Our mid-season episode is a real treat for all you petrolheads, as Driven Web Series, powered by PETRONAS Primax, sets out to settle the much-discussed affair of who makes the best hot-hatch today. Those looking for a new fun-to-drive daily driver now have a big pot of choices to pick from. We round up four of the best to find out which is the King of all.

Is it still the Volkswagen Golf GTI, or have others surpassed it? The GTI started it all, and in its latest Mk7 form, is now the best it has ever been. Opposing fire comes from above – the land of premium hatches. Here, we pit the original hot-hatch against the Mercedes-Benz A 250 Sport, BMW 125i Sport and Volvo V40 T5.

Why them, and not the others, we hear you ask? Two simple reasons: these are the ones you can drive everyday (not mere weekend toys), and more importantly, they all have the all-important brand cachet. After all, why would you look at lesser marques when you want to spend North of RM200,000?

In usual Driven Web Series-style, we cover all bases, and then some. There's no twist this time round, but we've added plenty of turns to make up for it. So fellow enthusiasts, you're welcome to sit back, crank up the volume and enjoy the show.