Test Car Specifications
Model tested: Renault Mégane TCe 205 EDC GT
Price: £25,000 (approx.)
Engine: 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol four-cylinder
Transmission: front-wheel drive, seven-speed automatic dual-clutch
Body style: five-door hatchback
CO2 emissions: 134g/km (Band E, £130 per year)
Combined economy: 47.0mpg
Top speed: 145mph
0-62mph: 7.1 seconds
Power: 205hp at 6,000rpm
Torque 280Nm at 2,400rpm
What's this?
The all-new Renault Mégane, and, for now at least, the range-topping model - until a proper Renaultsport variant arrives sometime in 2017. Still, Renault is promising that the GT can provide some thrills at the top of the range until then, and it's got the on-paper specification that would suggest so too. The Mégane GT comes with a 205hp 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol engine, a seven-speed paddle-shifted twin-clutch transmission and rear-wheel steering.
With that technical specification comes styling that's sportier than the already smart new Mégane's to underline its enhanced status. The GT gains a different front lower bumper, a rear diffuser with integrated twin exhausts, a roof spoiler and GT badging front and rear, as well as GT-specific alloy wheels. The interior benefits from the sporting makeover too, with figure-hugging sports seats, blue stitching, GT badging and some additional configurability in the Multi-Sense driving options. That's accessed by a combination of an RS button and via the seven-inch portrait R-LINK 2 screen that's tablet-like in both its look and operation.
That screen dominates the neat dashboard, being unique in the class presently and working well - once you're familiar with it. A longer wheelbase and wider track combine to allow greater interior space than before too, Renault claiming that the new Mégane is top of the class in this respect. Certainly there's an increase in the quality, even if the materials aren't quite as classy as you'll find in a Volkswagen Golf or Peugeot 308. Outwardly, thanks largely to some neat lighting design and rakish stance, the Mégane's a very distinctive looker, which is welcome in a class that's largely populated by relatively conservative designs.
How does it drive?
With Renaultsport input, expectations are understandably high. The reality isn't quite as impressive as we'd hoped thanks to a combination of factors. Grip levels are good and the initial steering response is impressive, with good weighting and even some feel apparent around the initial turn of the wheel. Adding lock adds a strange resistance though, which, combined with the effect of the rear-wheel steering, makes for a rather disjointed driving experience. One Renaultsport employee admitted the GTs we were driving were early cars, and certainly it felt like some more calibration time on the set-up could improve it. Given it'll not be in showrooms until mid-2016, that's still possible. The rear-wheel steer can be felt in sharper bends, turning the GT in with more conviction, but the result is it often requires an adjustment mid-bend to correct the trajectory.
The addition of that rear-wheel steer, says Renault, gives a greater feel of agility for most drivers, improving turn-in and stability during high-speed manoeuvres. It does, however, add a not insignificant 35kg to the rear axle, and requires a different steering set-up to non rear-steer Méganes.
The 1.6-litre turbocharged engine feels eager enough, but there's little real incentive to rev it out, as it doesn't sound great. Add a seven-speed twin-clutch transmission with sometimes tardy shifts and the GT just doesn't deliver a driving experience on a par with its rivals. A Peugeot 308 205 THP GT steers far more convincingly without a trick rear axle, as does the cheaper and more powerful Ford Focus ST, while the GT's proposed £25,000 asking price is also perilously close to the Golf GTI, which, despite being older, also offers a more convincing driving experience.
There's the potential to alter driving modes via the RS button and touchscreen, with a choice of five programmes - Neutral, Sport, Comfort, Verso and Eco - tweaking everything from the accelerator settings and the engine note to the colour of the layout and the digital instrumentation. More economy-biased settings flatten the response markedly, while Sport adds an eagerness that's intrusive; the GT is its best in the mid Neutral setting. The chassis does show some promise, the suspension riding well, though the rest of the set-up does feel like it needs some fettling before the GT reaches us in the summer if it's to really compete in what's a very tough marketplace.
Verdict
The C-segment family hatchback market is huge and highly competitive, and on many levels the Mégane has its competition beaten. Space, looks and equipment all count hugely in its favour. There's a but here, and it's the GT's positioning as the flagship until a proper RS model arrives sometime in 2017. Renault's touting of Renaultsport's involvement in the GT, as well as technology such as that rear-wheel steer system and an improved, launch-control enabled seven-speed automatic transmission, is its undoing. It just doesn't deliver the engaging drive that is promised. There's some talent, but in the GT it currently feels untapped; a drive in a manual six-speed diesel model without the GT's rear-wheel steer and different steering rack was more enjoyable. That needs to change before the GT reaches showrooms, because as driven here it's already an also-ran as a driver's choice.
Exterior Design
Interior Ambience
Passenger Space
Luggage Space
Safety
Comfort
Driving Dynamics
Powertrain
