Renault will be unveiling their all-new Megane RS soon - well, somewhere in 2017 - to succeed its very successful hot front-driven hot hatch. This one will be based on their 4th-generation Megane and is reported be a more rounded performance car than before, with adaptive suspension and a five-door only body style.
The French marque released a video thanking their 1 million fans, referring to their Facebook audience, by revisiting RS cars that stretch back to the Renault 5 Turbo to the Clio Williams, the bonkers Clio V6, the quirky Twingo 133, up to the Megane III RS.
At the end of this animated short there’s an equally animated (shame) preview of the next hot Megane concealed under a tarp with the words “Coming Soon 2017”, which we hope indicates an introduction before the first half of the year is up.
The new car is reported to feature a more powerful turbocharged four-cylinder engine that produces in excess of 224kW that’s sent to the front wheels via a 6-speed manual transmission, although it’s strongly suspected that a 6-speed EDC dual-clutch automatic can also be specified for the first time.
To help the car be more agile through the corners as well as more stable at high speed and to help it offset its longer 5-door body style with correspondingly longer wheelbase, it’s reported to be fitted with four-wheel steering. It will also likely occupy a wider track compared to its predecessor to complement its 25mm reduction in ride height.
With regards to how the next Megane RS looks, we expect Renault to apply a more restrained aesthetic compared to the bright yellow or red/white combination used in previous generations. It will look much like what is now the fastest Megane, the GT (which already looks plenty aggressive), but with more aero and aforementioned wider track.
We likely won’t be privy of any raw performance data until or near the car’s official launch, but as a benchmark the fastest version of previous Megane RS, the 275 Trophy-R, could accelerate to 100km/h in 5.8 seconds. Some expect it to come close to the Audi RS 3 and Ford Focus RS’s sprint times, though both of these have the advantage of all-wheel drive.
But while the Megane RS 275 Trophy-R was a lightened, focused track machine, the new RS is expected to be a more tame animal, with a good amount of refinement and creature comforts to accompany its impressive performance.
We’re looking forward to how this all shakes out. Renault Sport has some tough competition that it needs to face down with their new Megane, and it seems to be doing this by moving the car to fill the role of more expensive all-rounder rather than the working-class hero it was previously. Then again, nobody builds a better front-drive chassis, and by all indication the new fast Megane will keep that magic.
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