Yahoo Autos Hot Hatch with a French Accent: Renault Mégane R.S. 280
France produced around two million cars last year, but no French-brand cars were exported to the United States. And yet French buyers are still able to exercise their modest enthusiasm for American-made models, including various Jeeps, the Ford Mustang, and the BMW X6. In terms of a trade balance, that probably means we're winning. But is this inequity also denying us some compelling autos?
We recently drove the new and exceptionally good Renault-engineered Alpine A110 mid-engined sports car. Now here's another French lesson in dynamics: the shapely Mégane R.S. 280. It is a front-drive hatchback with a more powerful version of the Alpine's engine-R.S. stands for Renault Sport. Even against the star-strewn firmament of the European hot-hatch market-where buyers can feast on forbidden fruit such as the Hyundai i30 N, Peugeot 308 GTi, and Seat Leon Cupra, as well as the familiar-to-us Volkswagen GTI and Honda Civic Type R-it stands out for its combination of virtues.
Intriguing Equipment
The Mégane sits on Renault-Nissan's Common Module Family (CMF) architecture, meaning it's (distantly) related to the Rogue and Rogue Sport crossovers. That brings a relatively unsophisticated torsion-beam rear suspension, but Renault has added a rear-steering system to sharpen responses. At the front, the regular Mégane's struts have been given new PerfoHub knuckles (similar in principle to the RevoKnuckle of the old, non-U.S. Ford Focus ST) to better separate steering and suspension functions. The dampers are passive rather than adaptive, but they incorporate hydraulic bump stops that use fluid rather than conventional rubber to help control responses at the limits of travel. A six-speed manual gearbox is standard, with a six-speed dual-clutch automatic offered as an option. The car we drove had the stick. It also had the optional Cup pack, which brings a limited-slip differential and firmer suspension settings.
The previous-generation Mégane R.S. used a turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four, but this one switches to a smaller and more advanced 1.8-liter unit. It has a higher output here than in the A110, a respectable 275 horsepower and 288 lb-ft of torque. It is effective-we estimate a zero-to-60-mph time of 5.5 seconds-but the new engine doesn't have an abundance of character. The R.S. pulls hard to its 6250-rpm limiter but in a workmanlike manner and without the savage enthusiasm of the Civic Type R's boosted 2.0-liter. The Renault's throttle response isn't the sharpest either, with some low-down lag and the sense that messages take a beat to travel between the accelerator pedal and the engine's brain.
Yet there's no doubting the effectiveness of the overall package, and the R.S. delivers speed with an appropriately French level of insouciance. Unlike many high-output front-drivers, there is little sense of the Renault having to fight for traction. The primary chassis tuning is soft for a car of this type, and the clever front knuckle means that even on rough surfaces there is no sense of torque steer under hard acceleration. The steering can be felt twitching as torque searches for grip across the front axle, but the car sticks to a chosen line. Under higher cornering loads the limited-slip differential starts to help out, giving the R.S. impressive resistance to power-on understeer for a front-wheel-drive car. The chassis sticks hard, and adhesion levels are well balanced front to rear. Driven to the edge of adhesion, the R.S. will take directional advice from the throttle without feeling twitchy or ragged.
The steering is direct and quick, spinning through just 2.2 turns lock to lock. There is strong self-centering and a solid weight, although limited feedback reaches the leather-and-microfiber-wrapped steering wheel. The rear-steer system works its invisible magic, sharpening low-speed turn-in but also improving high-speed stability. Unlike previous Renault Sport models, which were never less than raw, the Mégane 280 is an accomplished cruiser.
Despite the lack of adaptive damping, the Mégane proves remarkably adept at reacting appropriately to different situations. The softish springs and clever dampers deliver impressive compliance over choppy surfaces, but when bigger loads bring the hydraulic bump stops into play, they also reveal an iron fist somewhere within the velvet glove. The R.S. shrugs off the sort of big impacts that would make crunching contact in more firmly suspended rivals. Driven harder, it gets better, something that is also true for the shift action of the manual gearbox, which feels too light under gentle use but becomes more accurate when hurried. The Renault's brakes feel good under harder use, and the pedal remains firm enough to allow heel-and-toe rev-matching downshifts.
Insufficiently Eccentric Design
The Volcanic Orange paint of our U.K.-spec example certainly gave the R.S. plenty of road presence, and the exterior design has lots of muscular details. But we were disappointed by the lack of the sort of eccentricity that has historically characterized French cars (and current models such as the Citroën C4 Cactus). The cabin's gray materials are drab and unexciting, the interior architecture both generic and slightly Germanic. The portrait-oriented touchscreen is probably the most interesting detail, although one with none of the crisply rendered precision of Tesla's similarly oriented displays. On the plus side, the optional microfiber bucket seats are both comfortable and supremely supportive.
The Mégane also suffers from an overabundance of driving modes, especially given the lack of adaptive chassis components. In addition to Comfort, there are also Neutral, Sport, Race, and Perso (for "personal"), with minimal differences beyond throttle mapping, steering weight, and the design of the central display. (Comfort, strangely, removes the tachometer.)
The Mégane R.S. 280 Cup isn't as exciting as a Civic Type R, but it is significantly cheaper in Europe. And Renault isn't done exploring this segment. The company has just launched a 300-hp R.S. Trophy version intended to close some of the thrill deficit. And if the two previous generations of Mégane R.S. are any guide, there likely will be an even sportier version, which will attempt to retake the front-wheel-drive Nürburgring lap record currently held by the Civic Type R. It is a battle we will watch from afar but with interest.
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