Hey, I really want to get a hot hatch that's zippy & fun to drive, but it has to be a 5-door & a auto transmission & I want to have longevity too. What is the best ones out there?
Most hot hatches are manual transmissions, but there are a couple sporty automatic options. My #1 choice would be a Mazda 3 Turbo Hatchback. This is a brand new car, but it only comes with an automatic and it’s got a peppy 227 horsepower and 310 lbs-ft of torque. A Honda Civic Hatchback Sport is a good choice. These are not fast, but they are zippy with 180 horsepower & I would recommend you go for a 2019+ model because Honda seemed to address the oil dilution issue from 2019 onwards.
There are plenty of well built reliable hot hatches.
Obviously the Honda Civic Type R is a great car - if you have that kind of money.
If you’re looking for something way cheaper, the Volvo C30 is a super reliable car that handles great (but it’s only available as a 3 door). I own one (you can see it in my profile picture) and I don’t remember having any serious issues with it ever although I drive it very fast.
If you live in Europe, I’d really recommend either the SEAT Leon FR and or any SEAT with the CUPRA badge.
They’re not the best built but I saw them get to 120,000 miles relatively trouble tree.
Another great hot hatch is the YARIS GR, it’s a 3 cylinder but it does go fast.
If you want more info on the C30, “Jay Leno‘s garage” got a great video on his Volvo C30 Polestar.
And feel free to ask anything about it.
The Honda Civic Type R is awesome and a whole lot of fun. It would be my pick.
OP said it needs to be an automatic transmission. Civic Type R is manual only.
Thanks for that. Somehow missed that part. In that case, maybe a VW GTI would work. That's pretty much the original hot hatch.