Auto manufacturers seem to have an on-again, off-again relationship with hot hatches in America. As soon as a company like Ford releases a hot hatch like the Focus RS with a massive marketing blitz and full fanfare, the aggressive design proves divisive and the exhaust too loud to keep potential buyers happy.
Meanwhile, BMW's revamp of the Mini Cooper keeps morphing into larger, uglier variants—the same thing has happened with the Fiat 500, which has been canceled in the United States although its 500L and 500X siblings remain on the market. Perhaps the only exception has been Volkswagen's sports car variants of the Golf, the GTI and the R .
The rest of the world loves hot hatches, though. So why can't automotive manufacturers manage to get Americans to love the format, too?
Well, perhaps the entire industry should get together and put together a media strategy to finally convince the buying public in the United States to rethink hot hatches and accept that they really are the perfect cars that can do anything!
Go Anywhere And Do Anything
The problem that automakers face when trying to build a hot hatch that Americans will actually learn to love comes down to absolute nonsense, anyway—and the mindset could easily be changed by the right product. The reasons the rest of the world purchases so many hot hatches are manifold. They're small, fun cars that have enough room for the family while still being able to manage the tight roads and cramped parking so common in the rest of the world.
A major plus for the hot hatch segment also comes down to efficiency. The classic recipe for a hot hatch is a peppy engine powering the front wheels—though powerful turbos and all-wheel-drive systems have fit into the mix, as well. Regardless, thanks to a low aerodynamic profile and light curb weight, hot hatches tend to be extremely efficient from a fuel-consumption perspective.
Another major reason the rest of the world might prefer hot hatches more than consumers in the United States comes down to the manual transmission—to maximize fuel economy and fun simultaneously, many hot hatches are sold with stick shifts and clutch pedals. And the resultant combination of a car that is fun to drive, can fit the whole family, can squeeze into tight places, and sip fuel with the best hybrids proves how great the segment truly is.
And yet, Americans prefer big cars on wide-open roads, while gas prices in the States are much lower than in foreign countries. As proven by the rising popularity of crossovers, which offer a higher perspective for better visibility among all the trucks on American roads, citizens of this country tend to go by the maxim that bigger is better—just look at the pickup trucks coming out of Ford, Chevy, and Ram factories these days.
Hot Hatches As Racecars
Throw in the fact that America never really got into rally racing as much as the rest of the world, where models like the Lancia Integrale, Renault 5 Turbo, and Audi RS2 get their provenance and popularity, and the hot hatch doesn't have the same kind of panache here, either.
But things could change! Audi seems to have scored a hit with the beefy RS6 Avant, following Mercedes-Benz's hardcore AMG wagons into a station wagon market that tends not to attract big sales figures here, either. Plus, the Honda Civic Type R has added to the hot hatch segment in a big way by setting record lap times (for the members of the public who pay attention to those things) while attracting plenty of attention thanks to over-aggressive styling.
As government mandates for fuel efficiency grow more and more strict, automakers might be forced to trend in a more positive manner towards hot hatches, as well, as electric vehicles and hybrids seem to disappoint enthusiasts who enjoy anything other than straight-line speed. (Not that there's anything wrong with loving a hardcore family sedan or SUV that can run quarter-mile times in the same league as supercars, the problem is that they just don't offer the same fun as rowing the gears on a six-speed or taking a lightweight, rear-wheel-drive car through some tight twisties.)
And the enthusiast car culture in America, if anything, seems only to be growing and growing thanks to the fact that anyone with a computer or smartphone can find like-minded fans of extremely specific market niches with ease these days. All that remains to be seen is whether hot hatches can manage an upswing in popularity here in the United States that coincides with some well-built, stylish hot hatches all at once and maybe, just maybe, Americans were to learn to love these go-anywhere, do-anything cars as much as the rest of the world loves them.
Sources: Car Keys, Motor Authority, and Clean Technica.