Buying your first car can be an incredibly difficult decision. It feels like everyone has advice for you, and if you're an enthusiast, it probably feels like that advice is mostly about how you should buy the least expensive beige-mobile you can find. It's true that you could very likely wreck your first car and that spending a lot of money on it is wasteful, but just because your first car should be somewhat practical, safe, and reliable doesn't mean it also has to be oppressively boring. If you're going to buy an affordable car that's still fun to drive, you might have to learn to do a little of your own wrenching to keep them running, but that's nothing your dad's tools and a few YouTube videos can't solve.In that case, here are 13 great first cars for budding enthusiasts.1. Volkswagen Golf GTIFew cars offer a mix of approachable performance, practicality, and fun quite like the Volkswagen GTI. It's a daily driver that's as fun as many of the best sports cars on the market. The fifth-generation (Mk5) GTI is a particular sweet spot with its 200-hp turbocharged four-cylinder and choice of dual-clutch or manual transmissions. It's quick, but not too quick for an inexperienced driver.2. Honda Civic SiEveryone knows that the Honda Civic offers practical, efficient, reliable transportation for the masses, but many of them are genuinely fun to drive too. That's especially true for the Civic Si. Every Civic Si was only offered with a manual transmission, but there are few better cars for learning stick. Two-hundred horsepower from a naturally aspirated four-cylinder in this eighth-generation Si keeps things fun too.3. Volvo V70 RVolvo is known for making some of the safest cars in the world, but occasionally, it likes to make something that's fun to drive too. The old V70 R is a subtle sleeper, which offers a giant trunk, all-wheel drive and a ton of performance from its near-300-hp five-cylinder. The V70 R had a sedan counterpart, the S60 R, but we think the wagon is the way to go here.4. Jeep WranglerOne of the most practical ways to make sure your first car isn't oppressively boring is to buy one that you can take on off-road adventures. It might not be fast or offer any luxury features, but you can't deny how fun a Wrangler is to drive, and even an unmodified one will get you much further away from civilization than you might expect.5. Ford Mustang V6Starting out driving a brand new Ford Mustang GT is recipe for disaster for most drivers, and most of the older V6 versions were pretty dull. When Ford put new engines in the previous generation Mustang, though, the V6 ended up being surprisingly good. Its acceleration won't blow your socks off, but you can still have a little fun in what's both an affordable and a fuel efficient sports coupe.6. Mazdaspeed ProtegeFor a while, Proteges weren't known for being the fastest cars on the street, but their good steering and above average handling made them surprisingly fun. The Mazdaspeed version made that even better, offering a sport suspension, bigger brakes, and more power. Don't expect to get in too much trouble, though. It only makes 170 horsepower. You'll still have fun, though.7. Nissan Sentra SE-RIf you test drive a B15 Sentra SE-R, it'll actually make an interesting foil to the Mazdaspeed Protege. Its engine is plenty powerful, but what you'll mostly appreciate is its handling. The limited slip differential and well tuned chassis combine to give the Sentra SE-R much better handling than any $3,000 sedan should be able to offer.8. Subaru Forester XTFor the driver who wants more off-road capability than a WRX can provide but who still likes the idea of a little power, the turbo version of Subaru's not-quite-an-SUV from the mid 2000s is the perfect compromise. You can get it with up to 235 horsepower, but it will still handle the toughest winter Vermont can throw at it.9. Acura RSXIt would be easy to dismiss the RSX as nothing more than a tarted up Honda Civic coupe, but doing so would mean missing out on the enjoyment of driving one of the most talented front-wheel drive sports coupes in the last 15 years. Even though the power goes to the wrong wheels, it's still a precise handler that any new driver would be honored to own as his or her first car.10. Mazda MiataIf a list of fun cars doesn't include the Mazda Miata, it better be called "10 Fun Cars That Aren't the Mazda Miata." The Miata is that much fun to drive. In fact, the Miata is so good, it's almost cliche to include it because it's such an obvious choice. Driving one will make you a better driver, but it may also ruin other cars for you.11. Jeep CherokeeModern SUVs can try, but they'll never be quite as cool as the XJ. The styling is classic, the 4.0 liter six is a legend, and even 20 years later, they're still incredibly reliable. You'll get more creature comforts than you do in a comparable Wrangler, but you'll still be able to head far off the beaten track before you risk getting yourself in trouble. 12. Subaru Impreza 2.5RSOne of the best things about a late 1990s Impreza 2.5RS is that its design has aged so well. It's just a darn attractive car. Like most of the cars on this list, it isn't fast by today's standards, but it still shines in the handling department. As you're learning to drive, having all-wheel drive will also probably end up being a blessing several times.13. BMW 530iBMW absolutely knocked it out of the park with the E39 5 Series, and its popularity when new means there's now an abundance of them on the used market for not a lot of money. You'll also be able to get modern safety features you wouldn't expect on a car from the late 1990s, like stability control and anti-lock brakes. For a first car, it's one of the best all around packages you'll be able to find.