A hot hatchback in the 1970s and 1980s was the vehicle of choice for young racers on a budget who couldn’t afford a thoroughbred sports car.
But forty years later, these models are being contested by some of the most demanding and ruthless vehicle collectors.
This is because the values of this class and era of car accelerate faster than a Mk2 Golf GTI pulling out of a McDonald’s parking lot on a Friday night in 1982.
But which of the hot hatches of this extraordinary generation has risen the most in value in just the last five years? Classic car valuation guru John Mayhead, UK editor of the Hagerty Price Guide, has the answer…
Which hot hatch from the 1970s and 1980s has increased in value the most in the last five years? John Mayhead, Hagerty’s classic car pricing specialist, can give you the answer…
Juan says: These cars are what every car enthusiast growing up in the 1970s and 1980s wanted.
Racing versions were everywhere, racing through forests or shooting dice together in BTCC races, and these were the ones we saw on the roads.
Many were beaten, crashed or robbed; Finding one today that has survived in excellent original condition is difficult, but those who made it are now very, very collectible.
And it’s the Fast Fords that still lead when it comes to classic hot hatch values… but just barely.
This 1985 Escort RS Turbo S1 is no ordinary fast Ford. It was driven by Princess Diana and in August 2022 it set a new record when it sold at auction for a whopping £650,000.
Of all the Fast Fords, the one that has soared in value the most in recent years is the 1980s Sierra RS Cosworth. The limited edition RS500 Cosworth now commands prices north of £100,000 when good examples come up for auction
One of the most affordable fast Fords of this era is the Fiesta XR2, but even these are increasing in value at some rate.
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The latest Hagerty price guide shows that average performance values for Fords from the 1970s and 1980s have risen 31.9 percent over the past five years, just barely edging out Renault into second place.
John Mayhead, editor of the Hagerty UK price guide
The team here at Hagerty grouped the hot hatches together and then tracked the average value over the past five years.
Values of fast Fords – the Escort RS, XR3 and Turbo, Fiesta XR2 and RS, and Sierra
Renault (5 Turbo and Clio Williams) came in second with 28.9 percent, while Audi (Ur Quattro) came in third with 27.6 percent.
Volkswagen (Golf GTI and Rallye) increased by 19.7 percent and Peugeot (205 GTi, CTi and Rallye) by 5.2 percent.
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Hagerty’s deep dive into the changing hot hatch values of the 1970s and 1980s includes the Renault 5 Turbo, another road car born from a manufacturer’s desire to compete in Group B. Hot hatch prices Renault hatchbacks have risen on average almost 30% in the last 5 years
The Quattro represents Audi for this generation of hatchback. Values of Audis from this era have risen 27.6% in the last five years, says Hagerty
Volkswagen Golf GTIs are gaining value lately, especially if you can get your hands on a great example of the Mk1 version (pictured)
Values of hot hatches from the 70s and 80s (i.e. the 205 GTi pictured) have increased the least in the last 5 years, but they started from a high point in 2019.
Hagerty’s internal analysts decided to ignore homologated versions such as the Sierra RS500, 205 T16, Renault 5 Turbo and Sport Quattro to prevent these valuable versions from dominating the list.
But then we decided we wanted to know how these vehicles had performed over the past five years, so we plotted them separately.
In percentage terms, the Ford is still in the lead: the Sierra RS500 is up almost 67 percent since 2019, with a big increase at the end of 2022.
This increased further in early 2023, when a low mileage model sold for around £600,000. However, we consider this to be an outlier.
The Fast Ford sold for an unfathomable figure! This 1987 Ford Sierra Cosworth RS500 obliterated all previous world records early last year when it sold for a staggering £596,250.
One of the special road cars with limited series Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 homologation will be auctioned over the weekend
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It’s no surprise that Fords dominated the list, given the popularity of the brand’s high-performance models in the UK.
For those who grew up in the 1980s, these were the most aspirational road cars and are extremely collectible today, especially if they have survived in good original condition.
The Audi Quattro is another very popular car here due to its success in rallying, but the big increase in value for this model already occurred in 2019.
French cars are interesting: both high-performance Renaults and Peugeots tend to fetch much higher values when sold in their home country than when sold here.
For example, French auction house Aguttes sold a Renault 5 GT Turbo in April 2022 for €41,660 (£35,500), more than double the Hagerty Price Guide average at the time of £15,500.
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