Will the Megane light up your life?

The Renault Megane started life in 1995 replacing the Renault 19, and in its twenty-year history over 6.5 million have been built around the world. It has been available with many body styles including, hatch, sport hatch, sport tourer, coupe-cabriolet with many engine choices. This all-new model is the fourth generation and all-new it certainly is.

Despite the recent rise in popularity and sales of C-Sector SUV’s and MPV’s you would think that the C-Sector hatch’s demand is beginning to wane but in fact the sector remains surprisingly stable and people globally are still buying hatches in similar numbers every year.

This new car is all-new, from the chassis up, every body panel is new and a new interior too.

The first Megane we drove was the Dynamique S Nav 1.5 dCi 110. We drove it from the hotel on a 70 mile test route. This car accelerates from 0-62mph in 11.3 seconds and has a top speed of 116mph with CO2 emissions of 96g/km. The official combined fuel consumption figure is 76.4mpg but because we were so eager to get-going, we forgot to re-set the trip computer, so did not get an accurate fuel consumption figure for our journey. The 110 PS engine has more than enough power and is extremely quiet. In fact, there is hardly any noise in the cabin from the wind, road or engine, so a very nice place to spend many hours covering long journeys. We took the car through small villages and on the motorway, we took it on a good selection of roads and found it to be a good all-rounder. It rode the lumps and bumps well and was very comfortable.

We took the diesel car back and then got into a Megane GT which is powered by a 1.6-litre petrol engine that produces 205hp and accelerates from 0-62mph in 7.2 seconds and has a top speed of 143mph and CO2 emissions of 134g/km. The official combined fuel consumption figure is 47.mpg and this time we did re-set the on-board computer. The 1.6 petrol engine on the test car was connected to a 7-speed EDC dual-clutch automatic gearbox with ‘Launch=Control’. To operate it you simply pull both steering wheel gear-shift paddles towards you. Put left foot on the brake, right foot on the accelerator, foot to the floor. Make sure there is nobody behind you, double check nobody in front and when it is safe, let you left foot off the brake and in theory it should set off in a straight line, no wheel spin with a quick acceleration away. However, we tried launch control a few times and we got a bit of wheel spin. We then tried setting off the conventional way, no launch control, just pressing the accelerator to the floor and it really didn’t feel any different, maybe it was just the way we were doing it.

We took the GT into the glorious surroundings of the moors, where you have to be very aware and careful not to hit the roaming sheep that are in abundance. The GT was a pleasure to drive on these quite demanding roads and it went round the corners with ease and felt so safe and solid. According to the on-board computer we achieved just over 32mpg on our 75 mile test route on a variety of road conditions.

The GT has 4Control, which is a four-wheel steer system. Under 50mph in Sport Mode and 37mph in other modes the rear wheels turn in an opposite direction by up to 2.7 degrees to the front, making parking and low speeds easier. Above 50mph the front and rear wheels turn in the same direction by up to one-degree, giving it greater stability and manoeuvres easier but in reality, it just felt odd, very odd in fact. It seems to be one of those very clever systems, that has cost a fortune to develop but is not really needed – a perfect solution, to a problem that doesn’t exist. After driving the diesel with conventional steering, I’m sure, as others were on the press launch, that this would be more than adequate on the GT and 4Control really isn’t necessary.

In the cabin, the controls are just so easy to understand and use, they are so intuitive. The touch-screen works so well and after just a few minutes of use, without an instruction book you feel so capable of doing anything with it – very clever, yet simple technology.

There is plenty of rear legroom, although getting three adults on the back seat for any length of time might prove a bit uncomfortable but for two large adults there is loads of room, but this can be said for most C-Sector hatches. The luggage space is more than adequate for the size of car, but customers do have the choice of buying this sort of car, or if they require something a bit larger – then there is plenty of choice of SUVs or MPVs. Although we only drove two cars, other engines will be available: a 1.2-litre petrol that produces 130 PS and a 1.6-litre diesel 130 PS. The Megane Tourer will be available in the UK from September, and a Hybrid Assist and dCi 165 will go on-sale next year.

The front and rear lights though are really the new Megane’s signature and are very distinctive and really make the car; they look fantastic. The rear taillights go across the boot and nearly meet in the middle and at night they look brilliant and are very effective. The front lights are very different and it must have been a bold decision by the designers and the people who signed them off in R&D Getting the extra cost of them past the bean-counters must have caused many discussions and arguments, I guess a lot of heated debates must have gone on but it’s a very wise decision, as the front and rear lights really do set the car off a treat.

Prices for the new Renault Megane start from £16,600 OTR and go up to £25,500 OTR

The new Megane is built at Renault’s modern plant in Palencia, north of Madrid in Spain and is assembled to a very high standard. The new Megane is full of technology, with some really clever systems, it looks good, is well built with a well-appointed interior and priced to sell. It is now a real contender in this highly competitive sector.

Summary stats:

• On the road price £16,600.00 to £25,500.00
• Petrol: 1.2 TCE 130 PS, 1.6 TCE 205 PS Diesel: 1.5 dCi 110 PS, 1.6 dCI 130 PS
• CO2 96 to 134 g/km
• Combined MPG 47.1 to 76.4 MPG
• Gearboxes 6 Speed Manual,  6 & 7 Speed Automatic

(Technical data for Hybrid TBC)

New options and features:

• Lane departure warning system – Standard on all but Expression+
• Traffic sign recognition – Standard on all but Expression+
• DAB Digital radio – Standard on all
• DAB Radio –  Standard on Excite & Exclusive
• Two tone Alcantara/Leather upholstery - £1200.00 option on GT Line & GT
• LED headlights - £500.00 Option on Dynamique S & GT Line – Standard on Signature & GT