Price: £22,995 | Year: 1991 | Engine: 1.4-litre inline 4, 113bhp
Hot hatches today have lost some of the charm and charisma of their forebears, exemplified by the Renault 5 GT Turbo, an ‘80s icon and one that adorned the bedroom walls of many a young petrolhead of the era.
One of the original hot hatches, the GT Turbo laid the foundations for years to come - here was a lightweight, small hatchback with aggressive styling and a punchy engine, a recipe that’s still incredibly attractive to this day.
First introduced in 1986, the Renault 5 GT Turbo boasted a 1.4-litre inline 4 engine which pumped out 113bhp thanks in part to its Garrett T2 turbocharger. And, as the car only weighed 830kg, a 0-60mph time of just 7.3 seconds was achieved, giving this undersized car true sports car-like performance. To put things in perspective, the BMW E30 M3 of the same era achieved 0-60 in 6.4 seconds, so the little Renault was within a second of its time.
The GT Turbo handled just as well as it went though, thanks to its trick suspension set up and sharp rack and pinion steering. And of course, it looked the part, with loud styling features including a boxy bodykit, bright red decals and alloy wheels, which marked it out as something special from standard Renault 5s.
This particular Renault 5 GT Turbo is finished in tungsten grey metallic, and benefits from a full respray which, along with its mileage of just 49,931 miles ensures it looks just as good now as it did back when it left the factory in 1991. A hot hatch classic, it’s only set to increase in value as the years go on.
For more on hot hatches, check out our feature on the Peugeot 205 GTI.
