Five of the Best Performance Saloons for 2014

Price: £34,720 S Tronic

If you're looking for a performance saloon that's a little bit different, then the Audi S3 saloon will be ideal. The regular A3 saloon is the very first of its kind, and so is the S3 saloon - Audi have never made a saloon out of their hatchback range until now. The saloon S3 features the very same Quattro all-wheel-drive system and engine as the regular S3. The 2.0-litre TFSI engine produces 296 bhp and 280 lb /ft of torque, driving all four wheels via a standard six-speed manual transmission or optional S Tronic automatic. Electronically limited to 155 mph, this small performance saloon will power from 0 - 62 mph in an impressive 4.9 seconds if equipped with the S Tronic gearbox, whilst it's 5.3 seconds for the manual.

This saloon is certainly quick, but more astounding than the power is the handling and the way the S3 makes you feel. In a word, it makes you feel special. The A3 has a class leading cabin and you really do have to sit in an S3 to understand how far ahead materials wise this is to the A-Class and 1-Series - it blows the competition away. Quattro all-wheel-drive is also excellent with this car, offering security when the conditions take a turn for the worse.