Small hot hatches - also referred to as warm hatches - are the humblest of performance-focused small cars. More potent than a regular hatchback both in power and handling prowess, the best small hot hatches serve as an entry into the world of fast cars, without actually being that fast at all.
In the spectrum of performance motoring the small hot hatchback sits – you won't surprised to hear – beneath the hot hatch. Not as much power, not as much purpose, and not as much potential for greatness. But a lower price, cheaper insurance, and still a whole lot of fun comes as part of the deal.
You can learn about all the more modern four-wheel-drive super hot hatches such as the Mercedes-AMG A45 S or the Audi RS3 elsewhere, but in this guide we chart the evolution of the small hot hatch, taking a look at some of the best hot hatchbacks of a smaller stature, from the Peugeot 205 XS right through to a modern electric contender.
With these cars, we prove that you don’t need the exotic styling of a fancy high-performance sports coupe such as a Porsche 911 or a motorsport-inspired special with a complicated four-wheel-drive system to enjoy a great driver’s car. Generally, you’ll find smaller hot hatches can even offer decent fuel economy along with the driving thrills, too.
History of Warm Hatches: From 205 XS to Up GTI
- Peugeot 205 XS
- Citroen Saxo VTR
- Suzuki Swift Sport
- Ford Fiesta Zetec S
- Volkswagen Up GTI
- MINI Cooper E
Peugeot 205 XS
For one of the very first small hot hatches, we look back to 1986 and the Peugeot 205 XS.
The hot hatch breed by this point was a decade old. And perhaps the definitive performance car of its type back then was the Peugeot 205 GTi. Today, it remains one of the most idolised hot hatches of them all, but if you’d looked further down the 205 model range in 1986 you would have also found the XS. It was built for the express purpose of being a more affordable alternative to the GTi – just about as exciting to drive, but far cheaper to buy and run. These are key attributes of a warm hatch.
Mechanically the 205 XS was similar to the GTi, but its chassis was far less aggressive and its engine not as potent. Some will tell you the XS actually delivered the sweeter driving experience along a lumpy back road, thanks to its more forgiving suspension. The earliest cars were punted along by what Peugeot labelled the XY engine, but 205 cognoscenti will tell you to look for the version that arrived a couple of years later, with what’s called the TU engine. It’s a 1,360cc unit with a twin-choke carburettor, which kept the motor firing hard at higher engine speeds. The result was 85bhp.
The XS was therefore around 20bhp down on the 1.6-litre GTi, but it was usefully lighter than that model and it had very tightly stacked gear ratios, so the XS was scarcely any less sprightly in a straight line. On humble steel wheels and with deliciously 1980s graphics on its wings, the 205 XS could hardly have looked any cooler.
Citroen Saxo VTR
By the early 1990s, hot hatches had become rather too popular among thieves, and insurance premiums rocketed. Car companies responded with slightly less wild versions of their popular sporty hatchbacks. As a result we were offered the Renault Clio RSi with its 1.8-litre 8-valve engine and the 94bhp Ford Fiesta Si, which replaced the more extrovert XR2i.
These less spicy models didn't prove all that popular, however, until the French came along in 1997 with the Citroen Saxo VTR. This only delivered 90bhp from its 1.6-litre engine, but was sufficiently lightweight that it was still a joy to drive.
A low price and enticing insurance deals in the UK meant young drivers flocked to the VTR at the end of the millennium.
Suzuki Swift Sport
The original Suzuki Swift Sport didn't move the power game on much with just 123bhp, but its engine was so keen to rev and its chassis so agile and responsive that it hardly mattered. The SSS, as it’s affectionally known, was bundles of fun to drive the way a true pocket rocket should be. Its own contribution to the breed was modern day chassis electronics, such as traction and stability control, as well as much improved tyres and brakes. That meant you could thrash the life out of the Swift Sport without the worry of the car biting back (although if you did switch the electronic systems off it would indulge in lift-off oversteer a bit like a 205).
-Ford Fiesta Zetec S
Sixteen-valve engines served the small hot hatch sector very nicely indeed for several years to come, but by 2014 it was time for a rethink. Ford rewrote the rulebook with the Fiesta Zetec S, the first car of its type to shun a four-cylinder engine with 16 valves in favour of a smaller, three-cylinder unit. It displaced only 1.0-litre, but the turbocharged engine gave the diminutive Ford as much power as the Suzuki’s four-cylinder unit, with considerably more torque. Who needs a Ford Fiesta ST?
Volkswagen Up GTI
The giddy Volkswagen Up GTI took the Fiesta's recipe and enhanced it. Its engine? q 1.0-litre three-cylinder. The diminutive VW had only 113bhp in its arsenal, which was not all that much more than the original 108bhp Volkswagen Golf GTI. But it weighed not much more than 1,000kg and benefited from a broad-chested 148lb ft of torque to back that power up, so the smallest VW GTI was plenty fast enough.
What’s more, with a sweet, slick manual gearbox and engaging handling, it revived the spirit of the original Golf GTI, when that car’s modern namesake had long since disappeared into an altogether larger and more upmarket segment, along with the likes of the Ford Focus ST, Honda Civic Type R and other high-end front-wheel-drive fast hatchbacks.
Mini Cooper E - Warm Hatches Go EV
With the push towards electric cars in the automotive industry, it's inevitable that the small hot hatch will have to find its way using electric power, and one of the first to take up that particular baton is the MINI Cooper E. The second generation of the electric MINI arrived in 2024, with a better battery range and improved technology over its predecessor.
More significant for the enthusiastic driver, though, is that this new MINI Cooper E is as close as any modern EV has yet got to delivering the willing, zingy spirit of a true small hot hatch.