FOCUS ST

The 2.3-litre turbo engine offers a meaty 276bhp and 310lb ft of torque to lean on. You want the standard six-speed manual gearbox, not the seven-speed auto option (which has to make do with a mere 306lb ft of torque). 

And no sporty car these days can have any self-respect without a mode button, and here it's mounted on the steering wheel. Choices: Slippery, Normal, Sport and Track. It affects the usual stuff: throttle map, ESP threshold, sound enhancement. Add the Performance or Track packs and these unlock more damper bandwidth too.