5 Contenders for the First Hot Hatch

Author: Nathan Chadwick
Images: Manufacturers

For many, the Volkswagen Golf GTI defined the hot hatch – revvy four-cylinder, front-wheel-drive and perky handling, all in a practical shopping car-based shape.

It was all a far cry from the traditional view of what a sportscar could be – a light and nimble roadster, or a throaty coupé. However, they would soon fall victim to the cult of hot hatch, with the popularity of the Golf GTI the key factor.

Of course, it’s not quite as simple as that. Though the Golf GTI was first shown as a concept in 1975 ahead of a 1976 launch, it would take a further three years before right-hand-drive versions entered the UK market. More pertinently, it wasn’t really the first hot hatchback.

Some might argue that the Mini has a hold on that title – after all, it was a small four-pot with front-wheel drive that handled well. But it is classed as a saloon car by right.

So which is the first hot hatchback? We count back from 1976, taking in the cars that shaped the formula. We even come up with a possibly controversial suggestion for the very first…

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Renault 5 Alpine/Gordini (1976)

Though Volkswagen first showed the Golf GTI as a concept in 1975, it was actually beaten to the punch in the showrooms two months before by the Renault 5 Alpine.

It blended a 1.4-litre Renault Sierra pushrod engine with a crossflow cylinder head, enough for 92bhp – twice that of the standard 1.1-litre Renault 5. It featured front fog lights, alloy wheels and stiffened suspension. However it had a torsion bar at the rear, augmented with anti-roll bars. It could hit 110mph, and crack 60mph in 9.7 seconds.

Because Simca owned the rights to the Alpine name, for the UK market it was called the Gordini after Amédée Gordini, a French car tuner long associated with Renault. UK enthusiasts would have to wait until 1979 to get their hands on a right-hand drive version.

Alfa Romeo Alfasud ti (1973)

The story of the Alfasud is a fascinating tale of sociopolitics as much as it is a car, but however poorly the project turned out, the car itself was a technological marvel. Its front-wheel drive layout, Boxer twin-cam engine, disc brakes front and rear and rack-and-pinion steering made it thoroughly modern. The mixture of MacPherson struts, rear beam axle with a Watt’s linkage and low nose (thanks to the boxer engine) for low centre of gravity made for a fine-handling car even in its most basic form. It also looked suitably perky too, thanks to the pen work of Giorgetto Giugiaro.

The ti model of 1973 added a 1.2-litre engine with a twin-choke Weber carb, which elicited a heady 67bhp. This meant 99mph was achievable, though just looking at it stirred the soul – special wheels, quad headlamps, spoilers and a three-spoke steering wheel all added to the glam.

Simca 1100 Ti (1973)

The Simca 1100 was already a bit of a trendsetter even before the hot Ti model. It was the first family hatchback and small estate car to use a transverse engine with front-wheel drive, matched to independent suspension front and rear with anti-roll bars, plus disc brakes and rack-and-pinion steering. It also had folding rear seats! All these things would become prerequisites of the hatchback breed, and is – according to legend – largely responsible for VW ditching rear-wheel drive.

This set up was a fine basis for something hotter – and with the Ti it was approximately 40 per cent hotter. Raising the horsepower from 58bhp to 85bhp resulted in a top speed of 100mph and a 0-60mph time of 12 seconds. To look the part, it had front and rear spoilers, a black grille and alloy wheels. You could only have it in red, and it was never available in right-hand drive. Boo, hiss.

Autobianchi A112 Abarth (1971)

The Marcello Gandini-styled A112 was a remarkably popular car – more than 1.2 million left Autobianchi’s Milan factory over 17 years. Based on the Fiat 128 platform, it was designed to replace the Bianchina and Primula, and used Fiat 850’s 903cc OHV engine in front-engined, front-wheel-drive form for the first time.

The Abarth edition was developed by Fiat’s motor sports arm, taking the engine to 982cc via an increased stroke. It also had a sportier exhaust, a twin-choke carb and an altered camshaft, which garnered 58bhp. This grew to 70bhp in 1975 when displacement grew to 1050cc – a lot for a car weighing just 670kg. You could also specify a five-speed gearbox.

It proved to be very successful in rallying, and even had a one-make racing series dedicated to it.

AMC Gremlin (1970)

Who’d have thought that a car genre largely associated with Europe and Japan could have a link to the USA?

It is true that the Gremlin is rear-wheel drive – a layout only rarely used in the hot hatch realm – and you could get the car with six-cylinder and V8 engines too. You could get a VW-derived four-pot, however.

However, as a statement of intent, the Gremlin exhibited a fresh new look – reportedly sketched on an air sickness bag – that used the Kammback tail on a shortened AMC Hornet chassis. It started life with either a 3.3-litre straight six with 128bhp, or a 3.8-litre straight six with 145bhp.

The car was fairly shocking to the conservative car world in the USA, though it was popular among youthful drivers; in the end, it sold more than 670,000 examples.

Only a handful came to the UK, mostly in left-hand drive, though some were converted to right-hand drive while here. But does the Gremlin really count as the first hot hatch? Discuss.