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Hot-hatches these days are priced anywhere from the $26,000 to nearly $75,000, from the tiny terror city cars to the new breed of premium-branded European mega-hatches. In between those two price points there’s a lot of space to be occupied, and there’s an emerging class of warm-to-hot-hatches that aim to offer more balanced abilities than their three-chilli compatriots.

That’s where these three come in – the Kia Pro_cee’d GT, Hyundai Veloster SR Turbo and Renault Megane RS265 Sport.
All are priced below $37,000 drive-away, giving them a unique talking point against a brigade led by the Volkswagen Golf GTI and Ford Focus ST (and hardcore editions of the Renault Megane RS265) that start on the wrong side of that price point.

The Kia Pro_cee’d GT is the brand’s first sports hatch and the most affordable of this trio. We’ve already rated the Pro_cee’d GT as something of a revelation for the South Korean brand, the first time it has produced a properly entertaining, properly dynamic hatchback. This is big news, then…
Its Hyundai sibling, the Veloster SR Turbo, is an older contender, but this style-focused 2+1 door sporty hatch has cemented its place in the market as one of the best-selling sports cars going (partly because many of its more affordable rivals don’t come with an automatic gearbox). As with its South Korean partner in crime, the Veloster was (and is) a game changer for Hyundai, its quirky bodystyle an admirable step away from the norm.
But while the Kia and Hyundai have stepped up to the challenge, Renault has taken something of a step down for its latest hot-hatch offering, the Renault Megane RS265 Sport limited edition, which will only be sold here until July (but will likely come as a regular production model in the facelifted version thereafter).

The 2.0-litre turbocharged Megane outguns its 1.6-litre turbo competitors on power alone, but it misses out on some equipment, including the more expensive RS 265 Cup model’s brilliant mechanical limited slip differential that helps make it one of the most arresting hot-hatches ever made.
With a bigger engine – not to mention the pedigree that comes with its Renault Sport lineage – the Megane would appear to be hard to beat, so what better challenge for the South Koreans?
There are other questions begging to be answered, too: Is the RS265 Lite (as we came to call it) as brilliant as the pricier RS265 models? Or can its Asian rivals offer up compelling arguments despite their kilowatt deficits?

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