Renault Sport is now executing on their roll-out strategy for their new flagship hot hatch, the 2018 Megane RS. They have announced that the car will be unveiled at the 2017 Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix this weekend.
It’s likely that the brand will still keep key details about the car a mystery as a full reveal is earmarked for the 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show in September. Judging from the camouflaged prototype pictured, the car’s exterior could still be partially disguised as it performs some parade laps around the closed circuit of Monte Carlo.
However, Renault says that it will wear a yellow on black exterior to match the racing livery on the factory team’s RS17 F1 car when it’s driven by racer Nico Hulkenberg.
Despite already being so close to a production-spec, we know relatively little about the new Renault Megane RS. The French hot hatch will be based on the fourth-generation Megane hatch and will come in 5-door only guise, unlike the outgoing model that’s only sold with 3-doors.
Like the older model, we expect a 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine to sit at the new Megane RS’ nose, driving the front wheels via a dual-clutch transmission (and a manual option, hopefully) through a limited slip differential.
The rear setup is a little more difficult to pin down. The French firm has found success in previous hot Meganes with a torsion beam sandwiched between the back wheels. This time, though, Renault might elect to also endow it will a fully independent suspension on all corners, in part to accommodate the rear wheel steering system rumoured to be making its debut here.
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