2010 Renault Megane Renaultsport 250 Cup First Drive

Renault is arguably the last mainstream manufacturer in Europe to maintain a real lunatic fringe within its car-making core. Sure, Ford might dabble with the occasional car from its Team RS, but the Renault Group's Renaultsport division is actually Europe's most prolific tuner of hatchbacks.

Renault has a long tradition in hot hatchbacks that began with the 1976 Renault 5 Gordini, a car that actually predates the original Volkswagen GTi. The midengine 1980 Renault 5 Turbo turned a lot of heads just as the first era of hot hatchbacks began, and the Renault Clio Renaultsport 172 introduced the new Renaultsport division in 2001.

Renault has been building Renaultsport versions of the Megane since 2004, and the Megane R26.R ultimately set a lap record for front-wheel-drive production cars at the Nürburgring Nordschleife in 2008.

Now with the introduction of the third-generation Megane, there's a new car for racing on the street (or just racing in sports car events): the 2010 Renault Megane Renaultsport 250 Cup. Available in both 250 and hard-core 250 Cup iterations, the Megane Renaultsport reminds us a lot of the Ford Focus RS. The Renault has less power, but it also costs $7,000 less.

Bring on the Wings and Things
Renaultsport doesn't do subtlety. So as you'd expect, the 2010 Renault Megane Renaultsport 250 Cup is a self-conscious expression of enthusiastic endeavor. From Renaultsport comes the full complement of racing-style bodywork, including a front chin spoiler, fender flares, extended rocker sills, a rear spoiler and a stylized aero diffuser below the rear bumper.

The harder you try, the better the Renault feels.

The Megane Renaultsport is only available as a three-door, which Renault optimistically calls a coupe. The hatchback genes are self-evident in this car's appearance, but it does succeed in looking determinedly sporty while retaining much of the practicality of its five-door sibling. Of course, whether it's a good-looking car is a matter of both taste and conjecture. To these eyes, the rear three-quarter view is the best angle, where the fender flares help give the car a grounded stance. Less successful is the nose, which now looks a little pinched.

The cabin is more conservative but enlivened by some Renaultsport detailing. The curious digital instruments of the standard Megane have been replaced by traditional analog gauges, including a garish yellow tachometer. Our test car also had the optional Recaro seats (complete with integrated side airbags), which feel great and do much to emphasize the car's intent. The seat works with the tilt-adjustable steering wheel to deliver an excellent driving position, although visibility over your shoulder is as bad as anything you'd find in an old-school midengine supercar.

Got Thrust?
The turbocharged, intercooled, 1,998cc F4Rt inline-4 engine is a development of the power plant from the brilliant, limited-edition R26.R. The use of a twin-scroll turbo and variable valve timing on the intake cam help broaden the power curve, so it makes 251 pound-feet of torque at 3,000 rpm and 80 percent of peak torque is available at 1,900 rpm. Peak output is 247 horsepower at 5,500 rpm and forged pistons and connecting rods are up to the strain. The six-speed manual transmission delivers a positive if slightly long-winded shift.

Renault is claiming acceleration to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 6.1 seconds and a top speed of 156 mph for the 2010 Renault Megane Renaultsport 250 Cup. Though the Ford Focus RS makes 300 hp, the British car is only marginally quicker and faster, with acceleration to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 5.9 seconds and a top speed of 156 mph. It's probably worth noting that the 3,058-pound Renault weighs 176 pounds less than the Ford.

On paper there's little in it, but in the real world, the Renault never feels as quick as the hyperactive Ford. The RS's additional torque — 325 lb-ft versus 251 lb-ft — makes a significant difference here. In the midrange, an RS feels brutally rapid as the front wheels do battle with the thrust, whereas the Renault only feels impressively quick. The Ford sounds better, too, with the Focus' deep bass rumble and exhaust pops outperforming the Megane's baritone.

Drive Time
Even so, the 2010 Renault Megane Renaultsport could never be called slow, and its front-wheel-drive chassis does a fine job of managing the power. The Renaultsport team has gone to extraordinary lengths to dial out torque steer — and with considerable success.

For example, the Megane Renaultsport's stout MacPherson struts with all-aluminum control links incorporate "PerfoHub," a hub configuration that separates the steering axis from the front suspension dampers, reducing hub offset something like similar designs we've seen from the Ford Focus RS and Opel Insignia OPC. In theory, this allows the suspension and steering systems to operate independently and unmolested.

When you order the hard-core, track-ready 250 Cup chassis instead of the street-friendly 250, you get a very focused setup with springs that are stiffer by 35 percent in the front and 38 percent in the rear, plus a stiffer front antiroll bar. Renaultsport says the Megane Renaultsport 250 Cup has 15 percent greater roll stiffness than the Megane Renaultsport 250, which itself has 12.5 percent more roll stiffness than the standard Megane. (You got all that?)

The Cup also ditches the standard car's Dunlop SP Sport Maxx tires in favor of some Michelin Pilot Sport 2 boots that measure 235/40R18. The brakes are by Brembo (love those red calipers) with 13.4-inch vented and grooved discs at the front and 11.4-inch discs at the rear.

Even better, you can put all this potential cornering grip to good use. The 250 Cup has a GKN-built mechanical limited-slip differential, plus the Renaultsport version of the Megane incorporates a three-position stability control — Normal, Sport and Off. Sport allows a few degrees of slip and a more aggressive throttle map, while Off lets you get on with it. And you can dial in the throttle mapping with the aid of an electronic readout in the dash display, while the transmission has a launch control feature known as "PowerStart."

Visor Down
From the first mile, it's clear that the Cup has been engineered by a specialist team of enthusiasts. This is a not a standard car with a new set of springs; it's a thoroughly reengineered tool for fast driving. The damping and spring rates are so aggressive that the car can sometimes feel uncomfortable in town. In fact, there is so little roll and the suspension's movements are so carefully controlled that the Cup feels more like a competition car than a tweaked hatchback.

And just like a competition car, the 2010 Renault Megane Renaultsport 250 Cup also needs to be driven hard to deliver its best. Put simply, the harder you try, the better the Renault feels. At speed on a favorite country road, the damping that once felt unnecessarily harsh now feels beautifully resolved, as the car meets each input with a rapid yet controlled response. Torque steer hasn't been completely eradicated, but the front tires still do an impressive job of handling lots of power, powerful braking and quick directional changes.

The steering is probably the best electrically powered system we've encountered, delivering linear response and impressive feedback. The standard Megane's dreadful self-centering effect — meant to make front-wheel drive feel fail-safe for the masses — no longer blights the steering. While this Megane lacks the ultimate agility of the smaller Clio, it's just as satisfying, and easier to live with besides. On the limit, it will start to power understeer, but its attitude can be adjusted on the throttle.

In many ways the Megane Renaultsport feels even better resolved than the Focus RS. The Ford is faster and arguably more exciting, but you never quite escape the feeling that the chassis is at war with the powerful engine. With less output, the Renault actually feels more harmonious and you can exploit its full potential more often.

Leading the Charge
Back in the 1980s, Peugeot built the finest hot hatches in Europe, but in recent years it has ceded that crown to Renault. The success of the Renaultsport products shows the value of a dedicated performance division, even if the specialty cars are ultimately built on the same production line as the standard ones.

The thoroughness of the engineering and the attention to detail in the 2010 Renault Megane Renaultsport 250 Cup is impressive. It might not ultimately have the firepower of the Ford Focus RS, but it also carries a smaller price tag at the equivalent in Britain of $33,319. Indeed, the Megane Renaultsport is actually cheaper in the U.K. than the much less powerful VW Golf GTI. Priced as it is, the Megane represents a potent package on many different levels. After several years in the doldrums, the European hot hatchback market is buzzing again, and it's Renault that's leading the charge.

The manufacturer provided Edmunds this vehicle for the purposes of evaluation.