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
8/10VolkswagenGolf 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
8/10Volkswagene-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.
6/10SeatLeon£18,645 – £31,095Seat’s strongest car in a long time, the Leon is now a Golf-baiting player.
8/10SeatLeon Cupra£18,645 – £31,095Not as cheap as you’d expect, but still one of the best hot hatches on sale.
7/10SkodaOctavia£19,480 – £28,500Solid, gimmick-free all-rounder that’s slightly less good at everything than a Golf, but cheaper for it.
7/10SkodaOctavia Estate£20,680 – £29,700Well thought out, versatile and thoroughly decent family estate. The weeniest bit boring
7/10Nissan370Z£27,805 – £38,305Tail-happy dynamics and a meaty V6 powerplant. Don't let the TC spoil your fun
7/10VolkswagenSharan£29,910 – £40,290It’s big, expensive and not especially clever, but it is really, really good at ferrying lots of people about. Really, really quietly.
7/10SeatAlhambra£30,415 – £38,270Seat’s most complete car. It has no real weaknesses – but we just know you’d rather have the VW…
7/10AudiTT Roadster£44,760Facelifted Audi Roadster features revised engines, tweaked visuals – and very little amusement
