Yeah, the Mazda 6 should also be a contender, but I'm interesting in getting a "sporty" car. The Mazda 6 is targetted at being a family sedan, so it's unlikely to be a good car for autocrossing. The Volvo is an interesting car, and Consumer Reports "recommends" the S60 series, even while complaining mightily about the S40 and S80. It's on the high-end of the price range of the cars I listed, but then Volvo gives you much nicer interior trim (and, traditionally, amazing stereo systems).

It's an interesting question why the S60 rates so highly while the other Volvo cars rate so much worse. In the overall rankings, this drops Volvo down deep into the "worse than average category" (sandwiched between Chevrolet and Saturn).