Mégane GT vs Cee’d GT vs Octavia VRS
We turn up the heat by picking from three fun-to-drive warm hatches on the second-hand market
Warm hatches from Renault, Kia and Skoda rated
Kia Cee’d GT
Cee’d 1.6 T-GDI GT Years: 2016 to date Engine: 1.6-litre 4cyl, 201bhp Ins group: 26 Official econ/co2: 38.2mpg/170g/km Why? Kia’s Cee’d looks good and has decent build quality, plus it’s reliable and cheap as a used buy. Prices from: £10,750
ON paper, the Kia Cee’d GT is the least powerful and most thirsty choice here. But it balances itself out by being the cheapest car to buy used by a big margin.
Outside, the body has been bolstered, with a large GT badge on the grille. However, the aggressive exterior doesn’t quite match the performance under the bonnet, with both rivals a little more powerful and better to drive. The 380-litre boot is also by far the smallest here. The Cee’d did rank a very impressive fifth in our Driver Power 2017 new car satisfaction survey, and in the process was the top compact family model in the poll.
Renault Mégane GT
Mégane GT Nav EDC Years: 2016 to date Engine: 1.6-litre 4cyl, 202bhp Ins group: 27 Official econ/co2: 41.7mpg/134g/km Why? Clever tech and striking styling score the Clio points. It’s easy to live with on a daily basis, too. Prices from: £14,000
THE Renault Mégane comes with innovative safety features that rivals here can’t match. Four-wheel steering turns the rear wheels in the opposite direction to the fronts when cornering under 50mph, adding stability.
The GT also has ‘warm’ hatch touches that add a level of performance. It features an RS Drive button that sharpens steering inputs by 40 per cent, for example. The noticeably sleek body looks more appealing than its rivals, while it emits the least CO2 out of this trio. The latest Mégane didn’t feature in Driver Power 2017, although we haven’t heard of any major faults with the car.
Skoda Octavia VRS
Octavia VRS 2.0 TSI 220 DSG Years: 2015 to date Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl, 217bhp Ins group: 29 Official econ/co2: 44.1mpg/146g/km Why? The Octavia offers superior practicality and performance, with competitive running costs. Prices from: £16,730
SKODA’S Octavia VRS can lay claim to being the best performer here. Packing a 2.0-litre turbocharged in-line four under the bonnet, it has a 15bhp advantage over its rivals.
Power hasn’t been sacrificed for running costs, with the Skoda showcasing the best economy, too. It’s the most practical of the three as well, with a big 590-litre boot. But the petrol VRS will cost the most to purchase second-hand, and the exterior is plain.
The Octavia scored highly in our Driver Power survey, placing 21st overall and sixth in the compact family car class. Owners were very pleased with reliability, too.