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• Hot hatch drag race.
• The latest Mini GP takes on the Hyundai I30N and Honda's Civic Type R.
• All of them send over 200kW to the front wheels.
Hot hatches are supposed to be the most affordable entry into performance cars. In recent years, manufacturers have upped the ante and strapped on huge turbos, upped the boost and created 200kW+ machines.
The awesome folk at Carwow has lined up some of the best hot hatches on the planet, and they all have over 200kW that are sent to the front wheels.
Only the Mini sports an automatic gearbox, and will only arrive in limited numbers in 2021. We love the rawness of the Honda Civic Type R, and Hyundai's first foray into the hot hatch segment with its i30N.
Let's take a closer look to see what these performance machines are packing.
Honda Civic Type R - The definition of a purist's hot hatch, the Honda Civic Type R is powered by a 2.0-litre turbocharged engine producing 228kW and 400Nm with VTEC. The power is channeled exclusively through the front wheels via a sweet, short-shifting six-speed manual gearbox.
Top speed? A lofty 272km/h. The Type R has a 0-100km/h sprint of time of 5.8 seconds says Honda.
The Type R enters the fray weighing in at 1380 kilograms.
Mini GP - Limited to only 3000, it is the quickest ever Mini to be produced.
It takes just 5.2 seconds to reach the 100km/h speed mark from standstill thank to its four-cylinder turbocharged engine with 225kW and 450Nm. The power is sent to the front wheels, wearing model-specific high-performance tyres via an 8-speed Steptronic Sports transmission.
The GP boasts a top speed of 265km/h. Stopping power comes in the form of four-piston fixed-caliper disc brakes on the front wheels and single-piston floating-caliper disc brakes on the rear wheels.
Mini has also fitted the GP with an integrated differential lock. When conducting testing around the 'Ring the testers managed to lap the almost 21-kilometre track in less than eight minutes, beating the GP's predecessor's best time by almost half a minute.
The Mini tips the scales at 1255 kilograms.
Image: Wheels24 / Warren Wilson
Hyundai i30N - A 2.0-litre turbocharged unit sits up front with drive sent to the front wheels via a short-throw six-speed manual gearbox.
It weighs 1429kg, so almost 200kg more than the Mini.
In South Africa, the i30N is only available in five-door configuration and costs R679 000. The other important numbers you need to know are 202kW and 353Nm (378Nm on overboost for 18 seconds).
It's a very-evenly matched drag race that could come down to which driver can get the car off the line quickest, fortunately for the Mini it has an automatic gearbox and doesn't have to worry about that.
Carwow says: "The classic Honda Civic Type R, alongside the new MINI GP, the Hyundai i30 N, and a Mountune-tuned Ford Focus ST (which isn't available in SA).
"So how about the specs? Well all four cars are packing a 2-litre turbocharged petrol under their bonnets, and while the Focus ST can produce the most power at 240kW, it's the i30 N that can produce the most torque with a total of 550Nm! As for the MINI, well it''ll only produce 225kW - the lowest of any competitor her3. But it does have one advantage... it's the only automatic."
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