The specifications, price and options for the new Renaultsport Megane 250 have been officially announced.
As with previous Renaultsport models there will be two options available from launch. The Renaultsport Megane 250 will cost £22,995 and will come the most standard equipment and the standard sports chassis, while for £21,995 you can have the Megane 250 Cup that comes with the more extreme Cup chassis and a limited slip differential but sacrifices some of the luxuries. Both versions share the same revised Renaultsport 2.0-litre turbocharged engine that now delivers 250hp and maximum torque of 340Nm.
The Cup should be easy to spot thanks to its 18-inch satin black ‘AX-L’ alloys wrapped in 235/40 Michelin Pilot Sport 2 tyres, behind which are a set of red Brembo brake calipers gripping onto grooved discs. The Cup Suspensio Pack also includes a limited slip differential, along with stiffer springs, dampers and anti-roll bar.
Despite the lower price, the 250 Cup comes with a decent spec list on top of the Cup chassis – cruise control, speed limiter, eight airbags, RAID automatic door locking, Renaultsport Dynamic Management ESP system, Renault keycard, electrically operated and heated door mirrors, 60W RDS MP3-compatible CD player with fingertip control, Bluetooth and RCA connection, ISOFIX child seat mountings, and rear parking sensors.
The non-Cup Renaultsport 250 is more comfort-oriented, featuring leather upholstery, heated front seats, electrically adjustable driver’s seat with memory function, Renault Hands Free card, dual-zone climate control, and automatic operation of the lights and wipers, extra tinted tailgate and rear side windows, tyre pressure monitor and Multi-functional TunePoint. Like the 250 Cup, the 250 also gets 18-inch alloys but they are a silver ‘Keza’ design wrapped in 225/40 Dunlop Sport Maxx TT tyres.
Just to add to the confusion you can specify the Cup Suspension Pack as an option on the 250, which includes a set of Recaro front seats and costs an additional £1,950.
There are plenty of options to allow you to personalise the car. One of the best is the new Renaultsport Monitor telemetry system, a Nissan Skyline-esque dash mounted display that shows all manner of performance-related information including:
- the main engine functions (turbo pressure, oil temperature) and brakes
- real-time engine performance data (torque, power)
- transverse and longitudinal g-force
- lap timer, with memory function
- performance data, with automatic memorisation of best acceleration time
The throttle pedal mapping can also be changed through the Renaultsport Monitor. By selecting the ‘Sport’ mode you can then select one of five settings (linear, normal, snow, sport and extreme) to adapt the car’s acceleration to the conditions or to your style.
Other options on the list include LED daytime running lights, bi-xenon headlamps, Recaro seats, 19” Speedline alloy wheels with the latest 235/35 Continental Sport Contact 5 tyres, Carminat TomTom, Arkamys 4×30 RDS radio with 6 CD and Bluetooth and Multi-Functional TunePoint, electric folding door mirrors, front parking sensors and a fixed glass roof.
The Mégane Renaultsport is available in seven colours: Glacier White, Capsicum Red, Extreme Blue, Pearl Black, Mercury, Oyster and, unique to the model, Sport Yellow. As standard, the centre section of the front bumper and F1-style blade, door mirrors and rear diffuser are finished in gloss black. Also, the new Renault i.d. programme allows you to choose one of two interior colours or anthracite finish to the exterior detailing.
Renault are taking orders for the new Megane 250 from 1st November, with deliveries starting in January.
