£3k Hot hatch, which one????

[Mark300zx]

Drive in London, do no more than 5k a year so mpg not an issue suggestions please?

[ambuletz]

Does it really have to he a hatchback?

If it does...

- Mini Cooper S (supercharged one)
- Audi S3 (mk1)
- Clio RS cup
- civic type R.


if it doesn't then you have tons of coupes such as a e46 330ci.

[aka_kerrly]

The most likely candidates are the Renault Sport 2.0 16 Clio in 182/197, the Honda Civic Type R EP3 shape, the Mini Cooper S (R53 model), or insurance is a potential issue the Fiesta ST and Suzuki Swift 1.6 16v sport are good fun.

[Mark300zx]

Sorry hatchback it needs to be, good suggestions!

[rb5er]

Impreza wagon is a hatchback and hotter than most other things.

[Mr Tidy]

As it has to be a hatch, if you fancy something RWD you could try an E46 325ti Compact.

They are pretty popular on here - they even have an appreciation thread under the BMW General part of PH!

[Mark300zx]

Sounds like something different, any particular reason they are so popular?

[Monospace]

I wouldn't touch a 3 series personally. Or even a 1-series. When looking for a hot hatch.

Megane, Clio, Civic, the usuals have been named are all interesting choices here.

[egor110]

With a 3k budget i'd be wary of meganes , they seem to get more electrical faults compared to the clios.

With your budget i'd get the best clio or civic i could find without travelling miles to get it.

[ZX10R NIN]

If you don't mind burning some fuel then an A3 3.2 is bit of a different option & still quick

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...

[S2WYA]

Only one choice in my opinion the cleanest 172 Ph1 or FF 182 Clio you can find. Still surprises me how fantastic these cars are.

[jmate]

The nicest pre facelift final edition of the ep3 you can find will fit nicely in that bracket.

Milage isn't key. Just service history.

[Classy6]

VW MK2 Golf GTi - An appreciating classic and arguably one of the best hot hatches ever made. More character than anything else mentioned so far in this thread. Marginally biased as I owned one for 5 years but superb looking motors, quick even by todays standards and fantastic to drive. A real headturner.

Found a few Peugeot 205 GTI's aswell for under 3k.

Edited by Classy6 on Tuesday 20th September 02:23

[Zad]

Pug 205 GTi 1.6 sprang to mind here too. I think in all reality though, something like that is going to need a fair bit of renovation, and on-going TLC.

Add Focus ST-170 to the list?

[caelite]

You should consider the 207 GTi. Massively overshadowed by the Clio 197 of the same era but a solid little car nonetheless. Clio does have the legs through the corners but the 207 has a little cherry of an engine for commuting/road use with so much workable power & low down torque (same 1.6T from the Cooper S).

Get one thats had its chain tensioner sorted and you can really get a proper bargain wee car

[bobbo89]

caelite said:

You should consider the 207 GTi. Massively overshadowed by the Clio 197 of the same era but a solid little car nonetheless. Clio does have the legs through the corners but the 207 has a little cherry of an engine for commuting/road use with so much workable power & low down torque (same 1.6T from the Cooper S).

Get one thats had its chain tensioner sorted and you can really get a proper bargain wee car

I wouldn't recommend that era of Prince engine to anyone, death rattle, coking up and drinking oil for fun aren't characteristics of a solid engine IMO. Yes, they're good engine performance wise but reliable they aint!

For fairly low mile city driving it'd stick to something NA like the Civic or the Clio. I've recently been considering cars just like this in exactly this price bracket and they're the two I ended up narrowed down to.

[Dusty964]

A Stilo Abarth

I loved mine, and alwaya suggest them on these threads.

[CaptainSlow]

Only one answer...EP3 Civic Type R (I've just got one )

[ZX10R NIN]

207 GTI
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2016...

[DMN]

CaptainSlow said:

Only one answer...EP3 Civic Type R (I've just got one )

It is. That engine, that gear-box and Honda build quality.