Any new Megane RS 280/300 owners?

[nunpuncher]

Thanks for taking the time to give that very detailed write up.

Do you ever find the cup chassis too stiff for a road car? I'm still swaying regarding ticking that box. The roads around here are terrible so I tend to prefer something that soaks up the bumps but I suspect the car really does need the diff.

[Black Cup]

I too have a Trophy on order, due sometime in May, I have gone for Glacier White with BOSE and Visio packs. Orginally had a similar spec 280 Cup with 19 inch alloys on order since June 2018 exoected in Dec last year, WLTP delays has meant I was able to change spec, to say I am excited about the car is an understatement!!!

[framerateuk]

nunpuncher said:

Thanks for taking the time to give that very detailed write up.

Do you ever find the cup chassis too stiff for a road car? I'm still swaying regarding ticking that box. The roads around here are terrible so I tend to prefer something that soaks up the bumps but I suspect the car really does need the diff.

To be honest I've always had pretty stiff cars. The Megane is far better dampened than the Clio 220T, but you still feel the bumps.

I drive some pretty rutted up roads most days and while the car is hard, it's not unmanageable. On normal surfaces it's fine.

If you want something that soaks up the bumps well you're probably looking at the wrong car. The competition with their magnetic dampers are probably better bets. The RS Meganes have always been pretty uncompromising in their setup. But I wouldn't go for the sport chassis, the proper diff is a must.

Black Cup said:

I too have a Trophy on order, due sometime in May, I have gone for Glacier White with BOSE and Visio packs. Orginally had a similar spec 280 Cup with 19 inch alloys on order since June 2018 exoected in Dec last year, WLTP delays has meant I was able to change spec, to say I am excited about the car is an understatement!!!

Well done for holding out! I think I would probably have ordered something else if mine had been delayed (I really was fed up of the Clio ). It'll be worth the wait though!

[gutbobs]

People who've upgraded from a MK3 - what difference has it made to your insurance?

[framerateuk]

I only had to pay the adjustment for changing the policy when going from the Clio to the Megane.

Prices are fairly similar to what I was paying for my 250 a few years back. Though these days I don't go for the cheapest, rather the one that would give me options for repair. The really cheap ones won't give you any choice of where it goes for repair.

[gutbobs]

So, yesterday I went to the local Renault dealer - no RS's in the group which was a disappointment (I wasn't entirely surprised they didn't have one on site, but thought they might have a 280 kicking about somewhere). They suggested I go to a Renaultsport dealer, which I planned for tomorrow.

Today, I found myself working 3 miles from that dealer so I popped into see them. No Meg's, but they did have 3x Alpines in (thinking about it, I don't recall seeing any used mk3's or clio's either).

They can get a 280 in from another dealer next week, but said they couldn't get near the quote from my local dealer. (Which makes me wonder if they'll even bother to get the car in for me to see)

It shouldn't be this hard to view a car before buying it should it?

[nunpuncher]

I know. Until last week I just assumed all Renault dealers sold Renault Sport cars. I guess I lucked out that my local one was an RS dealer who had a demonstrator.

[Hothatch1977]

Good topic this....
Got my shortlist down to the following in order of cost, cheapest being No 1...
1. Cupra 290 dsg
2. Megane RS manual
3. Merc A45

Can’t ignore how cheap the Cupra deals are....I have a spreadsheet lol
I do circa 15k per year so need something that ticks all boxes...fun/comfort etc
Love the Merc but pricey and high excess mileage

I should settle for a comfy diesel German car as my work colleagues have but just can’t!!
Love a hot hatch always have....

[framerateuk]

gutbobs said:

So, yesterday I went to the local Renault dealer - no RS's in the group which was a disappointment (I wasn't entirely surprised they didn't have one on site, but thought they might have a 280 kicking about somewhere). They suggested I go to a Renaultsport dealer, which I planned for tomorrow.

Today, I found myself working 3 miles from that dealer so I popped into see them. No Meg's, but they did have 3x Alpines in (thinking about it, I don't recall seeing any used mk3's or clio's either).

They can get a 280 in from another dealer next week, but said they couldn't get near the quote from my local dealer. (Which makes me wonder if they'll even bother to get the car in for me to see)

It shouldn't be this hard to view a car before buying it should it?

Renault are really struggling to get the cars out the door. I think the interest caught them by surprise, and the new WLTP regs have delayed everything. I think lots of dealers ended up selling their demonstrators - although as RS Dealers, they are meant to have one of each car in stock.

[nunpuncher]

How much is annual tax on the Megane? I thought it was about £140 but I saw a note on the dealers quote that the first year was covered at a cost of £800.

[nunpuncher]

Hothatch1977 said:

Good topic this....
Got my shortlist down to the following in order of cost, cheapest being No 1...
1. Cupra 290 dsg
2. Megane RS manual
3. Merc A45

Can’t ignore how cheap the Cupra deals are....I have a spreadsheet lol
I do circa 15k per year so need something that ticks all boxes...fun/comfort etc
Love the Merc but pricey and high excess mileage

I should settle for a comfy diesel German car as my work colleagues have but just can’t!!
Love a hot hatch always have....

Do you mean the A35?

I went and had a nose around one last week. The interior looks and feels very expensive and the one in the showroom had the aero pack so it looked good outside. It really needs that pack added to look anything better than the A180 diesels though and then things start to get rather expensive.

I previously had a Cupra 290 DSG. A 2 year lease that went back in December and like you say it was great value for money. I really can't criticise anything about the car other than it's tendency to wheel hop even when you feed the power in. The explanation on here regarding the torque coming in so early makes sense but I think theres something funny about the diff and traction set up as the car didn't torque steer at all and there was no progression to the loss of front end traction in a straight line. Like it never went from a bit of wheel spin to wheel hop. It always just went straight to violent wheel hop no matter the conditions.

It was a good car that did everything well but nothing brilliantly.

[framerateuk]

nunpuncher said:

How much is annual tax on the Megane? I thought it was about £140 but I saw a note on the dealers quote that the first year was covered at a cost of £800.

The way VED works has changed in the last couple of years.

The first year amount is huge now, but every year after is just £140.

https://www.wilsons.co.uk/news/road-tax-rates-2018...

[Hothatch1977]

nunpuncher said:

Do you mean the A35?

I went and had a nose around one last week. The interior looks and feels very expensive and the one in the showroom had the aero pack so it looked good outside. It really needs that pack added to look anything better than the A180 diesels though and then things start to get rather expensive.

I previously had a Cupra 290 DSG. A 2 year lease that went back in December and like you say it was great value for money. I really can't criticise anything about the car other than it's tendency to wheel hop even when you feed the power in. The explanation on here regarding the torque coming in so early makes sense but I think theres something funny about the diff and traction set up as the car didn't torque steer at all and there was no progression to the loss of front end traction in a straight line. Like it never went from a bit of wheel spin to wheel hop. It always just went straight to violent wheel hop no matter the conditions.

It was a good car that did everything well but nothing brilliantly.

Yes sorry the A35. Looking at one next week prefer it with the aero pack tbh like the discreet looks.

Reference the wheel hop on the Cupra it is a pain, changing the tyres to Goodyear eagle F3’s helped loads.

Megane RS looks like my favourite atm
Going to order via carwow In early March keep options low, just the paint.
Thank god the first year road tax is included!

[nunpuncher]

Standard spec covers most of what I need. I'll tick the bigger screen, alcantara wheel, paint and still on the fence about the cup pack. I don't want to be cursing the stiffness everyday only to get the benefits of the diff every so often.

Cup pack or orange paint?.. hmm. Annoying that paint is so pricey.

[sorrento205]

From what i've read its the cup pack that adds the 'renault sport' feel, without speccing it, it's a more generic hot hatch approach like a golf GTI, not having its own stand out appeal. If I end up with a Megane I would much prefer the cup I think.

[Butter Face]

Cup is virtually essential IMO. I wouldn't personally own an RS car without it.

Alcantara pack is nice, we had it on a 275 Trophy and it really felt decent.

All Renault dealers can sell RS cars, but there's no requirement to have a demo, RS dealers need to have all models available.

We have a 300 Trophy on order IIRC, EDC, Volcanic Orange, Alcantara,BOSE and Camera I think.

Should be a hell of a car.

[Turbojuice]

gutbobs said:

With regards to the infotainment, I've enabled Android auto/apple carplay on mine and use Android auto all the time.

Just out of interest, how do you go about doing this? Didn't know it was possible on the mk3 meg rs.

[gutbobs]

Turbojuice said:

Just out of interest, how do you go about doing this? Didn't know it was possible on the mk3 meg rs.

Basically, follow the instructions from here: https://www.gps-rlink.com/r-link-1/activate-androi...

The hardest part about it was getting the cover off the OBD2 port. I've enabled RS monitor as well, which is a bit more complicated, but it does mean you can change the throttle map that's used in sport mode

[Turbojuice]

gutbobs said:

Turbojuice said:

Just out of interest, how do you go about doing this? Didn't know it was possible on the mk3 meg rs.

Basically, follow the instructions from here: https://www.gps-rlink.com/r-link-1/activate-androi...

The hardest part about it was getting the cover off the OBD2 port. I've enabled RS monitor as well, which is a bit more complicated, but it does mean you can change the throttle map that's used in sport mode

Thanks. Didn't realise you could enable RS monitor too.

[framerateuk]

sorrento205 said:

From what i've read its the cup pack that adds the 'renault sport' feel, without speccing it, it's a more generic hot hatch approach like a golf GTI, not having its own stand out appeal. If I end up with a Megane I would much prefer the cup I think.

I've always felt that there are better "all rounder" cars around if comfort is a higher priority. It's the more focussed and less compromised feel (well, as uncompromising as you can be with a mass market hatchback) which gives them their edge.

I'd always spec a Cup or buy the Trophy version.