‘Whatever I go for next, it’s got to be fun’

‘I just love it,’ says reader Nathan Horn of his Mk7 Golf GTI. ‘In fact, it’s hard to think of anything I don’t like about it. Although...’

The aeronautical engineer has owned his Golf GTI for nearly two years, and the time is drawing near to find a replacement. While the GTI is a fun steer, it’s still one of the most strait-laced performance cars you can buy and Nathan can’t help but hanker for something a little faster and more exciting.

‘Whatever it is, it’s got to be fun. I could potentially take a small drop in practicality if it’s significantly more exciting to drive.’

Versatility is important, though: ‘The nice thing about the Golf is that in winter you can cruise to work without thinking it’s going to put you in the ditch, but when it’s dry you can put the hammer down and really enjoy it. It’s not that expensive to run, and I haven’t had any problems with it.’

This Golf was Horn’s first brand-new buy, taking advantage of the thenimminent Mk7.5 facelift to get a deal on the Mk7. ‘I wanted a three-door with the Performance Pack [extra power, brake upgrade, limited-slip di ] but ended up with a standard five-door. But having not driven one with the Performance Pack I don’t miss it.’

Hot hatches loom large in Nathan’s car-buying history. His first car was a Mk3 GTI (not the breed’s high-water mark), followed by a brace of Mk2s (much better). A Seat Ibiza Cupra and a Renault Megane RS 225 (‘really fun to drive, just felt like it was going to fall to bits’) followed, together with a Mazda MX-5 Mk1 project car (modded first with ‘cheap, nasty coil-overs, then higher-quality ones’, plus a turbo conversion) for road and occasional track use. But he maintains the Mk7 GTI is the most fun of all the cars he’s owned.

Horn’s budget has grown ever so slightly from the high twenties the Golf cost to a low-thirties cost-cap. Let’s see what he makes of the trio we’ve come up with…