Hot Hatchbacks..

melchy · 7 Jan 2017 at 23:47

No doubt this will come across as a bit sad, but I'd love a MK1 Astra GTE. Given there is less than a handful still on the road I doubt that will ever happen.

chaparral · 7 Jan 2017 at 23:57

melchy said:
No doubt this will come across as a bit sad, but I'd love a MK1 Astra GTE. Given there is less than a handful still on the road I doubt that will ever happen.

Think my old 1991 Vauxhall Calibra 2.0L 16v had the same 150bhp engine as one the Astra GTE...

Robbo · 8 Jan 2017 at 00:00

I understand this sentiment. The reality is, if you want to drive safely and legally (without getting a ban), having tons of power means you run out of road and break speed limits too easily. This stops you being able to really push on, unless you're one of those people who isn't bothered about losing their licence. Then there's the MPG side of things, many fast cars aren't particularly economical, even on a run. This is one reason I went for a pretty conservative F10 520d, ok it's not particularly fast - but I wouldn't say it's slow either against your average car, but it will waft up to and beyond 100 without any major stress at all, and most importantly it's nicely set up for overtaking. I thought long and hard about something like a Golf R/140i, but then I thought for all the time you aren't going fast, it's just a Golf (which there's nothing wrong with of course, but hopefully you get the point). You can get the best of both worlds with the fairly rapid 3 litre diesels, which are impressive and economical, beyond the initial extra cost.

kona786 · 8 Jan 2017 at 00:18

I'm currently loving driving my gen 6 celica. Had it almost 4 years now and it's been great fun. The last 6 months have been the best for me as I'm in a much better financial position just to push the car to its limits and beyond and not worrying about the financial repercussions.

I'm lucky enough to have a great drive to and from work and start work at 7 so empty roads mean lots of fun.

melchy · 8 Jan 2017 at 00:23

chaparral said:
Think my old 1991 Vauxhall Calibra 2.0L 16v had the same 150bhp engine as one the Astra GTE...

It will have a 20XE the same as the MKII Astra GTE 16v which is a fantastic engine.

TonyTurbo78 · 8 Jan 2017 at 00:35

Love classic hatchbacks, I've still got my '91 S2 RSTurbo, it sleeps in the garage these days in bubble wrap, only comes out now for the shows. It's not insured or driven daily anymore, just turned over every week and driven around the close etc....but it's value is increasing by the year

An old pic, not got anything more recent

melchy · 8 Jan 2017 at 00:38

TonyTurbo78 said:
Love classic hatchbacks, I've still got my '91 S2 RSTurbo, it sleeps in the garage these days in bubble wrap, only comes out for the shows now as it's still very clean.

An old pic, not got anything more recent

That is brilliant : )

TonyTurbo78 · 8 Jan 2017 at 00:39

you beat my ninja edit Melchy lol.

Hades · 8 Jan 2017 at 01:13

That really is nice.

UltimateBadger · 8 Jan 2017 at 08:16

Unfortunately many cars are like this now. Even more unfortunate is that these cars only seem to 'come alive' at higher speeds.

Lovely Escort.

wyatt gates · 8 Jan 2017 at 08:28

when I had my Clio 172 when they first came out I drove it like I had stolen it.
It came alive when you were wringing its neck.
You could reach speeds that would get you in trouble and carry out overtakes that were quite dangerous.
Lastly you always wanted to get anywhere the quickest
Now 12 years later I have mellowed out and with A45 you have the power and grip and fun you can moderate this by your right foot with the Clio it was different there was only one way to drive it is all or nothing no middle ground

norm · 8 Jan 2017 at 08:38

TonyTurbo78 said:
Love classic hatchbacks, I've still got my '91 S2 RSTurbo[/IMG]

Epic car. Not fond of the wheels though, why not OEM ones?

chaparral · 8 Jan 2017 at 08:56

TonyTurbo78 said:
Love classic hatchbacks, I've still got my '91 S2 RSTurbo,

I still love them cars..

I myself used to own a white 1985 RS turbo series 1 back in about 1990 for a few years..(Is still my favourite car I ever owned)
Also loved the two mk2 XR2 I had back then..

Them days where far more fun and there was also far less cars on the road (And far less police on the roads

)

SDK^ · 8 Jan 2017 at 09:10

Kenai said:
I think the only thing that would tempt me away from hot hatches in the near future are hot hatch estates like the Golf R or Focus ST versions, just to add that extra 'bikes on the roof, dogs in the back' level of practicality.

Not sure how much of the chuckability factor remains in those though when compared to the regular hatch versions.

HangTime said:
Some might argue estate versions of hot hatches (e.g. Leon Cupra ST, Golf R Estate etc) are more well rounded as they supposedly retain most of the nimbleness compared to the bigger estates, whilst being more practical that the hatches (around 100L of boot for every second it takes to hit 60mph).

For all around ability (within a reasonable budget) you sure can't beat the estate versions of hot hatches, escpecially when they have 4 wheel drive, a good auto box and radar cruise.

I've used mine for a big Ikea run, a family week camping trip with a silly amount of kit packed in the boot, MTB & road bike trips with 4 people up & four bikes on the roof with a load of gear in the back - all in comfort and with the knowledge that I won't get stuck on any wet grassy fields

Then when the mood takes, go for an early morning drive on some fun roads, put the gearbox in manual flappy mode and just smile

Of course there are downsides for all of this power, speed and practicality - an average interior and a low rent badge but when you're on the road doing any of the above all of that is forgotten.

One such memorable trip

Jono8 · 8 Jan 2017 at 09:32

****** love my Fiesta ST 215. So much fun to drive every time you get in it -the whole car just feels like it pivots around you.

Skillmister · 8 Jan 2017 at 09:50

Spanked my Fiesta ST along the length of the A548 last night at around midnight.

Whilst its the fastest car I've ever driven, I honestly don't see how driving on roads like that could be improved by much. It's small enough that you don't have to wince when a range rover comes the other way but fast enough that if you're not keeping half an eye on the speedo you're into silly speed on any reasonable straight. And the cornering feel is fantastic.

I'll probably end up getting a fast estate next for a "best of both worlds" but if I could keep a hot hatch I would.

Housey - out of interest did you try/have you tried an ST before getting your GTI or did you just go straight for the Polo because of the deal price?

.:SAmSuNG:. · 8 Jan 2017 at 10:41

I was super excited getting my focus St but here in Germany where I live the roads are so boring. I've only had one chance to take it over to the UK for some Welsh B Roads and I loved it. I feel it's been a bit of a waste owning it out here.

holymonk · 8 Jan 2017 at 11:10

Ctr ep3

naefeart · 8 Jan 2017 at 11:12

This is kinda why I went back to a hatch. Got a bit tired of big, heavy cars with big thirsty engines and epic thrust I couldn't use on the journey to work.

I love the s3 for its point and go ability. I can exploit gaps I couldn't before and it does put a smile on your face.

It is a bit overly complicated though, for a hatch; drive modes, sport modes, suspension modes...

You really just want something thats a great all-rounder that you can just get in and drive. Like how it used to be.

[TW]Fox · 8 Jan 2017 at 11:15

naefeart said:
It is a bit overly complicated though, for a hatch; drive modes, sport modes, suspension modes...

You really just want something thats a great all-rounder that you can just get in and drive. Like how it used to be.

Presumably you don't need to fiddle with those settings every time you drive it though?