I was looking at a Honda Civic Si, but have heard previous owners could have driven them hard. I've also looked at Corollas, but they're not much fun to drive in a manual transmission.
How old are you willing to go? Otherwise, and assuming you fit, I would recommend a Mazda Miata. It’s tough to find older, fun cars with a manual that don’t have some abuse: definitely need a good, independent mechanic to check it out and give his OK before you buy. Also older Mustangs with Tremec manual transmission are a good bet (but again thoroughly check it out with mechanic). See below for years and considerations by our esteemed Performance Mod expert Mod_Man:
https://carkiller.com/scottykilmer/qa/which-mustang/
Thank you! I would be okay with a slightly older car. We have a large dog though and might need more room than two seats.
You could try a Mustang with a 5-speed manual. The V6 engine is meh but you can get a manual with that engine.
