What they said when the Renault Megane was new… (Oct 8 2002)
ADVENTUROUS styling and innovation have become the forte of Renault in the past few years.
It has become a company that dares to be different with its cars delighting in radical shapes and designs inside and out.
The Vel Satis and Avantime projects which began in concept form some five years ago and hit the streets earlier this year have proved that Renault has the guts to go where few manufacturers would dare to tread.
But those futuristic models were large vehicles and, with the exception of the Espace people mover, that is part of the market where the French manufacturer is not exactly a major player.
So to take the off-the-wall theme down market into the small car sector, where Renault is a significant force across Europe, would appear to be a very big gamble indeed.
Billboards across the land are already heralding the arrival of the new Renault Megane which goes on sale on Friday October 18 - and in all honesty the picture does not do the car justice.
In the flesh it is sensational - a masterpiece of automotive creation inside and out.
"Enjoy every curve" says the slogan on the adverts and there are plenty of pleasures to be found wherever you explore this space age hatch.
No other car around at the moment looks like this and in style alone this is going to be a winner. Yet it is as clever as it is different - and that goes for every aspect.
With prices starting at £10,500 for an entry level 1.4 litre and topping out at £15,700 for a top range two litre, the Megane will initially be available only as a three or five door hatch.
More models, including a new Scenic mini people mover and an estate, will be arriving next year and the year after as the range eventually rolls out to seven variants.
To establish the car Renault has decided to offer it with a choice of four petrol engines, two diesels, four trim levels for the five door and two for the three door which it is calling the Sport Hatch.
In my book the five door looks the better of the two although both possess some splendid features. The vertical rear window dropping into a sloping tailgate flanked by large, angular rear lamps give the car a broad, low slung look from the rear. It even harks back to the Gordini design of the highly potent turbocharged Renault Five of the 1980s.
But that's something of an illusion, for inside there's plenty of headroom all round. The dash has a simple but functional feel and the car has surprises up its sleeve wherever you look - even when it comes to the handbrake.
No traditional floor mounted lever here - instead it is an airliner-style twin spoke handle that protrudes from the front of the centre console, and it gives the car such a feel of its own.
Then there's Renault's card entry system which dispenses with an ignition key. The first generation of this keyless system was introduced on the Laguna a couple of years ago but now it has been modified, making it even more sophisticated - and it satisfies British insurers who did not like some aspects of the original.
In fact it is one of the aces that has resulted in the new Megane achieving some of the lowest insurance ratings in its class. The 1.4 litre models are class leading in group three and even the more powerful two litre cars achieve a group eight rating.
The entry card system - standard on top range Privilege models and a £250 extra on all others - unlocks the car as soon as the carrier touches a door lever. Once inside there is no longer any need to insert the card into the dash - just a push of the starter button brings the car to life.
That piece of plastic also stores key data at the end of every journey and, in reality, is a credit card sized vehicle log.
Inside its micro chip will be information about fuel consumption, oil levels, mileage and even tyre pressures and emission performance - the advantage being that when it comes to service time all the statistics can be downloaded in a matter of seconds reducing the time the car needs to be in the workshops, theoretically making services cheaper.
In a more basic fashion the card also has push buttons which activate another security feature - deadlocks, a device which again pleases the insurance people.
On the safety front the Megane scores heavily and Renault is confident it will follow the bigger Laguna which became the first car to achieve the top five star rating in the NCAP crash tests. Six airbags are standard on all Meganes as are crossover seatblets for all five occupants.
The low insurance rating has also been helped by clever crash resistant features in the body. Replaceable aluminium bars are fitted behind the front and back bumpers not only to help absorb any impact but also to protect components in the engine and under the rear.
Composites have been used for some of the body panels giving the car a "soft" nose and tailgate, making them cheaper to replace than metal sections.
Another innovation is a Formula 1-style fuel filler flap designed so that you don't get your hands dirty twisting off the filler cap. Instead the cap is part of the flap itself and flicks open to expose the fuel pipe as soon as the release button is pressed.
That feature is standard across the range as is remote control central locking, variable power assisted steering, a trip computer, as well as a height adjustable driver's seat and fully adjustable steering wheel.
However air conditoning is not standard on the basic models where it is available as one of four option packs. Prices range from £500 for the climate pack to £1,000 for the luxury treatment of leather upholstery, heated seats and a panoramic sunroof.
Under the bonnet all but one of the engines, the two litre, qualify for road tax discounts for the private buyer while the 1.5 litre diesel has maximum benefits with a CO2 rating of just 120g/km.
That diesel is also exceptionally frugal and capable of averaging in excess of 60 miles per gallon while the bigger 1.9 litre common rail unit not only has a kick like a mule but is also in the low 50s in terms of consumption.
The 1.9 diesel and the 1.6 petrol Meganes were my pick of the bunch at last week's launch of the new car. Both are exceptionally lively and even the petrol engine can average more than 40 to the gallon.
When it comes to handling there is nothing untoward and, although it is not as sharp as a VW Golf for example, no one is really going to moan - and the Megane is much more refreshing to look at.
It is instantly different but that is just the tip of the iceberg. This car is simply packed with features that at the moment nothing else around can match for the money.
Words: Chris Russon
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