The cars in Need For Speed: Underground are fairly faithful analogues of their real-world counterparts. While the needs of an arcade racer like NFSU don't always allow for exceeding realism, you'll note that the game's cars possess turbochargers, six-speed transmissions, and the other accoutrements of the cars that they're modeled on.
A note about pricing: since the game doesn't allow you to purchase more than one vehicle at a time, you're forced to trade in your current car if you want to move to another model. All of your currently equipped visual and performance upgrades are switched to the new car, and they also affect the trade-in price of your car. As such, stock prices aren't available for the cars beyond the five you begin the game with; this shouldn't matter much, though, since the trade-in costs for the advanced cars should usually be well below the amount of money you have, even if you play through all of the races on the easiest difficulty. The one exception is the Nissan Skyline; it's a pricey car, so you'll want to have around 5,000 dollars on hand when you unlock it.
The Integra Type R is a popular car amongst modders. The 195-horsepower engine helps it knock out high top speeds, but it does suffer from somewhat lower acceleration than other cars.
Year: 2001 Drive: Front-wheel Unlocked: Race #53
The RSX is an entry-level premium car for Acura, but doesn't skimp on performance for the low price. The Type-S improves on the normal 5-speed transmission by offering a six-speed manual, along with a 200-horsepower 2.0-liter engine.
Year: 2003 Drive: Front-wheel Unlocked: Race #46
The Dodge Neon began the design process in 1993, and hit the streets two years later to almost universal praise. Utilizing a 2.0-liter engine, it delivers more power than most cars in a comparable price range.
Year: 1999 Drive: Front-wheel Stock Cost: 8500 Unlocked: Race #1
The Focus has a large following among racing fans interested in domestic cars, and has sold through over a million vehicles in the first few years of its existence. The Performance kit for the ZX3 has an optional 2.3-liter, dual-overhead camshaft engine for extra oomph.
Year: 2003 Drive: Front-wheel Unlocked: Race #08
The Civic Coupe has an astonishing array of aftermarket parts available for it, owing to its massive popularity among modders and car tuners. In NFS: Underground, this is probably the best FWD car you can buy at the beginning of the game, and with performance upgrades, it should be competitive for much of the Underground mode.
Year: 2000 Drive: Front-wheel Stock Cost: 10,000 Unlocked: Race #1
This is one of Honda's flagship sports cars, and comes standard with a six-speed transmission and powerful four-cylinder engine. Unfortunately for you, Underground doesn't let you remove the hard top, but this is still one of the best RWD vehicles in the late game. While it does lack the acceleration of some of the other RWD cars, its top speed is absolutely unbeatable.
Year: 2003 Drive: Rear-wheel Unlocked: Race #69
The Tiburon GT has a massive V6 2.7-liter dual-overhead camshaft that pumps out 170 horsepower; coupled with a six-speed manual transmission, you can expect this car to be quite competitive once you start pouring in performance upgrades.
Year: 2003 Drive: Front-wheel Unlocked: Race #17
This is one of NFS: Underground's blasts from the past, as the 1995 model was the last to be sold in America. While newer versions of this car are available on the import market (and the RX8 has recently been introduced in the States), the 1995 breed still holds its own amongst its younger competitors. Drivers comfortable with rear-wheel vehicles will find this to be an excellent vehicle to use in the game's later races.
Year: 1995 Drive: Rear-wheel Stock Cost: 30,000 Unlocked: Race #73
At the beginning of the game, the Miata will be the best (well, only) rear-wheel drive car available; if you enjoy the incredible handling that such a feature gives you, then you'll be comfortable using this vehicle for the bulk of the game's Underground mode.
Year: 1999 Drive: Rear-wheel Stock Cost: 9,500 Unlocked: Race #1
The Eclipse GSX stands out among small sports cars, thanks mainly to a 2.0-liter, DOHC, turbocharged engine that puts out 210 horsepower. Among AWD cars, the Eclipse is second in performance only to the (much more expensive) Nissan Skyline.
Year: 1999 Drive: All-wheel Unlocked: Race #58
It's important to note that this car is a Mitsubishi Lancer, not the Lancer Evolution, a vastly more powerful beast, itself almost a straight replica of Mitsubishi's race-dominating rally car. The Lancer is no slouch, however, with excellent all-round performance; note that it does come with a front-wheel drive system instead of the Evo's AWD.
Year: 2003 Drive: Front-wheel Unlocked: Race #04
The last car you unlock in NFS: Underground, the Nissan Skyline, can be likened to a caged animal waiting to be unleashed upon the world. The all-wheel drive can take a bit of getting used to, but after you've mastered the Skyline's mechanics, you'll find yourself in a car that's at the top of its class in handling, acceleration, and top speed. Even if you don't use the Skyline for racing, you may want to switch to it for drag challenges, where its tachometer is much more forgiving than other cars that are unlocked shortly before it.
Year: 1999 Drive: All-wheel Unlocked: Race #79
The 350z is the last rear-wheel drive vehicle you'll unlock in Underground mode, and if you can handle the massive power output of its 3.5-liter engine, you should find it to be one of the game's best cars.
Year: 2003 Drive: Rear-wheel Unlocked: Race #75
This 2004 Sentra trim is technically a compact family sedan capable of holding up to five passengers, but after a few modifications, you should be able to turn it into a lean racing machine.
Year: 2004 Drive: Front-wheel Unlocked: Race #24
Although the stock engine configuration only puts out 155 horsepower, the 240sx can still be a competitor during the middle third of the game after you upgrade it. The handling and response of the rear-wheel drive still inspires some racers to track down aftermarket parts for this, the oldest vehicle in NFS: Underground
Year: 1992 Drive: Rear-wheel Unlocked: Race #33
The Peugeot 206 is one of Underground's oddest vehicle choices, as it's available only in Europe. The hatchback model won't be able to ride with the big boys later on in the game, and certainly won't be a feasible option for online play, but does have excellent handling if you intend to use it for the game's first few challenges.
Year: 2003 Drive: Front-wheel Stock Cost: 8,500 Unlocked: Race #01
There are quite a few models in Subaru's Impreza line, running the gamut from wagons and SUV's to cars based on Subaru's World Rally competition cars. The 2.5 RS, however, is a sedan with a 165-horsepower, 2.5-liter engine.
Year: 2003 Drive: All-wheel Unlocked: Race #22
Although there was a Supra Turbo vehicle in the same model year, NFS: Underground uses the normally-aspirated engine model. The 225-horsepower engine produces a high top speed, but can't accelerate quite as fast as the RWD cars that become available a mere ten races after it.
Year: 1998 Drive: Rear-wheel Unlocked: Race #64
The Celica has long been one of America's best-selling cars, and the GT-S helps explain its popularity among modders. Although it costs around $5,000 more than the normal GT model, the GT-S pumps out 40 more horsepower and comes standard with performance tires.
Year: 2003 Drive: Front-wheel Unlocked: Race #41
Although the Golf GTI may be a rather attractive car for the price in real life, Need For Speed: Underground apparently uses a crippled, 115-horsepower model that's only available in Europe. It is the game's cheapest car, but, as always, you get what you pay for.
Year: 2003 Drive: Front-wheel Cost: 8,000 Unlocked: Race #01
