Renaultsport Megane Cup S 275

[T0M]

Looks great. Collected mine on Friday too. First impressions are very good:

[Alex_6n2]

foxsasha said:

Good morning at Bedford. Very, very slippery but still enough grip to get the front tyres hot and to work the brakes hard enough for them to leave deposits on the discs. Got mild vibration now.

Better brakes are an absolute must if they can't cope with a damp greasy slippery track.

Which car was yours mate? One of the Flame Red ones? Was meant to pop over and say hi

I worked my brakes much harder in the afternoon when it dried out but they certainly survived. Quite a few corners were flat and extremely entertaining! Although not as much as the chicane at the end of the back straight, in the damp, at 80mph..... (there was a dab of oppo involved)

2.1Bar on the front tyres in the wet on PS2's seemed good (levelled off at around 2.4Bar). However in the dry after 4/5 laps the O/S front hit 2.6Bar and grip levels fell away a bit.

My discs definitely had deposits on them too, but returned to normal before I reached Bristol. Was more apparent during slow speed braking ony my car for some reason.

[foxsasha]

Alex_6n2 said:

Which car was yours mate? One of the Flame Red ones? Was meant to pop over and say hi

I worked my brakes much harder in the afternoon when it dried out but they certainly survived. Quite a few corners were flat and extremely entertaining! Although not as much as the chicane at the end of the back straight, in the damp, at 80mph..... (there was a dab of oppo involved)

2.1Bar on the front tyres in the wet on PS2's seemed good (levelled off at around 2.4Bar). However in the dry after 4/5 laps the O/S front hit 2.6Bar and grip levels fell away a bit.

My discs definitely had deposits on them too, but returned to normal before I reached Bristol. Was more apparent during slow speed braking ony my car for some reason.

I was in the white one with black wheels. My missus was in the car in the afternoon and reports that the vibration subsided and disappeared after a while. Front tyre pressures reached 38 degrees in the damp/wet morning get session. Started at 31psi cold.

I had a few experiences of a lively rear ended front wheel drive car. New experience to me, I've been reduced or 4wd for years was all good fun though and I actually really enjoyed the slippery conditions, the car was great fun

Jeremy said there was a Spa event on 26th September. I'm all over that not lesst because theres a Nurburgring double header track day on 29/30th so can make an epuc week oyt of it. You fancy it?

[nickfrog]

JD68 said:

Great photo from my friends at frozenspeed and many thanks to Nick for the lap. Thanks also for all the information shared so freely on this forum!
I’m seriously impressed with the Cup S and looking forward to taking mine to the Ring in the autumn. Anyone going to be at DN16?

nickfrog said:

We will - in its first 3,000 miles mine will have already done 30 laps at Spa, 25 at the Ring and 50 at Bedford by Monday evening (if I don't run out of crumbling rear pads).

Alex_6n2 said:

Also, here you go Nick!

First, it was great meeting you both (and Samuel yesterday), albeit on different circuits!

Great driving Alex, you're clearly doing something right (which I am not doing) and the Chinese semi-slick tyre excuse in the wet didn't "hold much water" on a drying track (unless of course they are inherently crap, which I hope now).

You were both keen on knowing more about my harness install. Those 3 links will help:

https://www.totalaccessonline.co.uk/Products/Pulle...
http://www.ears.ie/product_info.php?products_id=13...
https://farm1.staticflickr.com/663/23457470992_f98...

You'll need x3 10mm and x1 12mm Pretzl coeurs. The OPM 4M was the best value as it has 75mm wide shoulder straps.

The rear seat base just swivels on front hinge (not need to dismantle it) and you need x1 10mm and x1 12mm coeur there. For the lap ones, use the original belt attachment bolts for safety. The tunnel side is difficult of access so you'll need to unbolt the driver's seat and get someone to tilt it and hold it at 45deg while you operate (no need to unplug the airbag lead).

It's a 30mn job, or probably 15mn once you've done it once.

As for DN16, things are looking grim now as I have a presentation on the 28th in the evening so I can't make either days unless I move the presentation which might be tricky. Will let you guys know.

[MikeGoodwin]

What's this about the engines nick. That video of meg vs civic and some guy talking about the engines power?

[nickfrog]

MikeGoodwin said:

What's this about the engines nick. That video of meg vs civic and some guy talking about the engines power?

Not sure tbh Mike. My problem is that the first time I explored the car's performance was at Spa recently. And the last time I tracked a car there before was the M135i. The Megane was better suited of course BUT it felt shockingly slower in terms of straight line performance. Okay it was bound to feel slower what with 50hp less but the delta felt more like 100hp less so I need to give the guy the benefit of the doubt and investigate - I am on it through the French Megane RS forum which has a large population of trackers so will feed any result back Mike. I am gutted I didn't log all the data that day but at the time I had no reason to...

And then yesterday at Bedford, I wasn't getting closer to one current Clio in the long straight despite equivalent exist speed out of West 8. Maybe he was mapped. Or maybe I only had 220 hp then, who knows. Gutted I didn't log anything!!!

[Alex_6n2]

Let us know how you get on mate. Interested to hear if this manifests into a software update for us

[foxsasha]

I couldn't catch the demo black Clio at one point. Watching his wet lines and evident track knowledge I assume it was an instructor driving. Was certainly peddled well! So if it was the black demo one you were chasing I wouldn't take too much notice, it was fast! But then maybe my car was down on power too

[MikeGoodwin]

Well I've come from a focus st so the top end is definitely better. But I've only driven it two days. Looks like I'll be getting a remap after all..... I must say on the occasion I hammered it down back roads there were times when the berserk top end feeling all but disappeared and felt slower than it would on the 250 normal mode... I figured maybe it was just heat soak. I'll keep checking back to see if you get an answer.

[baptistsan]

T0M said:

Looks great. Collected mine on Friday too. First impressions are very good:

Thank you, have to say that the silver on your's really suits the car. Really enjoying mine so far and can't wait for it to be run in.

Car is on a lease deal so I went with the standard seats and have to say they are pretty good. Shame the same can't be said about some of the plastic inside!

I will also look forward to see how things progress with the potential engine issue.

Fab. car so far though!

[baptistsan]

jbaddeley said:

Very nice. You'll over it.

Thank you. Running in progressing nicely

Anyone determined if these have a fuel preference yet?

[git-r]

A long shot but is there anyone from here going to Bedford on 20th August? It's a 'how fast' event where you get a transponder and they record your lap times -£99 for an hours practice and 3 timed runs. A lot of fun! They also run a track day on the other pet if the circuit at the same time.

I'll be going in my track car but would love to get a ride in a megane should anyone be there and be kind enough to take me out

[T0M]

baptistsan said:

Thank you, have to say that the silver on your's really suits the car. Really enjoying mine so far and can't wait for it to be run in.

Car is on a lease deal so I went with the standard seats and have to say they are pretty good. Shame the same can't be said about some of the plastic inside!

I will also look forward to see how things progress with the potential engine issue.

Fab. car so far though!

Thanks. I also have the standard seats and I'm pleasantly surprised. Interior is better than I was prepared for, coming from a MK7 Golf R.

I think I missed the memo on "the potential engine issue" - any more info?

[Alex_6n2]

People are investigating if the new ECU turns the boost/power down aggressively in heat soak situations.

The 275 Cup-S and Nav have slightly different ECU hardware (Wideband lambda) and also updated software/calibration to meet EU6 regulations.

Apparently it's a known issue with the EU6 engine, but this is yet to be proven/investigated.

Edited by Alex_6n2 on Thursday 4th August 17:53

[foxsasha]

+1 on the standard seats, much better than anticipated and provide a good amount of lateral support. Very comfy to boot.

Got Pagids fitted now and Ohlins ordered. If anyone wants a low mileage set of Cup springs and dampers then give me a shout.

Ill start data logging to see if performance drops off as temps increase.

[kpb]

nickfrog said:

MikeGoodwin said:

What's this about the engines nick. That video of meg vs civic and some guy talking about the engines power?

Not sure tbh Mike. My problem is that the first time I explored the car's performance was at Spa recently. And the last time I tracked a car there before was the M135i. The Megane was better suited of course BUT it felt shockingly slower in terms of straight line performance. Okay it was bound to feel slower what with 50hp less but the delta felt more like 100hp less so I need to give the guy the benefit of the doubt and investigate - I am on it through the French Megane RS forum which has a large population of trackers so will feed any result back Mike. I am gutted I didn't log all the data that day but at the time I had no reason to...

And then yesterday at Bedford, I wasn't getting closer to one current Clio in the long straight despite equivalent exist speed out of West 8. Maybe he was mapped. Or maybe I only had 220 hp then, who knows. Gutted I didn't log anything!!!

Hi Nick. Been reading your comments here and on babybmw with interest. I've just got my 275 and have owned a mapped 250, with an m135i in between.

Having made the switch and back again, whilst the 275 is definitely slower in a straight line than the beamer, it's certainly not 'shockingly slow' in comparison. Mine feels good for the published figures in sport mode.

Mapping the Renault makes them nearly equivalent in terms of pace, although the n55 is a much smoother engine whereas the tuned F4RT is more brutal and, dare i say it, a bit coarse. Obviously if you stick a jb4 on the latter then the difference between it and a standard 275 becomes more marked!

I don't plan to map the 275 as I think the monster torque it unleashes tends to negatively affect the balance of the car.

So maybe you ought to put your mind at rest with a dyno run?

[nickfrog]

Yes "shockingly slow" is a little exaggerated and might also be due to gearing at the end of Kemmel straight (that is the place that springs to mind but if I ignore it, it's definitely not shocking, just a little more than I expected, but then again it was far hotter in the Megane, probably 28 c vs 16 c from memory in the BMW last year).

The other aspect is that the hot semi-slick affect top speed apparently because of high friction.

Also I removed the flaps in front of the wheels...

[john_cook]

nickfrog said:

Yes "shockingly slow" is a little exaggerated and might also be due to gearing at the end of Kemmel straight (that is the place that springs to mind but if I ignore it, it's definitely not shocking, just a little more than I expected, but then again it was far hotter in the Megane, probably 28 c vs 16 c from memory in the BMW last year).

The other aspect is that the hot semi-slick affect top speed apparently because of high friction.

Also I removed the flaps in front of the wheels...

what sorts of speed were you actually doing in the 135i and the megane 275 down Kemmel? Was there that much difference?

I did spa in 2008 in a Mk 4 golf R32, which was an absolute blast.. I was hitting about 130mph down the kemmel straight in that car.

its a long long straight, and I was getting whipped by 911 GT3s and a GTR , so I felt even slower!

Edited by john_cook on Friday 5th August 09:45

[jbaddeley]

No heat soak tonight lads!

[foxsasha]

Silver suits them, looks good.