AE86
They would never have stayed very cheap after the 90s since they're a rare RWD, light platform. The US hardly got any GTSs. The paper records were destroyed in a fire or some shit, but I've seen an estimate on club4ag that said we got about 6000 of them between 85 and 87. Doubt there's 2k left in any non fucked condition after 30 years.
what would be a good alternative? a60 celica, s12, manta, 924... anything else?
nope, all those cars are trash, esp if we are talking about aftermarket. the only car that is cheaper and probably faster but also still somewhat comparable to it is a 1st gen Miata. Sure its not a hatch, but its a light weight low hp rwd car with flip up head lights that has a huge aftermarket.
S12's are heavy POS. 924, well its a fucking clapped out Porsche. and the others you listed arent even worth mention
Depends on what you want to use it for and what reliability you want. The corolla isnt very comparable to those. Miata sort of is, but it's a more forgiving car to drive. The s12 only looks like an ae86, but it's heavy as fuck somehow and I've heard not nearly as fun to drive without serious work. I feel like the others in your list have totally different dynamics.
MR2 or an FX16 could be good alternatives if you're OK with MR and FF.
But the miata's close enough. More reliable and less of a rare special snowflake so you don't have to care as much about what happens to it.
St165 celica all trac/ GT Four... maybe
turbocharged AWD coupe with flip ups. Was made specifically for rallying
...
I always get confused when I see ANCAP and regulation next to eachother
Supra mk3
>way more awesome
>way cheaper since ae86 is a meme and supra is not
road salt killed a lot of them