Another vote for KIA.
My wife wanted one of those hamster cars (Soul) when we first got married. I was totally against it but figured, not mine so I wouldn't have to deal with it. She picked out a top of the line ! version complete with 18" wheels, some kind of handling package
and a 6spd manual transmission. That fucking car was so much fun to drive it wasn't even funny! I borrowed it all the time and drove that bitch like a gocart everywhere I went. I even convinced her to let me take it to an autocross event once when we lived back in New England. I consistently ran better lap times in that box than alot of much more well equipped cars were running. Other than tires, brakes and oil changes it was reliable as can be.
When we moved to Texas it got traded in for a JKUR that she wanted. It was a little to small to be playing with the 18 wheelers, pickups and SUVs that are everywhere down here.