13 Fast New Cars Americans Can’t Buy

A long time ago, Americans used to complain that the US and Canada don’t get the coolest cars, as a lot of those were reserved for Europe and other major markets. Nowadays, things have changed dramatically. Due to major differences in regulations and consumer tastes, North America is actually getting far more cooler cars.

Europe is too busy mandating impossible EV regulations, so this part of the world is skipping out on a lot of cool, fast cars. Even though American concerns were addressed and continue to be addressed, there are still quite a few fast new cars that Americans still can’t have. What’s that thing everyone says? Forbidden fruit? Yep, that’s exactly what they are.

Toyota GR Yaris

While Americans can have the GR Corolla, which is cool in its own right, the GR Yaris is still off-limits. As we’ve said before, the GR Yaris is the cooler car for a lot of reasons, like the fact it’s a homologation special, even though such a thing was not even necessary.

Bespoke three-door body, 300 hp turbo three with a super high specific output, an AWD system with customizable splitting of power, it’s all there, and it’s all absolutely glorious. So glorious that the GR Yaris often gets labeled as one of, if not the best hot hatchback of all time, and major evidence that three-pot engines are awesome.

BMW M3 Touring

This is just confusing. BMW has already committed to offering the M5 Touring to North America, and Audi already offers the RS6 Avant, but the M3 Touring is a no-go for the US and Canada. What a car they’ll be missing out on.

As well as being the first official production M3 Touring, it’s the ideal car in many ways. Not ideal performance car, ideal car period. Everything we love about the latest BMW M3, but in a much more practical station wagon body. Fantastic!

MG 4 XPower

Reviving a name that was last seen on a sports car with a Mustang engine and Fiat Punto headlights, the new MG 4 XPower is Chinese-owned MG’s idea of an electric hot hatchback, with some truly ridiculous performance.

The dual-motor, AWD MG 4 XPower puts out 429 hp from said motors, propelling it to 0-60 mph in less than four seconds. Remember, this is just a Golf-sized hatchback, and yet it offers similar performance to the very best supercars just 15 years ago.

Mercedes-AMG E53 Estate

The only E-Class wagon that Americans can have is the E450 All-Terrain, one of many surprisingly cool station wagons. Nothing wrong with that, of course, but Mercedes has left the current top-of-the-line AMG E-Class for all the rest-of-world markets, Europe included.

The E53 Estate is everything you love about Mercedes wagons with more power. Much more power. While it’s missing the V8, the plug-in hybrid six-cylinder setup is good for well over 600 hp, resulting in some pretty incredible performance and rear-seat passengers hanging on for dear life.

Xiaomi SU7

Yes, that Xiaomi, the one that makes everything from smartphones to hair dryers to robot vacuum cleaners. One of China’s biggest consumer electronics manufacturers now also makes cars, and the SU7 is looking very good.

The race-prepped version is breaking records already, but even the regular SU7 is a spectacular attempt from a company first entering the automotive business. When Ford’s CEO praises your car, you know you’ve done at least something well.

MG Cyberster

Despite the present-day MG not having basically anything to do with the original British automaker, they still didn’t want to forget where they originally came from. The Cyberster is a modern take on the MG badged roadster, except it’s now fully electric.

That does mean it’s quite a bit heavier than an MGB or a TF, but it has well over 500 hp in the top-of-the-line model, propelling it to 60 mph in the low three-second range. Oh, and butterfly doors, of course. All of that on a car that’s suspiciously easy on the wallet.

Cupra Born VZ

You’re probably thinking the Cupra Born looks a bit familiar, and you’d be right. It is basically a reskinned Volkswagen ID.3, which America also doesn’t get, but the Born is much more focused on performance.

The range-topping Born VZ has a punchy 320 hp, taking it to 60 mph in less than six seconds. Being RWD, the driving experience is not typical of a hot hatchback, but it’s a solid performer when you throw it at some corners. It also just looks plain cool.

Skoda Kodiaq RS

This one might be a little confusing, but relative to what it is, the Skoda Kodiaq RS is a pretty fast and undoubtedly cool car. We still lament the loss of the torquey turbodiesel-powered Kodiaq RS, but the latest gasoline-powered version is still very worthy.

Putting out 261 hp and 295 lb-ft of torque from what is essentially the same power unit as you’d find in a Golf GTI, the new Kodiaq RS can reach 60 mph in the low six-second range. That’s pretty impressive, but it can do all that while being a towing rig and having room for just about everything you can and can’t think of.

Peugeot 508 PSE

Peugeot Sport Engineered was the stand-in for the Peugeot GTI and Peugeot Sport brands, and after making a single model, that’s it. All of their efforts will be focused on motorsport, which is sad, but the car they left behind is an awesome one.

The 508 PSE is based on the already gorgeous Peugeot 508, but then it pairs up a 1.6-liter turbo four-cylinder and a relatively beefy electric motor for a punchy 360 hp and AWD, resulting in a 0-60 time in the low five-second range. It’s definitely a left-field choice, but an awesome one nonetheless.

Audi RS4 Avant

Audi finally caved and gave Americans the RS6 Avant a few years ago, and most of the RS lineup is now available in North America. There is one more Audi RS model that, sadly, Americans still can’t have. The RS4 Avant.

A compact station wagon has limited appeal, so their decision not to offer it is understandable, but the RS4 Avant is still a lovely fast wagon. 444 hp courtesy of a 2.9-liter V6 and all of that exterior presence, what’s not to love? We can only hope that Audi will bring over the new S5 and RS5 in Avant forms.

Volkswagen Golf R Variant

While North America does get the standard Golf R, now with even more power than the European one, this even cooler version of the Golf R is sadly not available in the States or Canada.

The idea is super simple, but super effective. It’s everything you love about the Golf R, wrapped up in a much more practical station wagon body. A 320 hp AWD Golf wagon? Where do we sign up?

Yangwang U9

You’ll likely recognize this as the supercar that bounces, as it became viral all over the internet. While that is a notable feature of the Yangwang U9, built by BYD’s luxury sub-brand, this is a very impressive car elsewhere.

How impressive, exactly? Well, recently, the Yangwang U9 has become the fastest Chinese car in the world, achieving just over 243 mph in testing. This is an electric supercar that can match a McLaren F1 in terms of top speed, and yet it comes from the same company that will also sell you cars named the Seal and the Dolphin.

DS 9 E-Tense

Perhaps it’s named after the feeling you get when you feel the acceleration? The DS 9 is a languishing luxury sedan that basically no one is buying right now, as the European premium car market is notoriously difficult to enter.

Still, the DS 9 has its merits. Being French, an outright focus on comfort is one of them, but it can do the speed thing quite well. The E-Tense 4×4 360, as the name implies, offers up 360 hp and AWD. It is essentially the same power unit as the Peugeot 508 PSE, but the DS 9’s focus remains strictly on luxury.