2018 Hot Hatch comparison video, part 1: Track
We pit five of the best turbo hot hatches - and one wildcard sedan - against one another to find out which is the fastest and most fun small rocketship for under $60k. In this video we test outright performance and lap times
The hot hatch hero of the moment right now is the Hyundai i30 N, the Korean marque’s first serious salvo against the world’s fittest small go-getters. And it’s been widely praised as something of a buck-banging giant-killer.
We decided to test that premise by throwing the flagship N-car up against the established figurehead hot hatches from non-premium carmakers: Ford's Focus RS Limited Edition, Honda's Civic Type R, Peugeot's 308 GTI 270 and Volkswagen's Golf R. Plus, we've added a 'wildcard' in the form of the Subaru WRX STI Spec R, the peak of the now sedan-only hero that minted the affordable, small, turbocharged all-paw formula.
Three all-wheel drives, three front-drivers, with pricing ranging from $43k (i30 N) through to $57,690 (STI Spec R). It's a rich and diverse field with each competitor representing its maker's fastest and most fun-filled efforts.
Our full mega test regime seeks to find the pint-sized king of pace and fun factor through a series of objective and subjective tests. You can read the full written comparison and results here.
In this video, we pull the field's collective strings using acceleration (0-100km/h), braking (100-0km/h) and lap testing at Winton Raceway in Victoria to find out what's properly hot and what's not.
Stay tuned for our upcoming Hot hatch mega test: Road video to see how we judged the field by the seats of our pants across some of Victoria's finest driving roads...
UPDATE, MAY 23: Part 2 of the video chapter is now live, taking in the road component. Get it here.
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