Photo: Florin Profir
Even though it's the oldest car in the segment, the current Renault Megane RS 275 Trophy is extremely relevant. So we are excited to report on a rumor which suggests a replacement has been under development for several years and could send over 300 horsepower to all four wheels.
The hot hatch segment is very dear to my heart, but there are a few reasons why I can't buy into this most recent report. First of all, it's by Auto Express. The same publication released a story recently saying that Alpine may borrow engines from Mercedes-AMG.
However, the famous AMG boss Tobias Moers later made the following statement: “It’s not necessary. There’s no need for us to do so. It would not be supportive for our brand, so why should we do that?” Not only was he adamant against sharing the A45 engine with Renault, but he also said nobody had contacted him regarding the matter anyway.
Getting back to the new report, it seems Megane RS engineers have taken a long, hard look at the Focus RS and liked what they saw. To compete with Ford's mighty monster, the French will give their 2.0-liter turbo engine at least 300 horsepower and all-wheel drive, says Auto Express.
Once again, we don't quite get what's going on. If the RS division has been working on the Megane 4 project for several years, why are they changing everything to match the newly launched Focus RS? All-wheel drive is not their specialty, and there are plenty of fast FWD hatchbacks.
Also, previous reports seemed to suggest Renault would adapt the 1.6-liter from the Clio, giving it a 1.8-liter displacement. This smaller and more efficient setup would also be used by the Nissan Pulsar Nismo, which we believe is almost ready for production.
According to the British magazine, the current coupe model will continue to be on sale through 2016. Its replacement is due next year, will only be available as a 5-door and should be about 10% more expensive. To satisfy every type of customer, Renault may offer both a standard six-speed manual transmission and an optional dual-clutch EDC.
Our thoughts: We don't mind if the Megane RS works like a Golf R, but almost no cars made by Renault have AWD. Something is fishy here!
However, the famous AMG boss Tobias Moers later made the following statement: “It’s not necessary. There’s no need for us to do so. It would not be supportive for our brand, so why should we do that?” Not only was he adamant against sharing the A45 engine with Renault, but he also said nobody had contacted him regarding the matter anyway.
Getting back to the new report, it seems Megane RS engineers have taken a long, hard look at the Focus RS and liked what they saw. To compete with Ford's mighty monster, the French will give their 2.0-liter turbo engine at least 300 horsepower and all-wheel drive, says Auto Express.
Once again, we don't quite get what's going on. If the RS division has been working on the Megane 4 project for several years, why are they changing everything to match the newly launched Focus RS? All-wheel drive is not their specialty, and there are plenty of fast FWD hatchbacks.
Also, previous reports seemed to suggest Renault would adapt the 1.6-liter from the Clio, giving it a 1.8-liter displacement. This smaller and more efficient setup would also be used by the Nissan Pulsar Nismo, which we believe is almost ready for production.
According to the British magazine, the current coupe model will continue to be on sale through 2016. Its replacement is due next year, will only be available as a 5-door and should be about 10% more expensive. To satisfy every type of customer, Renault may offer both a standard six-speed manual transmission and an optional dual-clutch EDC.
Our thoughts: We don't mind if the Megane RS works like a Golf R, but almost no cars made by Renault have AWD. Something is fishy here!
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