Hot Hatch Special

31.

Toyota Starlet Turbo <1% (62 votes)

Built: 1995-99  
You say: ‘Small, beautiful, swift and above all… Japanese!’ (Ciao.co.uk review)
Why it’s great: Quite possibly the most unassuming supermini of the ’90s gets a turbo. Alluring Q car

32.

Peugeot 106 GTi <1% (60 votes)

Built: 1996-2003
You say: ‘Excellent. Great fun to drive. Fantastic handling’ (Parker’s owner review)
Why it’s great: Direct rival to the Saxo, but not quite as yobbish. Reminds us why Peugeot used to be great

33.

Alfa Romeo 147 GTA <1% (59 votes)

Built: 2003-05
You say: ‘A great driver’s car and a heap of fun on fast A-roads.’ (Parker’s owner review)
Why it’s great: Milanese style, V6 power and more excitable than Bruno Tonioli after a good pase doble

BMW 130i <1% (51 votes)

Built: 2005 -
You say: ‘Its a beast! But it’s also easy to drive’ (Parker’s owner review)
Why it’s great: Baby BM is only modern hatch driven by rear axle. Grown-up fun when mated to six-cyl silk-fest

35.

Audi S3 <1% (51 votes)

Built: 2001-
You say: ‘The S3 is my favorite uber-hatch and with DSG it will be even better’ (CAR Online reader, ga41)
Why it’s great: If you are too grown up for a Golf, the S3 will see you right. Fast, sure-footed and looks the business

36.

Vauxhall Astra VXR Nurburgring <1% (51 votes)

Built: 2008
You say: ‘A treat. I find myself looking for reasons to go out in it’ (Parker’s owner review)
Why it’s great: Old-school brawn plays havoc with front wheels, but VXR guarantees in-yer-face thrills

37.

Honda Civic Type R Mk3 <1% (42 votes)

Built: 2007-
You say: ‘Awesome, fast when you want it to be, can be relaxed as well’ (Parker’s owner review)
Why it’s great: Space-age looks meet sky-high redline. Honda at its leftfield best

38.

Fiat Strada Abarth <1% (34 votes)

Built: 1981-88
You say: ‘In performance terms, the 130TC Abarth immediately became the hottest of the hot hatches’ (The Sporting Fiats Club)
Why it’s great: Forerunner of today’s Abarth Grande Punto. Hot hatch thrills in an age of perms and Dallas

39.

Chevette HSR <1% (33 votes)

Built: 1978-80
You say: ‘A far cry from the small-engined Chevettes from which it was developed’ (Wikipedia)
Why it’s great: Chevette enjoyed some success in rallying – also the first hot hatch with multivalve tech

40.

Ford Focus ST <1% (31 votes)

Built: 2005-
You say: ‘This is one car I would like to let rip in and be an absolute and total hooligan’ (CAR Online reader, PeterB)
Why it’s great: Eclipses Focus RS Mk1 with five-pot power, but more grown up (despite frequent application of ginger paintjob)