For the Price of an iPhone Duo: Five Used Cars That Are Way More Fun

Apple has taken the wraps off the iPhone Duo, its first foldable smartphone. The top-spec 2 TB version lists for around US$3,200 in the US, and analysts expect a Brazilian price tag close to R$30,000. For car enthusiasts, that budget raises an obvious question: which used cars could you have instead? Brazilian magazine Quatro Rodas rounded up five it argues are far more entertaining than any foldable screen.

The list opens with the Fiat Palio 1.8R, an affordable hot hatch that refined the recipe of the Uno R. Its GM-built 1.8 engine manages just 115 hp and 18.6 kgfm, but the car weighs about 1,000 kg, and wider tires, a shorter final drive, and lower, stiffer suspension sharpen the fun. Asking prices run from R$30,000 to R$40,000. Next come the sportier Chevrolet Astra GSi and its successor the SS, both with a 127 hp 2.0 from the Family II engine family and a five-speed manual. The SS was quicker to 100 km/h (9.1 s versus the GSi's 10.9 s) and added a radio, steering-wheel controls, and a sunroof; both can be found near the R$30,000 mark.

The Ford Ka Sport makes the cut on style, with Mustang Boss-style body stripes in launch color Ibiza Orange, and a featherweight 968 kg curb weight that makes its 107 hp 1.6 Zetec feel stronger — some listings even dip below R$30,000. The first-generation Chevrolet S10, the pickup that created Brazil's mid-size truck segment and brought electronic injection to its 106 hp 2.2, still trades around R$30,000, with 4x4 versions arriving for 1998. Rounding out the list is the Volkswagen Fusca as the timeless pick: launched in Brazil in 1950, axed in 1986, and revived in 1993 at President Itamar Franco's request. A good example costs roughly R$20,000, leaving R$10,000 spare for refurbishing — ideally in blue.