Hot hatch

Volkswagen has introduced the eighth generation of the Golf hot hatch models, the GTI and the R. These "Mark 8" models feature an updated engine, new vehicle dynamics settings, and a new electronics architecture – alongside a higher price tag. Staying is the manual transmission option for both.

Toyota's Aygo started out as a very humble little European hatch back in 2005, then evolved in 2014 into the oddly X-faced model on sale today. But thanks to the company's European design team, it's going to look a whole lot spicier from 2022.

Volkswagen has pulled back the curtain on its forthcoming Golf R, revealing the most powerful production VW Golf ever made, featuring notable power and torque increases on the outgoing model and new race-oriented drive modes for good measure.

Citroen has a long history in the hatchback segment and is looking to reestablish itself there with the new ë-C4 - 100% electric, a compact hatch that continues the automaker's journey down the electrification pathway it outlined in 2016.

The production run of the 2021 Toyota Corolla will include 1,500 hatchbacks made with custom body kits, sold as the 2021 Corolla Hatchback Special Edition. These cars will have Supersonic Red paint, and body additions inspired by SoCal mod shops.

A newly-updated Veloster N aims to take sporty Korean hot hatch driving to the next level, with an 8-speed DCT and a videogame-like 20-second "N Grin Shift" turbo overboost adding giggles to the ride.

A new plug-in hybrid joins Renault's sprightly Megane range for 2020, with a 40-mile all-electric range to knock off your daily driving without needing gas. The rest of the line gets a spruce-up as well, with a new interior and more power and torque.

The 2019 Golf GTI is the hot-hatch metric by which all others will be compared. Luckily, the Golf GTI Autobahn we drove lived up to expectations.

BMW's 1 Series has relinquished its claim as the only sub-compact sports hatch with rear-wheel drive. A new and revamped 1-series debuts today with front-wheel and all-wheel drive models only, prioritizing luggage space, back-seat legroom and agility over sick smoky drift action.

​Mercedes-AMG has built a new entry-level hot hatch for 2019, squarely aimed at people who wear their hats backwards. The A 35 4MATIC is a spunky little 306-hp (228-kW), all-wheel-drive turbo shopping trolley with a spiffy interior and voice-controlled MBUX AI assistant.

The 2018 Elantra GT is effectively the European version of the Elantra, brought to the US and only lightly modified to fit the market. The GT Sport adds the goodness of turbocharging to the generally underpowered GT base model. We spent a week with this fun hatchback and were pretty impressed.

​​Volkswagen’s collection of Golf GTI’s have got a sporty new stablemate, with the German automaker unveiling a road-going version of the Golf GTI TCR race car. Though just a concept at this stage, the special edition Golf GTI TCR has been engineered with near-term production in mind.