For those of use who like interesting mechanical things and drivers cars, pre 1990 German cars offer quite a bit.
They are modern and well built enough to still be good drivers, so you can take your wife or GF out without complaints. Also they are simple enough that you don't need a super computer and a dealer to work on them. Throw in a massive fan base, excellent parts support usually from the manufactures themselves, and than simply the fact that they are blast to drive.
I can't think of a better almost classic than an 80's BMW, Mercedes, Jag, or Porsche to play with. They are also affordable for the average gear head.
Its amazing the cars you can get for a song these days, SL500 R129's come to mind. Still fantastic cars you can have for pennies on the dollar of new, and the best part is they will probably appreciate over the coming decades.
R107's and C126's have already started to creep up in value. I remember when no R107 would be a $20k car, now a good one is in the mid $20k range.