OK, so after re-wording my title three times I gave up and went with the confusing version I started off with.
So, as I rapidly approach my 40's I look back with rose tinted admiration at the hot hatches of the 1980's. 205 GTi, Astra GTE, XR3i, XR2, Renault 5 GT etc... Unfortunately, so is everyone else aged 40 to 50 and they have deep pockets it would seem. This puts many of the iconic cars I used to drool over in Fast Car and Max Power as a spotty teenager well out of grasp for a toy to scratch the mid life crisis itch.
Getting to the point, if you were after the buzz of one of those 80's hot hatches where would you look today? The modern equivalents, as capable and impressive as they are, don't really have that same DNA of the cars I listed above. It is all very easy and refined with a modern Golf GTI (for example). The checklist, for me at least, seems to be;
So what does that leave you, new or (most likely) used (lets say from circa 2000 to keep it sensible) for not too silly money?
This is just for fun and by no means a "spec me" thread. I've got a mk1 MX5 which ticks all of the above boxes with the glaring exception of not being a hatchback!
So, as I rapidly approach my 40's I look back with rose tinted admiration at the hot hatches of the 1980's. 205 GTi, Astra GTE, XR3i, XR2, Renault 5 GT etc... Unfortunately, so is everyone else aged 40 to 50 and they have deep pockets it would seem. This puts many of the iconic cars I used to drool over in Fast Car and Max Power as a spotty teenager well out of grasp for a toy to scratch the mid life crisis itch.
Getting to the point, if you were after the buzz of one of those 80's hot hatches where would you look today? The modern equivalents, as capable and impressive as they are, don't really have that same DNA of the cars I listed above. It is all very easy and refined with a modern Golf GTI (for example). The checklist, for me at least, seems to be;
- 0-60 in 7 to 9 seconds or so (certainly not significantly quicker)
- Lightweight
- Simple
- Nimble/connected handling
- Relatively 'raw' feeling
- Something you can drive the wheels off without instantly hitting warp 10
- A certain 'kudos' that is hard to quantify
- Has to give you 'the fizz' every time an empty stretch of country road appears in front of you
- Manual gearbox
- 100 to 150 ish BHP (just throwing this in, the power isn't particularly relevant at all)
So what does that leave you, new or (most likely) used (lets say from circa 2000 to keep it sensible) for not too silly money?
This is just for fun and by no means a "spec me" thread. I've got a mk1 MX5 which ticks all of the above boxes with the glaring exception of not being a hatchback!
