The GTI starts at $33,670 (all prices include a $1,225 destination charge), and the Golf R’s base price is $48,325.

Admittedly, competition wasn’t strong: Mk3 Golf GTI, anyone? But the Alfa provided a ‘one of the most characterful four-cylinder engines in production’ and ‘lucid’ steering, as per ...

Value for money competition comes from within, too, the latest mk3 Skoda Octavia vRS sharing much of the Golf GTI’s mechanical make-up – engine and transmissions included – and therefore ...