The best cheap quick cars two thousand seventeen – tested
- Eight entertaining cars for the fraction of the cost of a supercar
- Our experienced reviewers take to road and race circuit to find a winner
- See below and see which spectacle hero is our Parkers Pick
In this age of austerity there are still many drivers out there who want to have joy driving their cars. There are thousands of you looking for cheap thrills, which explains the popularity of hot hatches and entry-level sports cars.
But cheap shouldn’t just mean cheerful. It also means hugely competent – with some sub-£30,000 offerings suggesting genuine supercar-challenging tempo. But there’s more to a superb cheap rapid car than speed alone. And that’s why we’re taking eight of your favourites to Rockingham International Raceway to find out which is the best cheap rapid car of 2017.
They’re compared below, and split into three sections: front-wheel drive, four-wheel drive and rear-wheel drive. Each section gets a winner, which we’ve outlined at the end of each.
Then it’s on to our outright Parkers Pick.
The contenders for best cheap swift car are
Parkers’ recommended four-wheel drive challengers
If you’re looking for the best overall grip on the tarmac, it stands to reason you’ll want to send the engine’s output to all four wheels rather than just two, maximising your car tyres’ contact patch with the road.
That means four-wheel drive (4WD) vehicles are also far better on greasy surfaces, adding an extra element of safety into the equation, but the main advantage is in spectacle. On most cars with four powered wheels it’s almost unlikely to spin the wheels, meaning you’re able to take off from the traffic lights like a rocket.
The main drawback is running costs – you’ll suffer both in terms of the extra weight of the parts required to send power to each corner of the car, and the energy losses associated with the extra machinery on board. Some 4WD cars can also feel a little uninvolving to drive, but not all, as you’ll read below…
Ford Concentrate RS Mountune
To win this test you could simply put the trophy into the boot of the Ford Concentrate RS and drive away – none of the other cars here could catch you.
Trouble is, a prompt car has to be much more than a two-dimensional drag-racer, because our roads are as much corners as they are straights.
On top of that, there are the various sensations such as harass noise and steering feel that we group together in the mystical, unquantifiable concept of ‘character’ to consider too.
It takes only ten minutes in the Concentrate to realise it’s the best car here regardless of criteria. Well, perhaps eleven minutes, because for the very first ten you’ll be preoccupied by the annoyingly high driver’s seat.
You also need to forgive the abrupt clutch pedal and woeful turning circle. The best way to do this is to listen to the Two.3-litre turbocharged engine – the cacophony of bangs from the harass will make you smirk like an idiot.
Better yet, time a full-throttle upshift as close to the redline as you can, prompting a hilarious parp of approval from the harass. This car reminds you why you dreamed to learn to drive in the very first place.
Is the Mountune upgrade worth buying? Well, it trims two-tenths from the 0-62mph time and makes the Concentrate RS sound even angrier, so we reckon so. Most importantly, if you truly must modify your swift Ford (and many do), at least this way you can keep your warranty.
If the Ford Concentrate RS were an advert for cheap speed it would be a massive billboard with the word ‘no-brainer’ written on it. The Mountune kit would be the neon lights.
By Adam Binnie – Deputy Reviews Editor
Click here for the utter Ford Concentrate review
SEAT Leon ST Cupra 300
You might be wondering what an estate car is doing in our cheap rapid cars group test – but bear with us. This is a SEAT Leon ST Cupra, the final part of the name indicating that this is far more than a flat-pack furniture-hauling family wagon.
Yes, its 1,470-litre boot could do a fine job down at your favourite Swedish home-furnishings store, but it’s the dual nature of the Cupra’s personality that truly impresses us. For starters, there’s 300hp on tap – a figure that only the Concentrate RS Mountune catch strike – and means 0-62mph flashes by in Four.9 seconds.
There’s a powerful set of Brembo spectacle brakes too, and don’t leave behind the four-wheel drive system, which shuffles power inbetween whichever wheels have the most traction.
Admittedly, it’s not as acute, agile or communicative as some of the hatchbacks or sports cars on test, but none of them – save from the Skoda Octavia – can claim to be as practical.
If you want a truly everyday spectacle car, the SEAT Leon ST Cupra has to be near the top of your list.
By James Dennison – Junior Staff Writer
Click here for the total SEAT Leon ST review
Subaru WRX STI
The Subaru WRX STI, previously known as the Impreza, has been on the market as a cheap prompt car for decades – long before the original Ford Concentrate even existed. Despite the absence of gold wheels here, it’s still one of the most recognisable four-wheel drive, rally-bred cars to attack a B-road with, whatever the weather.
Remarkably, despite the motorsport heritage, the WRX STI doesn’t feel downright old fashioned either. The long-travel suspension means it rails well and it’s refined enough not to deafen your ears on a long journey. Those sports seats are far more supportive than they look too.
With a 300hp Two.5-litre engine, 0-62mph takes Five.Two seconds. The flat-four ‘boxer’ engine layout helps treating as it keeps the car’s centre of gravity low, and you’re always accompanied by the unique-sounding burble associated with these Subarus – something you can’t truly say about the mundane-sounding SEAT Leon Cupra.
The power delivery might be where the WRX STI starts demonstrating its age, however, requiring more than Trio,500rpm for the turbo to truly come on song. If you’re caught off guard, you’ll be left floundering without much spectacle – but isn’t being kept on your toes what makes these cars so pleasurable?
Where the Concentrate embarks to strike the Subaru is the steering. Being powerful at low speeds and lightening up the quicker you go, the WRX STI is almost the opposite of what we’d like. That said, with so much faith in the level of grip from its clever four-wheel drive system, you always have confidence in making it out the other side of a corner.
Launching this car off the line cleanly will require a few attempts to get right too: while the SEAT Leon with its DSG gearbox will effectively do the work for you, the Concentrate RS is far lighter to get right (Four,000rpm will do it).
So, a quick, unpretentious, practical car that’s convenient, makes a nice noise and looks dramatic: what’s not to like?
Click here for the total Subaru WRX STI review
Best cheap quick four-wheel drive car
Ford Concentrate RS Mountune
The amount of grip these three cars suggest is enormous. As a concept this is a problem, because the very limit of grip is where the process of driving is at its most involving – and indeed good cars give you a broad window of joy inbetween in-control and out-of-control.
Unlike other 4WD cars, the Ford spookily feels like it always has just enough grip, rather than an excess. It makes you feel like you’ve judged the corner speed correctly, by artificially and cleverly shuffling torque inbetween the front and rear wheels.
So when you hit the gas on the corner exit, the back steps out as it would do if you had balanced the car flawlessly yourself, while the Leon and the WRX just cling on to the tarmac firmer. It’s not a totally unspoiled practice like the Toyota GT86 offers, but it’s as close as we’ve experienced in a four-wheel drive car.
Coupled with supercar acceleration and the compellingly affordable Mountune upgrade, and the Concentrate RS slots lightly into the top spot for four-wheel drive cars.
Parkers’ recommended front-wheel drive choices
More and more rapid cars are front-wheel drive. That’s because they’re based on more practical donor cars – which is all well and good when there’s 100hp to play with. But maybe not so good, with three hundred or more.
The evident drawback is that you steer with the front wheels too, which means you’re asking an awful lot from just two tyres and inevitably treating is compromised. But carmakers have dialled-in joy to front-wheel drive cars for decades – it’s how they combine it with power that counts.
Peugeot three hundred eight GTi 270
The three hundred eight GTi is most likely the rank outsider in this group test, and yet we know that with the legacy of excellent hot hatches Peugeot’s carrying in its back pocket, there’s no reason why it won’t spring a surprise. Coming off the back of greatness, such as the two hundred eight GTi and RCZ-R, it should be more than capable of bloodying the Volkswagen Golf GTI’s nose.
Even before we set off, it’s certainly doing all it needs to at the kerbside. The two-tone paint job is a genius touch, lifting a neat if undistinguished design into a bit of a yob. Even compared with the kitchen-sink Concentrate RS, this one can still turn goes.
Under the skin is where it’s most clever. Its 270hp is delivered by a mere 1.6-litres for a claimed 0-62mph time of 6.0 seconds, and a maximum speed of 155mph. In this group test, that puts it in the middle of the pack – and absolutely monstered by the Ford Concentrate RS Mountune. But good cheap prompt cars aren’t just about numbers – how they’re delivered is far more significant.
We’ll commence with its on-road spectacle. At very first, it doesn’t set a superb example. It feels stiff and uncompromising, and the treating trait it’s keenest on is following the camber of any given road. Bravo. The steering feels too responsive, very likely because the wheel’s too petite, while the gearchange is ponderous, and frankly disappointing. The brakes aren’t much to write home about, either.
But live with it, wear into its dynamic foibles, and you commence to go with the flow. The rail is just about acceptable, and gets better the quicker you go – and you learn that it goes wherever you point it without any drama at all.
On track, it’s magical. And all that comes from its enormous front-end grip and traction, aided by its fantastic mechanical torque-sensing limited-slip differential. Once you dial into the way it works – the amount of grip available is directly related to the amount of throttle you give it – you’ve pounded the three hundred eight GTi.
You want to tighten your line in any given corner, permitting the car to pull you through? Plain – just give it more throttle, and cling on to the shirt-button steering wheel. And for that reason, and pretty much that reason alone, the three hundred eight GTi has almost everything it needs to be the greatest cheap prompt car money can buy.
Click here for the utter Peugeot three hundred eight review
Skoda Octavia vRS 230
The Skoda Octavia vRS has long been used by the police, and if it can get through day after day at the palms of criminal-chasing coppers, it has to be pretty rapid. It needs to be supremely comfy, too.
Weigh in the low cash price and rock-bottom PCP monthly payments – which make it the cheapest to finance – and I’d wager that this is the best car per pound in our roundup.
Sharing its engine with the Golf GTi, the Octavia isn’t that powerful in this company, but offers slew of muscle on the road, pulling fairly hard from low engine speeds, while providing a satisfying hit of extra acceleration if you work the engine tighter. With shorter gears than the Volkswagen, there’s little difference in speed inbetween the two, but the Octavia does kick up more wind and road noise on the motorway.
Select Sport mode and the engine note hardens and the steering becomes stronger, suggesting acute responses around arches. In Normal mode, the steering is a bit less precise, but it treads a good line inbetween being satisfying to drive swift, while remaining comfy enough when you’re not in a hurry.
Pitch the Octavia into a arch and it grips strongly, with little bodyroll to throw you off course. Accelerate early in a corner and the front tyres can begin to scrabble, but there’s a good balance inbetween power and traction. Other pluses are the relatively sleek, comfy rail and racy-looking seats that hold you tightly without being too contoured for long journeys.
Admittedly, the gearchange isn’t as slick as the Golf’s, but it’s miles better than the three hundred eight GTi. The brakes, meantime, don’t suggest fairly the bite of the Golf, while the Peugeot’s large discs suggest even more stopping strength. Frankly, tho’, if it’s good enough for cash-strapped speed-seeking police compels, it’s good enough for us.
Click here for the total Skoda Octavia review
Volkswagen Golf GTi
I’ll be the very first to concede the Golf isn’t the most xxx, or indeed the most thrilling, hot hatchback on sale. But what does impress is its capability to perform well in such a vast number of situations.
On a taut and twisty autotest-style track, the Golf felt more agile and upbeat than its Octavia vRS stablemate, with a more nimble feel tucking into corners. It’s neat and clean like the Skoda, but just feels that bit more responsive to sensitive inputs from the driver, in a similar way the quicker three hundred eight GTi does.
However, the Peugeot feels even more entertaining at the limit – but it comes slightly undone out on the open road with a fidgety rail and overly acute steering compared with the VW.
The Golf offers strong spectacle from its 230hp Two.0-litre turbo engine and, on a regular road, it feels both sporty and well balanced, meaning you don’t have to be in the mood to drive it at ten-tenths all the time.
It’s civilised and grown-up, but if you want to have a bit of joy you can do, with a lovely linear power delivery and prompt throttle response. In the corners there’s little assets roll and there’s ample grip to keep you on track, while the steering feels nicely weighted – even in more sensible driving modes.
On a more subjective note, the Golf looks fine in GTi spec. There’s enough of a difference over a regular Golf to attract attention on the road – namely down to the crimson trim, honeycomb grille and GTi-specific alloys.
Inwards, there’s little to differentiate over a normal Golf aside from the standard-fit tartan seats (not on our test car), but that’s part of the charm. It’s a rapid version of a good car that’s just as capable on a run to the peak as it is displaying up to a posh hotel. The best part is you can still love the excursion in-between destinations. You can’t much more ‘everyday’ than that.
Click here for the total VW Golf review
Best cheap prompt front-wheel drive car
In the end our group of testers went for the two-tone option. While the Skoda and the Golf – both using the same platform and engine – were an outstanding enough pair, they were both ultimately lacking in entertainment against the engaging three hundred eight GTi.
This was most likely down to the 308’s outstanding traction and front-end grip and the adjustable track-biased treating. It might have been a different result had we been testing in the Welsh mountains.
But as it is, it’s very first blood to the French.
Parkers’ recommended rear-wheel drive choices
While relatively unusual at the lower-cost end of the joy car market, rear-wheel drive offers the purest configuration for the keen driver. Separating the driven wheels from the steering means uncorrupted treating. You’re able to use your right foot to adjust the car’s trajectory mid-bend, too.
When things are slimy you also have to be on the ball that little bit more than front- or four-wheel drive too, as that tail will want to sway broad when you steer.
Toyota GT86
If it were merely about joy treating, the GT86 would have walked away with this test. It’s the most entertaining – especially on the race track, where its fabulous steering, uncorrupted rear-wheel drive chassis and honed suspension combine to demonstrate the rest how it’s done.
You don’t need big speed to explore what this car’s talents are. It’s all readily available at far lower speeds.
The GT86’s visible disadvantage is its practicality. It has only two doors, and the rear seats are next to worthless. Its boot isn’t just one of the smallest here in terms of overall volume, but also has an awkwardly shaped opening that makes loading larger items pretty difficult.
Another issue is its spectacle. While the Two.0-litre petrol engine provides a keen engine note and near-instantaneous throttle response, on paper its 0-62mph sprint of 7.7 seconds is absolutely ruined by all but the Mazda.
Furthermore, you have to use a lot of revs to get any meaningful acceleration. This means you have to switch gear more often. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing thanks to the rewardingly involving shift activity, but there’s less plasticity there for motorway overtakes and such.
You have to work this car hard, but then that’s where it’s at its best.
Click here for the total Toyota GT86 review
Mazda MX-5 RF
Mazda has been building MX-5s for very almost three decades – and this RF is the very latest. The initials stand for Retractable Fastback, and as you can see from the pictures, it moves the MX-5 slightly away from its typical back-to-basics rear-wheel drive sports car convenience zone.
Despite this cool roof arrangement, it’s noticeably the cheapest car here. On the road it’s a treat. Supple suspension absorbs bumps with meditative tranquil, while the solidity of the raised roof increases structural integrity, which equals enhanced cornering precision.
The six-speed gearbox is snickety-sweet, while the 160hp Two.0-litre engine means this is the very first generation of MX-5 that feels genuinely prompt out of the box – tho’ it is still far slower than all but the GT86 in this test.
However, drop the roof, and the wind noise generated by the buttresses behind you is enough to cause spontaneous insanity – and any potential MX-5 customer should be wary of just how cramped the Mk4 is inwards.
Worse still, that soft suspension can swiftly see the treating turn unruly when pressing on – something that’s exacerbated on our taut and twisty test track arrangement, as you can see in the accompanying movie.
In the right arms, unruly can mean masses of joy, but the GT86 manages to produce this kind of entertainment without feeling fairly so out of control…
Click here for the utter Mazda MX-5 RF review
Best cheap swift rear-wheel drive car
In the battle of the rear-driven sports cars, there’s one clear winner. The GT86 is better to drive, more practical and comfier too. It’s arguably the same car as the Subaru BRZ, so check out is Japanese sister car before committing to this future classic Toyota.
While the Toyota’s cabin is arguably less well-finished and the infotainment system isn’t fairly as slick, we can’t mark it down too dramatically when the test is all about driving. But factor in the Mazda’s bargain-basement price, and it’s brilliant on-road dynamics, we’d joyfully recommmend.
That’s not something we’d say about the Mazda’s Italian sister, the Fiat one hundred twenty four Spider.
The Parkers Verdict
And the best cheap swift car of two thousand seventeen is…
Having two variables in this test – swift and cheap – presents a bit of a problem; in relative terms we have a spectrum of cars that sit somewhere inbetween cheap but slow at one end and rapid but expensive at the other. So how to work out which is best?
A plain way to pick a winner would be to work out which gives you the most horsepower for the least money, and surprise-surprise, Ford sells the cheapest nags. Buy a standard RS and each of its three hundred fifty horses will cost you £92.Nineteen.
The most expensive stable? The Mazda with its fancy roof and relatively low output comes with a £162.47 price tag per pony. The Toyota is the next most expensive, followed by the VW, SEAT, Skoda, Peugeot and final the Subaru, which is good value but still adrift of the Ford at £106.6/hp.
With its extra 25hp the Mountune car is even better value at £88.44/hp. That’s because the kit costs only £900 – half the price of the VW Golf’s leather seats.
Power isn’t everything of course – the Ford Concentrate RS is fairly intense, so perhaps a less powerful but lighter car could out-sprint it? No, with a 0-62mph time of Four.Five seconds, it’s also the fastest.
It even wins forearms down on factors you can’t type into a formula – the smile it puts on your face, the noise it’ll extracts from your passengers, and the distinctly un-4WD nature of its pendulous rear axle.
Hopefully this is painting a picture of the remarkable value the Concentrate RS represents, but if you’re not coaxed, there are duo of other mega-hatch options to consider. A Mercedes-AMG A forty five or Audi RS three Sportback suggest similar power and 4WD, sure.
Just find another £10,000 for the former, and £15,000 for the latter.
That’s the reason the Ford Concentrate RS Mountune is our Parkers Pick of cheap rapid cars.