Best Hothatch....

[jhlcr]

have to agree on the clio, as a drivers front wheel drive car, you cant do better. love the lcr, but dont really consider it to be a hot hatch, but i am from the old school, sub ton 120 bhp tin cans is what i love, but growing up, kids and confort come first now which the lcr does so well at.

 

[DamoR]

I've owned most of the cars in that poll: pulsar gti-r, escort cozzy lux, honda ctr, focus st, clio cup and I can safely say the LCR rates up there with the best of them.

 

[andy_dea]

All tin cans and none of them have any grunt in todays terms of performance. Apart from the 182, none of them would fair well in an impact, none of them have any good spec equipment, and its increasingly hard to find a well looked after example of any of the above cars minus 182.

Good handling cars yes, but not a lot else

Only IMO of course as the only 2 i've driven there are the 2 clios!

I think the younger generation will opt for newer typed hatches where as the old and bold will remember their young boy racer days and opt for the old skool hatches like your list above

no good spec's , what do you call remote reservoir dampers on a road car?
recaros, speedline wheels

dont get me wrong love the leons, love my ibiza with gt28rs, but i like driving the 182 more, better handeling revvy engine, and as its a tin car, it goes alright for 182 ps

 

[cuprablue]

All tin cans and none of them have any grunt in todays terms of performance. Apart from the 182, none of them would fair well in an impact, none of them have any good spec equipment, and its increasingly hard to find a well looked after example of any of the above cars minus 182.

Good handling cars yes, but not a lot else

Only IMO of course as the only 2 i've driven there are the 2 clios!

I think the younger generation will opt for newer typed hatches where as the old and bold will remember their young boy racer days and opt for the old skool hatches like your list above

Errr isn't that the point? A hatch should only be judged one way IMO if you are talking about "hot" hatches and that's on performance/handling and nothing else. The fact is that modern cars are much heavier and so need a lot more power to give the same straight line performance and much wider track and tyres to be able to handle as well. Not saying it's not nice to be able to have all the creature comforts but that's not part of the equation of what makes a hot hatch IMHO.

Anyway, my list would include:

Lancia Delta HF Integrale - Simply one of the best performing hatch backs ever.
Pug 306 GTI-6 - Still handles with the best of them.
Renault Clio Williams - Just an iconic classic.


I wouldn't call the Escort a hatch-back personally.

cuprablue

 

[cuprablue]

have to agree on the clio, as a drivers front wheel drive car, you cant do better.......QUOTE]

How about the Fiat Coupe? (20V Turbo version in particular). Still one of the best handling FWD chasis around apparently. Having been in a couple (though not driving) they certainly do handle. Not a hatchback of course though.

cuprablue

 

[andy_dea]

have to agree on the clio, as a drivers front wheel drive car, you cant do better.......QUOTE]

How about the Fiat Coupe? (20V Turbo version in particular). Still one of the best handling FWD chasis around apparently. Having been in a couple (though not driving) they certainly do handle. Not a hatchback of course though.

cuprablue

not really a hatchback other wise i would include them, and of course the integra type r

 

[si-mate]

I think a hot hatch has got to be a road going go kart which the Mk1 Golf GTI, 205GTi, 106 GTI, Clio Williams etc. all fall into.

I don't think that the specification has a lot to do with it as it is about pure driving pleasure in terms of handling and good old fashioned fun.

In my opinion the LCR although it is a great car and suits me perfectly isn't a hot hatch.

 

[ElasticTangent]

I think a hot hatch has got to be a road going go kart which the Mk1 Golf GTI, 205GTi, 106 GTI, Clio Williams etc. all fall into.

I don't think that the specification has a lot to do with it as it is about pure driving pleasure in terms of handling and good old fashioned fun.

In my opinion the LCR although it is a great car and suits me perfectly isn't a hot hatch.

I totally agree. My favourie hot hatch (don't laugh) was a K plate AX GTi. No power steering or ABS. 14 inch alloys and only about 100bhp. It handled like a go kart and I used to run of driving ability long before it ran out of grip. Cos it only weighed about 800kg it could out sprint a lot of other motors but kinda ran out of steam at about 90mph.

 

[si-mate]

I've got an old Clarkson video where him, the late Richard Burns and Tim Harvey tested all sorts of cars from the Honda NSX down to the 106gti and they all love the 106 as it was raw driving pleasure.

 

[Andy3004]

What did it have in it? a cupr r engine?

I know that one of the favoured conversions in the Vauxhall tuning world was the 2l turbo.....courtney (sp?) could get around 320+ BHP out of them without too much trouble.....there was a guy at Michedever tyres ages ago that had an astra GTE 16v with that motor........

 

[Ant FR]

i may be biased, but a bit surprised not to see a Cooper S in that list,

Those that have driven them will realise they are one of the best handling hatches of all time, as good as a 182.

Punches well above its weight imho

 

[Snoopcousins]

Used to have a Fiat Uno Turbo i.e. and that was one quick car...!

Also drove an Alfa Romeo Cloverleaf for a while and loved it too.

Wont forget my wee XR2 either.....

 

[Jonny]

I know that one of the favoured conversions in the Vauxhall tuning world was the 2l turbo.....courtney (sp?) could get around 320+ BHP out of them without too much trouble.....there was a guy at Michedever tyres ages ago that had an astra GTE 16v with that motor........

My mate did a Courtenay Sport conversion on his Nova a few years ago, it wasn't a turbo though, just a heavily modded 2 litre. Think he had somewhere around 180 - 190 bhp... it felt a damn sight quicker than my LCR!

http://www.courtenaysport.co.uk/default.htm

 

[Ant FR]

my mate has a 2.0 Nova, not turbo, But it done a qtr mile up the pod at 13.1 secs

Another mate has a 2.0 corsa turbo 300bhp, but it is so poor at traction, it is actually less drivable than the Nova and feels slower inthe real world

 

[awelch]

Delta Integrale has to be up there for me, terrible electrics and rust but boy can those things move! Plus that eighties retro shape still looks amazing!

 

[ElasticTangent]

Delta Integrale has to be up there for me, terrible electrics and rust but boy can those things move! Plus that eighties retro shape still looks amazing!

Love them as well.

 

[RobM]

Also love the Delta. Were they not regarded as one of, if not the fastest point-to-point cars for some time? Or am I dreaming.....?

 

[ElasticTangent]

Also love the Delta. Were they not regarded as one of, if not the fastest point-to-point cars for some time? Or am I dreaming.....?

I'm sure they were. The Scooby and Evo have taken it's place now but they can't beat that classic shape.

 

[paul geraghty]

I have to vote with my heart and say the Mk1 Golf i was lucky enough (or should that be unluckly) to own a early 1979 one tbh its one of the best cars I've been in not for speed but for handling performance the car had no power steerin no abs it was light and great fun to drive. I once pulled the clutch cable threw the bulkhead on mine and had to drive 20 miles home threw traffic on a roads b roads pulling away from islands with only 3rd gear the torque from the 8v was great.

I do rate highly the 205 but most of the other cars should be better but alot somehow aren't.

There is afew that are missed like the Lancia and 5 and one that I am amazed is missing is the true British entrant (I know it turned in to Pug the pug factory But sunbeam was a bristish make once) the Lotus Sunbeam that was one of the best rally cars at one time and is still used today. Remember some of these left the factory with upto 250bhp going to the rear wheels in a car that probably wieghs less than half of a Leon etc

 

[stpete]

Err Clio 182 Trophy, EVO placed it 2nd as best handling FWD car! Wife got 16 ponts in hers (5 convictions) cant stay with her on twisty bits, only she's walkin for a while!!!