HEAD TO HEAD
The hot hatch story didn’t end in the Nineties, and here’s the proof
Golf and 205 GTIs can easily set you back five-figure sums, but many 21st century drivers’ cars have yet to experience a real upsurge in interest. That can surely only be a matter of time because some were truly special, right from the factory – including gems such as the Citroën Saxo VTS and MG ZR 160 VVC, with their light weight, direct steering and feelsome handling. Producing 118bhp and 158bhp respectively, and weighing in at 935kg and 1145kg, both know how to make every pony count.
Spied from the other side of a city centre car park, it’s not hard to see why young drivers fell for the Citroën and MG. The pair have a shouty, arch-filling attitude that makes even the Citroën’s 15in five-spokes look large, while vivid shades of Poseidon Blue and Rio Red accentuate everything from the wide-mouthed front grilles to the substantial side skirts. Step a little closer and blaring idles fill the air: the Citroën’s serrated and fluctuating, the ZR’s a steadier baritone. It's a struggle to decide which car to try first.
CITROËN SAXO VTS
After production ceased, as the noughties ended, the Saxo became the affordable secondhand hot hatch for an aspirational youth. So much so that it was cast as Gavin’s car in Gavin & Stacey. Now owned by Jack Cullen, this example is that very car from the series. The iconic sitcom used a modified Série 1 Saxo VTR for the first two series before moving to this standard Série 2 VTS for the third and final series. We’re honoured to have ‘Gavlar’s’ old motor here.
Both the VTS and the VVC had the mechanical specification to back up their aggressive aesthetics. For Citroën, that meant leaning on tried-and-true PSA componentry. Much like its Peugeot twin, the 106 GTI, the VTS benefited from a 1587cc variant of the TU inline-four engine, equipped with dual overhead camshafts and 16 valves, and driving through a five-speed manual gearbox. Peak power of 118bhp was the result, giving the VTS a useful 20bhp jump on the eight-valve VTR unit and a whopping 60bhp over the basic 1.1-litre cars.
Citroën paid just as much attention to the brakes, fitting 247mm vented discs to the front axle of every VTR and VTS, with solid discs of the same diameter at the rear. Other changes included standard power steering and an extensive bodykit. Suspension stayed closer to the Saxo and 106 norm, with MacPherson
