Megane RS
a handsome
beast; shame
about the fake
vents, though
APRIL 2019 | CARMAGAZINE.CO.UK 119eplacing one of the most
versatile and easy-to-enjoy
hot hatches ever made
won’t be easy. Reader Na-
than Horn’s VW Golf Mk7
GTI is posh enough to park
outside a stately home,
practical enough to haul
hedge-trimmings to the tip and potent enough
to knock your socks off on a good road.
How do you follow that? CAR is here to help.
Nathan’s after a car for £33k or less, well-rounded
enough to use as a daily driver and practical
enough to have space for occasional passengers,
but – crucially – a step up the excitement scale
from the GTI. We’ve assembled a trio of CAR
favourites we believe fit the bill perfectly. Horn
and I will take back-to-back turns in their driv-
ing seats before swapping notes over a cuppa and
picking a winner.
Can we help replace the ultimate all-rounder?
Let’s find out.The new option:
Renault Megane RS Cup
THE HARDCORE HOT HATCHLet’s start with one of the Golf ’s toughest new
competitors, the reborn Megane Renault Sport.
Prices start under £28k, although the optioned-
up Volcanic Orange car tested here tops £34k.
That paint turns heads at 20 paces, as do
those wheelarches, bulging like a comic-book
hero’s biceps. ‘I bet if you measure the width
of the Megane and the M2, there’s not much
difference between them,’ Nathan reckons. (As
it turns out, the Megane’s actually a smidge
wider than the hot-rod BMW.)
Nathan’s sold on the styling, as is everybody
else who spots the car. The Caffeine and
Machine café car park we’ve met at is
overflowing with special machinery but the
RS still attracts plenty of attention. Horn can’t
help noticing the way the paint changes shade
between the plastic front arches and their
adjacent metal panels, though. ‘That would
drive me insane – once you’ve seen it you can’t
un-see it. The fake vents in the front bumper
take some getting used to as well; they’re the
first thing your eyes are drawn to when you see
it from the front.’
This car’s fitted with the Cup Chassis
pack, which adds a mechanical limited-slip
differential and stiffer springs, dampers and
anti-roll bar. That makes it a lively contrast
to the planted-at-all-times GTI. Nathan’s car
isn’t fitted with a locking diff, and the Megane’s
leather and alcantara steering wheel is tugged
by torque steer under acceleration, and flickers
over cambers where the softer, less aggressively
set-up Golf remains relatively unruffled. But the
RS is without a doubt the pointier, more agilecar. Following behind, I can see how keenly its
nose tucks into corners, and how unyielding its
suspension is.
‘I can imagine it being great fun on a track. It’s
far more positive in its responses than the Golf,’
Nathan says. ‘That said, I can imagine it getting
a bit wearing to drive every day.’ The ultra-firm
Cup suspension set-up is hard work; the regular
Sport suspension is easier-going. Horn also
notes the steering is far quicker than most cars,
emphasised by the standard-fit four-wheel-steer
system, although he doesn’t find it intrusive. He’s
impressed by how strongly the aluminium 1.8-li-
tre turbocharged engine pulls; it musters an
extra 30lb ft over his GTI, despite a 186cc smaller
capacity, and that diff helps it claw its way out of
corners more urgently. It sounds the part, too, its
deep central exhaust emitting a guttural growl
at idle, although it fades away on the move.
All cars in this test are available with a choice
of manual and dual-clutch auto gearboxes but
the Renault’s the only one here today with a
manual ’box. Nathan enjoys its extra involve-
ment – he originally searched for a manual GTI
before winding up with a DSG – but finds the
shift clunky in action. Like other manual RSs
we’ve previously tested, there are occasional
faint whining noises audible from the transmis-
sion, although we haven’t experienced any issues
with its operation beyond the sound.
What about practicality? The Megane’s boot
has a slightly higher floor and wider load lip
to manage than the Golf, but still offers
plenty of luggage space. Decent room in
the back, too, although Nathan feels that its
smaller rear window makes it feel a touch
more claustrophobic – ‘it reminds me slightly
of a Scirocco we tested before the Golf – great
car but the high shoulder line made it feel
constricted inside.’ He’s a fan of the optionalalcantara upholstery pack, if not its £1200
price (which includes heated seats). Also
optional is the £300 upsized portrait touch-
screen – ‘looks nice and clean, a little Volvo-like,
although the buttons beneath feel like an
afterthought.’ Horn’s amused Renault’s cruise
control system needs five separate switches and
buttons scattered throughout the interior to his
Golf ’s one stalk, but considers overall interior
quality close to the Golf ’s standard.
‘I used to own a Megane 225 and the new car’s
a lot less plasticky. But I can’t believe Renault are
still making those card-shaped keys.’ ⊲R
The shortlist
The lively Megane’s
wheel tugs with torque
steer and flickers over
cambered roads