Top 5 HOT HATCHES under $30,000 | ReDriven

Hot hatches have been blending performance with practicality since the 1970s, but these days, which ones are the cream of the crop.

Firstly, to make this list, these cars had to be internationally available , so thanks to the US market not really embracing how awesome a hot hatch can be, unfortunately some truly brilliant cars missed the cut.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments below and remember to hit subscribe and the bell icon to stay up to date with all or latest content.

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#hothatches

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At ReDriven, we’ll be taking you through the pros and cons of a huge range of used cars to see how well they’re going now that they’re a few years old, have thousands of kilometres on the clock, and are coming toward the end of their warranty, or maybe don’t have one at all.

Plus, thanks to our resident mechanic, Jim, you’ll find out what commonly goes wrong with them and what might need to be fixed.

Most importantly, we want to make ReDriven a voice for the most in-the-know used car experts there are...you guys.. See, you’re the ones that actually buy, live with, love and sometimes unfortunately hate the cars we’ll be reviewing.

So we want to hear your thoughts. Hit us up in the comments, or on Instagram and Facebook.

We’d love nothing more than for you to give us as much feedback as possible, so we can make this channel the best it can be.

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[kanesanders]

This is probably the list I’ve been waiting for. And I knew with 100% certainty that you’d have the Fiesta ST somewhere near the top. Your ST was definitely fun to drive and I regret not buying it from you.

[sighlass]

Fun list, as a FiST driver it's always nice to be validated that you made a great choice.

It does make it a lot harder when you're contemplating a family and need to decide whether to sell it for something bigger and fun or keep it and buy something much less fun.

[justin_lawrence]

Definitely agree with the ST. I've been driving mine for a few years now and don't regret buying it. Super fun to drive and decent fuel economy for the power delivery.

[michaelclark]

I've got the number 2 car right now, picked up a 1 owner MK 7 Fiesta ST with 90000km on it for A$14000 with a couple of mods a bit over a year ago it was probably the best value hot hatch at the time for the money. I was looking at Honda Civic FN2R for similar money but they're older and most are much higher KMs, plus the early ones had bad gearboxes and also looking at MK2 Ford Focus XR5/ST but with those, even though they were the top spec focus, they didn't have climate control or cruise control at all, plus the Fiesta was just more fun and coming from a modded Honda Jazz/Fit it was basically the same car but 2x the power and newer and fully equipped.

[joshjames]

I drove a manual R56 Mini Cooper S a few months back and that combination of slick manual transmission, tight handling and sweet supercharger sound made me fall in love and start looking for a weekend car. The one I drove had high kms and was bought with some known issues by the current owner (who can fix these issues himself) for $4500. Absolute bargain. From what I have read online you would want to be best mates with a mechanic if you do get one of these though.

[normaneshuchi]

I wish they never cancelled the Focus RS.... That is my favorite hot hatch of all time

[bachhoang]

Nice vid as always. Really looking forward to one about Megane RS

[MotorTorq_ZA]

i want an abarth 500 and a swift sport. i love those two

[Joe-uctt]

Hey man great vids! Any chance you could one day review a 2015-2018 1.5 Ford Focus LZ? Looking into to getting one, how do they do with reliability :)

[ravingmad]

I'm with you on the Mazda, it's those quirks that can make a road car such fun to drive. Love me a bit of turbo lag and understeer it makes you feel like you're taming a beast.

[calebwhyte]

I got a 2008 Subaru Impreza s-gt (wrx) with 20, 000km for only $14K NZD… can’t wait to pick it up after lockdown

[ravipeiris]

The Mazda-speed 3 was the car I feared most going against when I would drive up to a traffic light in my MKV GTI ❤

[SilverScarletSpider]

Is that a Toyota Celica 4WD and First generation Acura MDX in the background? That’s awesome!
If possible, then I’d love to see your channel to do more head to head reviews and comparisons. Something like this Toyota Celica 4WD vs your own Subaru Impreza WRX. Which 4WD Japanese sports coupè do you like more? What happens to them after a few decades and 300, 000 km? What goes wrong with them? Are they reliable? Can you live with them everyday? And most importantly, which one should you buy?

[magicspace_professor]

Did we possibly miss the Volvo C30 t5? I drove one a few years back and it was crazy fun and understated, not many could tell it was a pocket rocket. I also think the Suzuki Swift Sport deserves an honourable mention! Great video as always lads.

[TheBodysome]

I'd like to thank you for putting that celica in the background this time (my dream car)

[s.z.x.]

Speaking of Abarth, I wonder if you guys recommend the convertible one or none convertible, personally I definitely love a convertible car cuz that’s what’s Australia’s all about, but perhaps it won’t be as reliable as the one with a proper roof?

[SilverScarletSpider]

Honestly Mr. Morris, I would be okay if you just limited this list to your local Aussie market instead of having to care if the USA or EU gets these cars. Because there are plenty of cars that are oddly absent from places like New Zealand, Canada, UK, Germany, and having to go through all that just seems like more trouble than it’s worth.

That said, I wish the Subaru WRX Levorg was global

[robcig]

Please review the Abarth 595 when possible.

[specialAD]

Agree with most of the list but in the context of $30k AUD:

Opel OTC/Holden Astra VXR would've been my pick over the Italian hatch - but I'm not sure if this was ruled out due the US rule for the video
Suzuki Swift Sport of the latest generation isn't mentioned but can be had under $30k secondhand, and around $30k new
Agree on the Fiesta ST, it's better reviewed than the Focus ST, surprised it wasn't #1 like lots of the other hatch tally ups

G3 STI is actually very reliable, haven't had any issues with mine - although I'll be parting with my STI Spec R hatch soon!

Ninja edit - must've been a while ago when I was shopping around for MK7 Golf R, didn't realize they were under $30k now... MK8 looks tempting!

[EzzaLeo]

Perhaps strangely, my number one choice would actually be the Swift Sport. So much fun driving flat out without worrying about going to jail.