With the prices of new sports cars sky rocketing out of site for many enthusiasts the need for more resources to find an affordable alternative is growing stronger every year. While new car dealers try to entice people with larger rebates or finance incentives the real bargains are in the pre-owned market where someone else has taken the depreciation or even better yet finding an old classic that you can restore!

If you are looking for a true project car for little money you can hardly go wrong with an old Fiat or Triumph. You can find these cars in running condition often for under two thousand dollars and parts are easily found for them as well. Sports car clubs abound for these little cars so you have plenty of resources and support. One warning though, when I say project car I mean it. These aren't everyday drivers, just fun cars for weekends!

There are lots of ways to find sports cars at a decent price including classifieds and free weekly papers as well as auto industry specific publications like Auto Trader. Sometimes you can find real bargains this way. You never know when you will stumble on a bargain due to a divorce or someone being transferred overseas.

Your local mechanic as always is a great source of information for bargains on a used car. People will often tell the mechanic to keep a look out if they know someone who is looking for a car for sale. Usually the mechanic will have done the work on the car as well and can vouch for its reliability. Another thing you may run into is cars that have a mechanic's lien, which means the owner couldn't pay the bill and now the shop owner is going to sell the car to get his money back. Like a foreclosure on a house these can sometimes be great deals.

One of my favorites since I am on the internet all day already is internet auto auctions, especially eBay Motors. They have the largest online auction in the world and sometimes it's fun just seeing what they have available. There are some really good bargains there in many cases especially if you are willing to drive a little or pay for shipping to get one in some out of the way area. Also check misspellings, many times people will set up and auction and misspell it or put the wrong model number in and no one else knows the car is being sold!