A race car driver once told us that the best sports cars had already been built. That was a few years back, around the time of the 911 facelift, and the Renault Megane RS 280 Cup suggests he was right.
Let's get straight to the point... one of the points. Steering. Renault used to make some of the most tactile hot hatchbacks, which compensated for lack of power and torque with lightness.
But the market demanded they switch to more practical, everyday kind of cars. They didn't suddenly start making making RS SUVs, though they will eventually. But the new Megane RS is a technology showcase that doesn't have the old car's mojo.
It's a time-honored tradition for RenaultSport to get things wrong the first time, leaving the good stuff for the facelift: Clio 197 and so on. But that's not what's going on here. Henry Catchpole explains the problem in his UK road review of the 280 with the Cup chassis.
On the one hand, it's a heavy 5-door, so it's supposed to be practical and as comfortable as a Golf GTI. But in keeping the chassis super-stiff, it can't offer a super supple ride. It's almost like Renault tried to kill two birds with one stone.
You might think that the sweet spot in the range is thus the base, non-Cup version. But then you will lose the mechanical limited slip differential and you kind of need that in a front-wheel-drive car with 280 horsepower. So actually, the sweet spot could be the Trophy version, which is hardcore to the bone but not aimed at mainstream users.
No mention is made of the new 1.8-liter turbo engine, so that's fine. But the gearbox is also mentioned, and not in a very good way. The shifter Renault made is apparently strange, but that's because the knob belongs to other cars as well. It's almost like they want you to go auto.
Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida. Full profile
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