The sales war for hot hatches in Europe is getting intense, and some compete with sports cars. Recently, the VW Golf Gti was the king, but now SEAT, part of the VW Groupcompetes head-on.

Now along comes the latest version of the MINI with over 200 bhp! Also, there is Ford’s Focus RS, with 300 bhp, the hottest front-drive hatchback out there. The question is whether the car will get that power onto the |ground. Ford is relying on a Quaife torque-sensing differential, and the ESP set up to give plenty of tail wagging. Should out-perform the Honda Civic Type R hot hatch

Four-wheel drive was obviously a better solution but Ford did not want to disrupt production that much – they want the kudos without that much cost and trouble – not surprising given Ford’s finances.

Maybe the boom of sports cars and some supercars is over for a time as people – even well-heeled people – find it necessary to spend less. In that case, the future of the hot hatch looks bright.

MINI John Cooper Works to compete with the Honda Civic Type R

The MINI John Cooper Works might be more fun than the Focus RS, because it is that much smaller - and it is almost as quick. With 211 bhp, the hot new MINI really raises the bar for small high-performance hatches. Fiat-Abarth does produce a really small hot hatch as well, but it will have to go some to catch this little tearaway, which can reach 60 mph in 6.5 seconds.

Even the MINI Cooper S hot hatch is a strong performer, the MINI John Cooper Works get a bigger turbocharger, reworked air-fuel metering system, a free-flow exhaust and improved engine internals.

Like most new BMW engines, this one has plenty of low-speed torque, pushing out 191 lb ft (260Nm) at just 1,850rpm. There is an over-boost function which briefly extends this further to 206 lb ft (280Nm) for overtaking. This is a lot of torque for such a small engine. Should make this little car a real flyer..