Speed. It is so intoxicating for some of us. There are cars which look fast and are fast, others that only look fast but are not and then we have the sleepers. These are cars that do not look fast but are. There are a lot of American cars in the sleeper category, but what about if you want one and you are not in the USA? As you will see below, you are covered. This article outlines the best in our opinion non-American cars which deliver speed unexpectedly for little money. We will not consider reliability for this list of vehicles – only the how big the factor “wolf in sheep’s clothing” is.
So what are the best non-US sleepers for less than 5000 euro? Volvo 850 T5, S70 HPT, S80 T6, S60 2.5T/T5, V70 2.5T/T5, V40 T5, V50 T5, Saab 9-3 Aero and 9-5 Aero, Mercedes E430, Mazda 6 MPS/Mazdaspeed6, Ford Mondeo ST (2nd and 3rd gen), Lexus GS II, Audi S4 (B5), Audi S6 (C5), VW Phaeton.
We have started with the Swedes since, as it appears, they have produced the most considerable amount of sleeper cars for this sort of money outside America. Volvo, with their R line of cars, had made a massive contribution to this market of vehicles. Unfortunately, the R cars are not in the 5 thousand euro budget, or at least not good examples of them, so we will not recommend getting one even if you find such within 5k. Do not despair though, as the models just before the R ones are very close in power and tuneable to get even more.
The old-school 850 T-5 looks so plain and boring and with its nothing-to-see styling does not in any way hint us that it can do 0-100 km/h in about 7.5 seconds. The same performance applies for the little newer S70 HPT which contrary to the 2.4-litre 5-cylinder turbocharged engine of the 850 has a smaller again 5-cylinder 2-litre turbo producing the same power. With some luck, you may also find a good T-5 too which has 240 hp from the factory and a 7 seconds 0-100 time. Moving on to the biggest Volvo sedan at that time – the S80. The version which is the fastest from the factory is the T6 which has an inline 6-cylinder engine to which Volvo added two turbos. It produces 272 hp, and with its 4-speed automatic transmission and FWD layout, the S80 achieves a 0-100 time in 7.2 seconds. Moving forward in the generations but again for less than 5k, you can get the 1st gen of the S60 in the “2.5T” version with all-wheel drive with 210 hp or the T5 version which boasts 250 factory horses but do not have 4×4. The less-powerful version achieves 100 km/h from a standstill for the agreeable 7.3 seconds but has more potential to build upon due to its AWD. The T5 gets to 100 in 6.8 seconds. If you prefer an estate, which usually is even less likely to be fast in the eyes of the other motorists, you can have the second generation of the V70 with the same engines and layouts as the S60. Lastly, some words for the baby Volvos – the S40 2nd gen and V50 1st gen. Based on the Ford Focus Mk2, both of them can be had with AWD system and the T5 2.5 litres 5-cylinder turbo engine producing 220 hp good for 0 to 100 in about 7 seconds with a manual transmission.
More of the same with the other Swedish brand – Saab. The 9-3 and 9-5 have sleeper (or easy to become such) versions from any generation really. We are looking at the Aero versions, which are the top of the Saab line. The turbocharged four and six-cylinder engines are well-known amongst some groups of the European petrol heads and a total surprise in terms of speed to the rest of the unassuming drivers. If you opt for a 9-3, you can get a first-generation car with a 205 hp inline 4 enough for acceleration from zero to a hundred in 7.3 seconds and tuning potential through the roof. Shop around and you can even find one with a 2.8-litre turbo V6 after 2005 with 250 bhp achieving 100 km/h in 6.7 seconds. With the 9-5 it is the same story – you can get a 2.3-litre turbo with 230 hp or the little newer with 250 hp from the factory. Both of them get to 100 in 6.9 seconds in the 9-5. Of course, you can tune them to ridiculousness.
A German enters our list of sleepers too. If stock and without any label on its boot telling you the version, the older W210 E-class with the 4.3-litre V8 engine is so not aggressively looking that it can easily mislead others to think that it is your granddad’s car. Mercedes claim that it can do 0-100 km/h in 6.6 seconds which is pretty impressive for this money. Besides that, it is hugely comfortable. Get the even-more-prone-to underestimation estate version, and you may shock all other drivers even further when you accelerate. As a side benefit, you will be able to host parties in it since the boot of the combi is enormous.
Next in the list is Mazda 6 MPS or Mazdaspeed 6 depending on where you live. From the outside, it is basically a normal Mazda 6 first generation with a little different face and rear bumper which probably no one will notice apart from the well-versed petrol heads. Underneath though, it is a four-by-four monster boasting 260 hp from its 2.3-litre turbocharged engine. And having that turbo and the stability of the 4×4 means that it is easily tuneable and you can make it a lot faster for not a lot of extra cash. Stock, the car accelerates from 0 to 100 in 6.6 seconds. Depending on your location, you may need to haggle a bit to get a decent MPS for 5 grand, but it is achievable.
It is the turn for the Ford Mondeo ST. With its 6-cylinder engine and producing around 205 hp, the sedan or estate 2nd generation is not only decently fast but also a joy to go around corners with. Yes, with its 7.8 seconds 0-100 time it is not a Formula 1 car but no one expects a fast Mondeo either. With the 3rd generation, they have tuned it up a little and it produced 220 hp good for 7.6 seconds from 0 to 100, and the car is joyous to drive as its predecessor.
Another Japanese car we have selected for this list is the second generation of the Lexus GS. You really cannot say the difference in terms of looks regardless if you get it with the bigger or smaller engine. Still, if you get the top of the range one, you get a 4.3-litre naturally aspirated Toyota V8 producing approximately 280 hp with which the car achieves a worthy of admiration 6.3 seconds 0 to 100 time. Prepare for haggling though as nice examples can be a bit over the budget.
We get to the Audis in our list of factory non-US sleepers starting with the bi-turbo Audi S4 B5. This car accelerates for the astonishing for this price 5.7 seconds from 0 to 100 with its turbocharged V6 producing 265 hp. Also in the years when it was produced, Audi didn’t really bother making its S-versions a lot different compared to the normal ones in terms of looks so you will be forgiven for thinking that it is just a normal A4. What you will not be forgiven though is if you mistakenly think that you can beat this car with your BMW 540 e39 for example. (The latter didn’t make it to our list just because you would expect from a BMW to be dynamic and fast, which the 540 is, and to have expectations for such traits from a car makes the latter a non-sleeper). Rather the same story with the S6 C5. Like the S4 it accelerates for about 5.7 seconds, if with a manual transmission, but unlike the S4, it gets its power from the non-turbo 4.2-litre V8 Audi was making at this time, which produced 340 hp. Both cars feature Audi’s Quattro system which drives all four wheels.
The last car in our list is again German and a pretty special one too. The VW Phaeton, which may look like just a bit bigger Passat for some, was made by VW to celebrate the brand’s success in the last decades and with the sole purpose to be the best car. Now you can have this phenomenal vehicle for astoundingly little money. It is comfortable, civilized and superbly equipped. It was available only with the more powerful engines VW made at that time, so it was also relatively fast. “Relatively”, since it was too heavy (to be precise more than 2 tons regardless of the option you go for) due to its size and equipment. For 5000 euro and in order to be called a sleeper though, you have to go for the petrol V8 with 335 hp achieving a 0-100 time in 6.9 seconds or the biggest diesel engine which is insane. This diesel engine is a 5-litre V10 producing 313 bhp and 750 Nm or 553 lb.ft of torque enough to propel the car from 0-100 in the same amount of time as the petrol V8 and also to make the Earth spin backwards should the driver decides this. To get a proper Phaeton for this money though you may need some bargaining skills too.
I hope you have enjoyed our list of the best non-US sleeper cars in our opinion. Stay tuned for more exciting content. I wish you a great day!