8/10VolkswagenGolf (Mk 7)£18,325 – £33,925It defines this sector and should be its default buy. You simply can’t go wrong.
8/10VolkswagenGolf (Mk8)£18,325 – £33,925New eighth-gen Golf remains the lingua-franca of the hatch world. A finely polished machine
8/10AudiS1£18,230 – £31,030Well done Audi, this one's a proper little stonker: fast, small, fun, a 4wd hot hatch done properly.
8/10VolkswagenGolf GTI/R£18,325 – £33,925Overlook the fact it’s so good that it’s almost joyless: the latest Golf GTI is very desirable indeed.
8/10VolkswagenGolf Cabriolet£18,325 – £33,925After a classy cabrio but don't have Audi-like cash? Try this. GTI expensive but worth it; R perhaps not
8/10SkodaKodiaq£25,875 – £43,155A Top Gear award winner in 2016, and rightly so – Skoda’s big crossover is all things to all families.
8/10VauxhallCorsa VXR£12,390 – £34,105Vauxhall has turned the Corsa VXR into a convincing fast pocket rocket.
8/10VolkswagenTiguan£24,785 – £41,350The latest Tiguan feels solid, sensible and laser-guided at its target market
8/10ToyotaGT86£26,495 – £32,164The simplest and most exciting Toyota in years is also a real pleasure to drive
8/10LotusElise£39,720 – £48,220If you really, truly care about driving, the Lotus Elise is about as obvious an answer as water being wet and fire being hot
8/10Volkswagene-Golf£18,325 – £33,925The e-Golf is an EV that works for most of us, most of the time. A truly convincing electric car.
Best in class8/10FordFiesta£15,770 – £24,130Cracking supermini is one of the best cars Ford makes. Britain’s top seller? It makes you proud.
7/10AudiA5 Cabriolet£37,330 – £57,050It’s a seductive car, the new A5 Cabriolet, and while more dynamically accomplished than its predecessor, still more of a grand touring boulevardier rather than a B-road hustler. But what an ownership proposition.
7/10AudiA5 Sportback£34,525 – £56,240Beautifully built and beautiful to look at. But the A4 is 98 per cent as good, cheaper and less pretentious.
7/10Mercedes-BenzGLA£24,915 – £36,420A likeable thing. Go for a higher powertrain and it makes most sense.
7/10FordKuga£22,790 – £37,730The new Kuga is safer and roomier than before. Less fun, but a better family car
7/10RenaultClio 200 Renaultsport£13,870 – £21,595Softer and a little disappointing: the new RS isn’t what it was. Still fun, but we hoped for more…
7/10VolkswagenPolo£15,185 – £23,255It's a sizeable leap, and enough to shove the Polo up to the upper reaches of the supermini order.
7/10AudiTT Roadster£44,760Facelifted Audi Roadster features revised engines, tweaked visuals – and very little amusement
7/10SkodaOctavia Estate£20,680 – £29,700Well thought out, versatile and thoroughly decent family estate. The weeniest bit boring
7/10RenaultClio£13,870 – £21,595Cheery and characterful, the new Clio is a genuinely appealing supermini.
