{"id":7277,"date":"2020-09-02T07:01:53","date_gmt":"2020-09-02T07:01:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.carandclassic.co.uk\/magazine\/?p=7277"},"modified":"2024-09-12T10:20:06","modified_gmt":"2024-09-12T09:20:06","slug":"hot-hatch-heroes-five-of-the-greats","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.carandclassic.com\/magazine\/hot-hatch-heroes-five-of-the-greats\/","title":{"rendered":"Hot Hatch Heroes – Five of the Greats"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hot hatches are curious things. At their core, they are just normal, workaday cars that have been jazzed up a bit. Some alloy wheels here, a bit of a body kit there, maybe some fog lights for good measure. Though of course, that\u2019s only half the story. These visual additions were there to make the car stand out from the crowd and as such, grab our attention, but it was what was under the bonnet that got us really fired up. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"classic<\/p>\n

Hot hatches were, and to an extent still are, the embodiment of the age old fantasy of taking your boring car and making it faster. And like a dream, they really don\u2019t make sense. Hot hatches aren\u2019t for anything other than going quickly, for having fun in. The fact that they\u2019re usually based around sensible, ultimately practical cars is a bonus. But practicality isn\u2019t their primary function. It\u2019s fun. That\u2019s it. Hot hatches are like wheeled puppies. They exist to make you happy. Nothing more, nothing less. And for that, we love them. <\/span><\/p>\n

Then of course there is the aspirational element of hot hatches. How many of you grew up, watching the older kid down the street drive that mint XR3i, or that Astra GTE? All while being forced to go to school in the back of your Mum\u2019s Astra 1.3 Merit? It\u2019s okay, we\u2019ve all been there. We all looked at these superhero, powerful versions of \u2018normal\u2019 cars and lusted after them. But we could never have them. We were either too young, or the insurance was more than a year\u2019s wages. <\/span><\/p>\n

Now though, the hot hatch is in many cases a classic. That means that while we may have gotten a little older physically, we can at least now try and capture just a dash of the vehicular youth we so wanted back in the day. But which hot hatch do you choose? Here are five that float our boat\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

1) The Peugeot 205 GTi<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"classic<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t have a list about hot hatchbacks and not have the Peugeot 205 GTi<\/a> in it. We checked, and it is indeed the law. So yes, the 205 GTi is here, but so it should be. A taut, firm, but incredibly responsive chassis. Looks to die for (this is what hot hatches did – with just some arches and alloys wheels, they made boring hatchbacks sexy, somehow) and in 1.9 guise, more than enough power to shunt it along at giddy speeds. It might have only been packing 126hp, but remember, this is a time way before cars were laden with EuroNCAP-satisfying safety kit. As such, the 205 tipped the scales at a mere 875kg. The power was more than enough! <\/span><\/p>\n

2) The Ford Escort RS Turbo<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"classic<\/p>\n

Ford\u2019s game has always been to look at what was going on in niche corners of the motoring world and bring it to the masses. The Sierra XR4x4, for example, brought Audi\u2019s idea of all wheel-drive to the main market. The Escort RS Turbo<\/a> did the same, but with forced induction. Something that was only really present on rarities like the Saab 99 or BMW 2002. The Escort RS Turbo gave us mere mortals the chance to experience power, speed and of course, epic turbo lag. It also gave us one of the most iconic hot hatch body transformations ever – it was hard to believe an Escort 1.3L was the same body shell. <\/span><\/p>\n

3) The Astra GTE 16V<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"classic<\/p>\n

If Ford was having a go, you could bet your bottom dollar that Vauxhall would want to jump into the ring, too. The First Astra GTE<\/a> was a great car, and quite the looker, but it wasn\u2019t until the Mk2 when things got really interesting. Vauxhall boffins teamed up with none other than Cosworth to develop a new, twin-cam, 16-valve cylinder head for the existing 2.0 four-cylinder engine. Once dropped into the Astra, it produced some 150bhp with 144lb ft of torque, all in a 1,000kg shell. It might not have had the \u2018woosh bang\u2019 draw of the RS Turbo, but it was actually more powerful by some 18bhp. <\/span><\/p>\n

4) The Volkswagen Golf GTi Mk1<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"classic<\/p>\n

Much like the 205, you have to include the Mk1 Golf GTi<\/a> in this mix because, love it or hate it, it was the car that birthed the hot hatch generation. This is it, ground zero of performance hatches. And what\u2019s most remarkable is that Volkswagen actually had no desire to build a hot version. In fact, bosses were vehemently against it. However, a skunkworks team of engineers saw potential in the Golf. They cut up a Scirocco, dropped in the mechanical bits and the GTi was born. Once a tangible, real car, bosses warmed to the idea. They positively loved it when it made its public debut and wowed the crowds, much as it still does to this very day. <\/span><\/p>\n

5) The MG Maestro Turbo<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

\"classic<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t laugh. The MG Maestro Turbo<\/a> was and still is a riot. Okay, so it rusted away for fun, but if you ever got the chance to drive one, you\u2019ll agree that it was good fun. And it was also, for us a least, a true hot hatch. The notion of these cars is to take the mundane and make it fun, and you don\u2019t get much more fun than a Maestro with 150bhp and 196lb ft care of a 1,993cc four-cylinder engine with a Garrett T3 turbocharger bolted to it. It was a loony, unhinged car. And it was from the same people who gave us the Vanden Plas and the Montego Countryman. It was, and still is, a left field choice, but if you can get your hands on one, do. You\u2019ll love it. <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hot hatches are curious things. At their core, they are just normal, workaday cars that have been jazzed up a bit. Some alloy wheels here, a bit of a body…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":7280,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0},"categories":[2],"tags":[901,15,11,138,61,639,902,1227,2260,610,1282,14,412,699,2262,16,2261,139,123],"yoast_head":"\nHot Hatch Heroes - Five of the Greats - Car & Classic Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A hot hatch is just a normal, everyday car. 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