The Good, the Bad & the Ugly: The Top 5s
TOP 5 BEST FAMILY HATCHES
GIANT TEST WINNER
THE GOOD: Premium and practical; now available in GTI-alike Ti spec
THE BAD: Purists droning on about rear-wheel drive
THE UGLY: Can BMW spot a good-looking car, let alone design one?
THE ONE TO BUY: 1.5-litre 118i M Sport at £31k/£400pcm; the all-wheel-drive M135i super-hatch tops the tree but also tops £41k
THE GOOD: Brain-out default choice still a solid all-rounder; ride, visibility, roominess
THE BAD: Seat Leon a very similar package for a lower price
THE UGLY: Getting caught publicly raging at the infotainment system
THE ONE TO BUY: 1.5 TSI 150 at £300pcm or £27k; roomy estate is also great value
THE GOOD: Pretty, non-turbo alternative definitely listens to indie music; fun
THE BAD: Having to explain why. Every. Single. Time
THE UGLY: Being humiliated for torque by base-spec diesels (and by steep hills)
THE ONE TO BUY: Kit-packed 2.0 Skyactiv-X SE-L Lux is £26k/£350pcm
THE GOOD: Roomier (if bigger) than ever, and standard-fit hybrid drive is well sorted
THE BAD: Blobby, forgettable design
THE UGLY: Hardly a car to inspire and enthral
THE ONE TO BUY: No typical entry-level model, and 2.0-litre hybrid the only engine, so you’re looking at £30k/£320pcm
GIANT TEST WINNER
THE GOOD: Ford still knows how to make the mundane hatch shake a tail feather
THE BAD: Strangely mean-spirited dashboard places everything just out of reach on purpose
THE UGLY: Interior’s overriding ambience of cheapness
THE ONE TO BUY: 1.0-litre 125 Titanium is keen and posh(ish)
TOP 5 BEST HOT HATCHES
NEW ENTRY
THE GOOD: Feel, feedback, focus: a phenomenal full-size hot hatch
THE BAD: It costs an equally full-size £47k. Hot hatches are no longer a performance bargain (and are now a dying breed)
THE UGLY: That it’ll probably be the last of its kind. Good job it’s one of the best
THE ONE TO BUY: There’s just the one model. Expect to pay around £500 on a PCP with an £11k deposit
GROUP TEST WINNER
THE GOOD: Toyota’s made the kind of rally-rep homologation special we thought was gone forever
THE BAD: Road noise like a death-metal gig. Bring earplugs
THE UGLY: Waiting list longer than an Andrex multipack; don’t be fobbed off with a Yaris Hybrid GR Sport
THE ONE TO BUY: Opt for the Circuit pack for locking diffs, from £35k. No sat-nav, though. Luckily there’s CarPlay
GIA
