1. Five of the Best Hot Hatches at the Paris Show
2. Honda Civic Type R
3. Peugeot 207 GT Turbo
4. Suzuki Swift Sport
5. Audi S3

With little baby hot hatches such as the Suzuki Swift at one end, it's only fair to mention the upper reaches of the segment. Cars in this rarefied atmosphere include the VW Golf R32 and BMW 130i and are really designed to appeal to a different market to your average hot hatch. This arena receives a new contender in Paris, the new Audi S3.

Unlike its six-cylinder competitors from VW and BMW, the Audi uses a four-cylinder engine, albeit turbocharged. In fact, the S3's engine is a development of the direct injection unit found in the Golf GTi (and other VW Group cars); though for the S3 output has been increased to a healthy 261bhp, backed up by 350Nm of torque. One of the Audi's selling points will be the standard quattro four-wheel drive system, enabling the car to deploy its performance safely in all weathers.

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