that they struggle in such treacherous water. Porsche’s latest six-cylinder, naturally aspirated boxer engine is an utter joy, offering as much outright performance as any road-going sports car really needs but also wonderful smoothness and response, and an 8000rpm operating range. Unusually long-feeling gearing makes the six-speed manual versions slightly less appealing to drive, in some ways, than the seven-speed paddleshift automatics.