Renault Megane: That’s An 8!

17 February 2017 Redazione News, Tested

RENAULT MEGANE

THE NEW MEGANE IS AN 8

Words: Marco Rallo

Photography: Ron Morgenstein

The moment you first see the silhouette of the new Megane you realize that the ingredients have matured considerably. The body lines are more sophisticated and the overall design is original and points forward, almost like one of those concept cars coming out of a motor show. Renault all-new hatchback aims to expand its market by offering a compact car (here in 5-door version) suitable for every situation and that finally offers not only great convenience, but also latest technology infotainment and design solutions worthy of competitors with definitely a more challenging price tag.

We tested the version that stands between the smallest diesel engines and the petrol ones, less interesting for those who grind kilometer after kilometer and require only one car as a way of transport. The 1.5 in question is equipped with a 4-cylinder turbo diesel engine with 110 horsepower, front-wheel drive and a manual six-speed gearbox (automatic is also available) – with a weight that stops at around 1,2 tonne; the Megane does not want to hide its generous size without being bulky while maneuvering or while cruising. Five doors and five seats, with the distinctive features that find its key point in the headlights: those thin and sleek at front that are almost incorporated by the new and large central grille and the rear ones that appear to be one from side to side, creating a nice design especially at night, when illuminated in the dark. Opening the door you are greeted by a very minimalist interior, with quite comfortable seats even if not beautiful from the point of view of their materials (fabric), while to the right of the small and comfortable steering wheel you have no buttons (or almost) on the dash with a big vertical display reminiscent of the tablets that are so fashionable today and from which you can control every aspect of the car, including air conditioner. In this case, the choice for the different commands can be a bit ‘cumbersome, but you soon get used to it and everything is very precise and fast, thanks to the excellent touch screen. Sore point for the fact that during navigation, this very display (just as happened with the Talisman) has crashed remaining white for several minutes before resetting – probably for overheating.

The manual gearbox is smooth and although the ratios are a bit ‘long, the clutch/gearbox combination is excellent and allows a relaxed driving under any circumstances. The 1.5 turbo diesel is not an engine pointing at performance and so do not expect any of it, but once running – on the motorway, for example – it’s brilliant and above all quite elastic, not forcing you to change gear for overtaking the car in front of you. We drove it a little everywhere and the day of the main shooting we took it on the Mottarone, where among fog and nice bends that craved an RS Trophy, we also had fun playing with the possibility to change and customize the display behind the steering wheel and the cockpit lighting – small thing you will think, but for a hatchback starting at less than € 20,000 represents the confirmation that you can get good quality at a modest cost. And when I wanted to try treating it as its more muscular sister, it was not afraid to showcase its good chassis and good feedbacks under a driving point of view.

French like it, of course, and I like it too. The Megane will always be a small car for price and size, but this time has become great especially in terms of usability and materials. The line is personal and differs from the flood of similar cars without any character, fuel consumption is excellent and drivability is higher than what was on previous models. For me it is a success and I’d give it an 8 and I do not hide that I’m seriously thinking of buying one for my home-office movements, maybe a GT Line though!

RENAULT MEGANE (2015-)

Layout   –  front-engined, front-wheel-drive

Engine  –  4 cylinder  1.461cc – turbo

Transmission  –  6-speed manual gearbox

Power  –  110 hp @ 4000 rpm

                      260 Nm @ 1750rpm

Weight  – 1205 kg

Acceleration  –  11,2 sec.

Top Speed  –  188 kph

Price  –  from € 18.900