Hot hatchbacks, small cars with a big heart

The Volkswagen Polo 1.6, Skoda Fabia 1.6, Fiat Punto 90HP, Hyundai i20 1.4 Gamma and Tata Indica Vista find their way to this list of the most powerful hot hatchback cars in India

What’s not to like about hot hatchbacks? They’re small, they’re efficient and they’re loaded with big engines that encourage you to flex your right foot a lot more. Here we take a look at India’s small street burners. We’ve set the minimum power output the engine has to put out to qualify as 90 bhp. So that cuts the Maruti Swift, Honda Jazz and Ford Figo out of the race. If the much-loved Fiat Palio was still being produced, it would also have found its way into this list of the most powerful hatchback cars in India.

Volkswagen Polo 1.6

Volkswagen launched its much-awaited top-end Highline variant of the Polo in September. The big-brother in the Polo range has got a more powerful heart – a 1.6 litre 4-cylinder petrol engine that develops maximum power of 105 PS at 5,250 rpm and torque of 153 Nm at 3,750 rpm. Zero to a 100 kmph is dispatched in a claimed 11.1 seconds. It’s the same engine that is found in the more expensive (and heavier) Vento sedan.

The engine is paired with a 5-speed manual transmission. The company claims a mileage of 15.96 kmpl. All the other features except the engine in the 1.6 Polo are the same as the 1.2-litre Polo.

Not much has changed on the exterior. It retains the clear cut German styling of its sibling – no unnecessary frills, just form following function. But some differentiation would have been good as the customer is paying more for it. Some modification would go well to lift the car’s street presence and the owner’s street cred.

Unlike most newer generations of the same car, the Polo has cut flab and actually weighs a few kilos less than its predecessor. Further, contrary to the global trend where cars get taller with each successive generation, the 5th generation Polo is actually shorter than the 4th. Build quality is solid German and should easily handle the abuse meted out by Indian driving conditions.

The new 1.6-litre Polo comes with features such as chrome strip in front grille, body-colored outside door handles and ORVMs, green wedge at top section of wind shield, galvanized body with six years anti-corrosion warranty and 15-inch alloy wheels.

The interior of this car features chrome-coated gear shift knob and internal door handles, chrome interior trims, 1-litre bottle-sized storage compartments and rear seats with 60-40 split folding as well as superior “livon” fabrics. The Polo is also dressed with an array of safety features like dual front airbags, ABS with electronic brake distribution, three-point automatic safety belts and head restraints that counteract the risk of whiplash injury for four occupants.

If a hot hatchback with German engineering is what you need, look no further!

• Price: Rs 6.04 lakhs
  
• Mileage: 15.96 mpl
  
• Power: 105 PS

The 1.6-litre Polo is priced at Rs 6.04 lakhs.

Skoda Fabia 1.6

The Skoda Fabia 1.6 and the Volkswagen Polo 1.6 are virtually identical under the hood. Yes, they share the same 1.6 litre, 4-cylinder, petrol engine that develops 105 bhp at 5,250 rpm and torque of 153 Nm at 3,750 rpm. What’s different is that the Fabia seems slightly more spacious on the inside, compared to the Polo. It’s also about 30 mm longer at 4,000 mm in length, and has a wheelbase that’s about 9 mm longer (not much of a difference really). The Polo is about 40 mm wider, leading to more shoulder room. The weight of both cars is almost identical. As for ground clearance, the Polo is better off at 168 mm, compared to the Fabia’s 158 mm.

Photo: New Skoda Fabia 1.6

The Fabia in Elegance trim comes with front fog lamps, beige upholstery, double DIN music system, and daytime running lights (DRLs). The DRLs are not ideally suited to the Indian market as there is no regulation that mandates it, and you will have passers-by waving to you to tell you to turn your lights off! Only manual air-conditioning is offered on all variants and there is no rear wash/wipe feature.

The Fabia 1.6 also boasts of safety features such as dual airbags, ABS and motor speed regulation or engine braking control (this regulates engine speed to prevent excessive wheelspin). As far as comfort goes, the Fabia is not overly luxurious. It has manually adjustable internal controls for the outside mirrors, and AC vents for the rear that sit under the front seats. The instrument panel has a multi-info display that reads out distance-to-empty and instant mileage figures. The Skoda 1.6 gives an average of about 11 kmpl.

The Fabia 1.6 is priced at Rs. 5.9 lakhs (ex-showroom), a tad cheaper than its cousin, the Polo.

• Price: Rs 5.9 lakhs
  
• Mileage: 11 kmpl
  
• Power: 105 bhp

The Fabia 1.6 is definitely a hot hatch: But the car is too new in India, so we will have to wait and see how the market responds to it.

Fiat Punto 90HP

Designed by the famous Giorgetto Giugiaro of Italdesign, the Fiat Punto 90HP retains the gorgeous looks of its siblings. It is an attractive and spacious car. The styling of the Fiat Punto 90HP stands out in the current automotive scene for the beauty of the exterior line, which is modern, elegant and distinctly ‘Italian’, with tapered rounded lines that seem to be inspired by the sports cars of the 1950s and 1960s.

The Punto is a car which has been created to ‘excite’, Fiat says, but also to express the solidity that comes from superb quality standards. This is borne out by extremely high safety standards and attention to detail. The result is a car that has been given the Euro NCAP five-star rating for passenger safety.

Powered by the Linea’s variable geometry turbo-charged 1.3 multi-jet engine, the peppier Punto produces 90 bhp at 4,000 rpm. Maximum torque produced is now 209 Nm at 2,000 rpm. Displacement is the same, but earlier the engine was tuned for fuel efficiency and produced just 75 bhp. What we now have is an increase of 15 bhp and if driving pleasure is what you are looking for, this is sure going to make you happy. The company is claiming a mileage of around 20 kmpl for the 90HP.

The Punto 90HP will come only in the Emotion Pack trim. That means all the frills, plus chrome door handles a la Linea and 90HP badging at the rear. The interiors of the Fiat Punto 90HP are inspired from the Linea – many switches and controls have been picked from Linea to keep costs low.

Inside, heavily bolstered sports seats provide plenty of support during cornering, and are comfortable on long journeys. The chunky leather steering wheel of Fiat Punto 90HP is a joy to hold, while the dashboard design is simple and well laid out.

Main comfort and convenience features of Fiat Punto 90HP are: electrically adjustable outside rear view mirror, automatic climate control, Blue & Me technology developed jointly by Microsoft & Fiat to connect and sync mobile via Bluetooth and voice dial/read SMSes. Fiat Punto 90HP features customized instrument display setting with My Car, remote foldable key, intelligent rear defogger which switches off after 20 minutes to prevent damage to the glass, convenient driver facing key slot, and intelligent ignition which prevents turning the key when the engine is running.

Fiat Punto 90HP also comes with an MP3 player with 6 speakers, front fog lamps, rear washer, rear wiper, ABS, EBD, rear defogger, alloys and dual front airbags. The Fiat Punto 90 HP is going to be the top-of-the-line Punto for the time being, and prices are suitably higher befitting its status in the line-up. It is priced Rs 6.79 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). Price for the Punto 90 HP in Mumbai will be Rs 7.01 lakh, while Chennai, Bangalore and Kolkata will see price tags around Rs 6.85 lakhs.

• Price: Rs 7.01 lakh
  
• Mileage: 20 kmpl
  
• Power: 90 bhp

The Fiat Punto is a genuine hot hatch alright. But despite offering great products, the company just don’t seem to be doing as well as it should. If a powerful, stylish hatchback car is what you need, you should definitely take it for a test drive.

Hyundai i20 1.4 Gamma

The clever Koreans keep rattling the cages of the opposition by producing high-quality cars with loads of safety and comfort features at prices that make most other car manufacturers look silly at best and greedy at worst. Now power, comes added to that list of goodies for the Hyundai i20 1.4.

The hatchback segment added one more to its swollen kitty with the launch of a more powerful Hyundai i20. This premium hot hatch retains the original’s modern European looks. The i20 is a very stylish and classy car with very elegant exteriors and interiors.

The sleek look and technology of the Hyundai i20 is by and large inspired by the premium hatchback model i30 which has been launched in Europe and Korea. The new Hyundai i20 offers a new 4-cylinder DOHC Gamma petrol engine that produces a 100 bhp from a 1.4 liter engine – effectively making the i20 a leader in horsepower stakes compared to the Honda Jazz, Fiat Grande Punto, Skoda Fabia or the Suzuki Swift. Maximum torque offered is 13.9 kgm at 4,200 rpm.

Equipped with loads of standard safety features, it has ABS, seat belts with pre-tensioner, dual air-bags for the driver and front passenger and auto-unlocking doors. As for interior features, the i20 has a metal finished centre fascia. The i20 was the first of its kind in India to feature cool blue LEDs for eye-soothing illumination in the interior of the car. The tilted and telescopic steering wheel with leather cover and metal finish lends a very classy look to the interiors.

Some of the advanced interior features of the i20 are: cool glove box that keeps your refreshment cool, sunroof for the looks and some fun in the sun, Aux in & USB port for comfort, multi information display, 2 DIN in-dash Audio, Fully Automatic Temperature Control (FATC), premium speakers and tweeters.

The top-end Hyundai i20 automatic with all options which include a sunroof and six airbags will cost Rs 7.72 lakhs. Add registration and insurance costs, and you are talking of around Rs 8 lakhs on the road for the i20 AT in New Delhi. Not a bad deal, considering that it is a premium hatch, and a world-class one too.

• Price: Rs 7.72 lakh
  
• Mileage: NA
  
• Power: 100 bhp

Everyone loves the Hyundai i20; it has everything going for it except for the high price tag.

Tata Indica Vista 90HP

The Indica Vista 90HP will feature the 1.3 L quadrajet engine that produces 90 bhp of peak power and 209 Nm of peak torque. Owing to the lighter chassis of the Indica Vista (50 kg less) when compared to Fiat Punto, the power-to-weight ratio of the 90HP Indica Vista would be slightly higher. This means that acceleration would be slightly better for the Vista when compared to Punto 90HP. The current Indica Vista petrol is powered by a 1,172 cc, 4-cylinder, multipoint fuel injection engine that churns out just 75 hp and a maximum torque of 96 Nm.

The mileage of the new engine is believed to be better than the existing model. Tata may also tweak the suspension and chassis setup so as to match the added power and torque.

The 90HP Vista will cost about Rs.30,000 more (starting from Rs 4.25 lakhs) than the current model.

• Price: Rs 4.25 lakh
• Mileage: NA
  
• Power: 90 bhp

If a super-cheap hot hatch is your thing, then the Indica Vista 90HP is right up your alley.

Honda Jazz 1.5 litre (Upcoming)

Honda will soon add a little zing to its premium hatchback Jazz by launching it with a more powerful 1.5 litre i-Vtec engine, targeting customers interested in performance hatchbacks in India.

According to a Team-BHP member, the production of the current Jazz model in India has been stopped by the company and the new model will arrive in June 2011. The new Jazz will likely have minor changes on the exterior, though no major changes have been confirmed.

The 1.5 litre i-Vtec engine expected on the Jazz is already used in the Honda City; it churns out 118 bhp of peak power at 6,600 rpm and 146 Nm of torque at 4,800 rpm. This engine is known for its refinement, fuel efficiency (around 16 km/litre), peppy performance and quick acceleration. Putting in the 1.5 litre engine in the Jazz will help the hatch set benchmarks in performance and fuel economy. Also read: Honda production cut at Greater Noida plant

The Jazz is spacious car with good quality interiors and decent equipment levels. The present Honda Jazz gets safety features like airbags, ABS (anti-lock braking system) and G-CON Technology (Honda’s occupant survival zone tech).

• Price: Not confirmed, expected to be 7 lakh or more.
• Mileage: 16 km/litre
• Power: 118 bhp