Four hyper hatches for two-thirds less than the new £92k Audi RS3 Competition
Whatever happened to accessible hot hatchbacks? Nevermind the £92k Audi RS3 Competition, buy these instead
The hot hatchback used to be the first port of call for performance car accessibility – the kind of car the average person could reward themselves with without breaking the bank, both in terms of purchase price and running costs.
The latest Audi RS3 Competition, with its £92,000 price, has us contemplating whether we’ve strayed too far from that old adage. Probably not because of course, the Audi is the most extreme of that elevated subgenre of hot hatchbacks, the hyper hatch. Happily, they too have been around for some time and so those happy to buy used, can get sports and supercar-slaying family-friendly machinery at a bargain price. Here are our picks.
Mercedes-AMG A45 S – from £27,000
It is still perhaps the ultimate hyper hatch, even though it’s been around for a while. A well-driven Mercedes-AMG A45 S will leave most supercars flailing on most roads. With 415bhp, a quick-shifting eight-speed transmission and sophisticated 4Matic all-wheel-drive system, it’s like a Porsche 911 Turbo with two fewer cylinders and a hatch body.
It’s not the most naturally rear-biased AWD system – it takes some working in terms of managing when the torque builds to get the A45 S into a neutral frame of mind. Learn it though, and it’s a proper point-to-point missile.
The first A45 S was launched a good while back in 2019 and is still on sale today, meaning that while a new example will cost you a sturdy £65,000, used ones start from as low as £27,000 – less than a basic Golf. Examples at this price may have miles and lack the lairy AMG Aerodynamic package but around £32,000 will get you one so-equipped, with in the region of 30,000 miles on the clock. That's a car that will be as quick across ground as the new Audi RS3 Competition for a third of the price. Just be sure you get one with solid service history, that shows no signs of past accidents, with good life in the tyres and brakes – fast and four-wheel drive means A45s can chew consumables.
Volkswagen Golf R (Mk7.5) – from £10,000
Apart from the new Edition 50, the hottest versions of the latest VW Golf haven’t really lived up to the heady high bar set by the Mk7 Golf R. The Golf R earns its mention with the things the new R does well – performance, capability, grip. But it also has a sense of interaction and quality. Subtle looks are matched by the delicate and nuanced way it drives. It’s not as expressive and as flamboyant as some other hot hatches, but there’s real adjustability and poise nestled beneath its traction and usability.
What’s such a surprise is that the Mk7.5 R used many components (a platform, engine and drivetrain) that other performance cars in the VW portfolio use, like the Audi S3 and TT S. Yet in the R they are calibrated in a way that makes it far more involving and fun to drive than any of its siblings. There’s definitely room for it to be a little more wild, but none of its rivals offered this performance in such a discrete and refined package.
The Mk7 Volkswagen Golf R was incredibly popular and rightly so. Happily, that means there are plenty on the used market. They’ve held their money well so you won’t get a facelifted Mk7.5 car with less than 80,000 miles for less than £15,000. You’ll also want to avoid tuned cars, make sure your chosen example has been diligently serviced, has good tyres and brakes on it and that the differentials are working as they should. Evidence of a recent thermostat replacement – a common issue with EA888 engines – would be favourable too.
BMW M140i – from £11,000
The BMW M140i was a hyper hatch unlike any other. It wielded extraordinary hardware over and above that which you’d expect of a normal hot hatch, not to an end of outright pace of capability, but fun. The M140i’s is a technical makeup more befitting of a sports coupe (probably because it’s shared with one), with a silky turbocharged six-cylinder sending power to the rear axle.
> BMW M135 xDrive review – all-wheel drive hot hatch eyes Audi S3
Its layout means that the M140i behaves in a very different way to its rivals. It’s not just a drift car, even if many owners have cultivated a bit of a reputation for driving them as such. The rear-wheel drive allows you to drive it differently to an AWD or FWD hot hatch, to use the rear end to turn the car. It's a demanding but very rewarding drive. The M140i wasn’t as focused as its rivals and other hot hatches – the lack of a limited-slip differential being indicative of this and as such, they’re a popular modification. Its chassis was also softer and lacked the precision of a real performance hatch, feeling more like an ordinary car with a sport pack rather than one with a specially-honed chassis. Nonetheless it’s still a phenomenal thing for the money. Cars with acceptable miles – 60,000 to 80,000 – start in the region of £14,000.
Buy with caution though. These cars were the weapon of choice for wannabe drifters of vastly differing skill levels. As such, many M140is have lived hard lives – worn tyres and rear axles some, accident damage others. Diligence is the order of the day, checking for repairs, wear and tear and comprehensive service history.
Honda Civic Type R FK8 – from £18,000
The FK8 Honda Civic Type R has spent plenty of time at the top of our hot hatch lists, deftly combining hyper hatch track pace and performance with traditional hot hatch interactivity and granularity. It might lack a clever AWD system and dual-clutch box (those omissions are merits in fact), but it’s still one of the most sophisticated hot hatches compared to contemporary rivals. The impressive ride, fluidity over even the toughest road surfaces, imperious traction, and the chassis’ playfulness yet utter composure and poise make it a joy to drive.
This is enhanced by the short but accurate and smooth six-speed manual transmission, while the perfectly positioned and weighted pedals add another level of satisfaction. It’s a masterclass in hot hatchback engineering that no other has been able to replicate, save its FL5 Civic Type R successor.
That was a £51,000+ car when it went off sale just a few short months ago. FK8s can be had for well under half that and you’re certainly not getting half the car. What you’ll more than likely be getting is a car that’s been driven hard – these are effectively the 911 GT3 of the hot hatch world after all. So be sure its brakes and tyres are in good shape, that it tracks straight, that there’s no evidence of repaired damage and that it’s been serviced properly.
