RE: Renaultsport Megane 275 Cup-S | PH Fleet

[alex_2015]

fantheman80 said:

It’s not a sports car, it’s a hot hatch and 40k miles is nothing for anything built after 1972

A high performance car. The idea is the same: this is a higher performance car (than everyday cars) that being so special invites to be trashed(enjoyed) by "enthusiasts".

Also given the high performance nature such cars are on the verge of reliability(design pushed towards the limits). Factor in some abuse and it won't look good.

I'd avoid such used cars unless it's a steal of a deal and I afford to fix, or I know the car history / owner.

[Not a Diesel]

I have generally been of the opinion you own Renaultsports when they are relatively new and take the depreciation hit but get reliability or later in life when values flatten & all the bits are fixed. Not in the middle.

I have owned a 182, Trophy, 197, 200 and a R26 for 4 years before my 275 Cup-S.

The Trophy needed Damper rebuild and the R26 Regulators under warranty all else std servicing.

Now to the 275.

Bought at 2 years with a 4 year service plan just serviced. Serviced again at 4 years for free. 3 MOT's I paid for and I Repaced my Cup-2 with Pilot Sport 4S and sold the part worn Cup2's. Had a Headlight replaced under warranty. So

£150 on MOT's
£100 on Tyres.

£250 For 4 years and 17k.

And the car is probably worth what I paid.

But just coming up to Cambelt Service which I will pay for & I am sure the dampers will need a refurb in the next couple of years. And I may get a Gearbox Problem. So next 4 years probably more likely to cost me £4k.

But I could in theory step away today for 4 years of Zero Cost Motoring..... But no-one is separating me from my Meg.

The only unusual bill in the original post was really the gearbox and if rebuild with uprated component will be ok for years. But not that unusual as Renault have a history of this in Megs & 200/197. All the other stuff was motoring just unlucky it came in a relatively short period.

Most cars have there issues E92 M3 - Rod Bearing & Actuators, E46 Vanos, Rod Bearings, Boot Floor. various Porsches with some kind of bore wear.

The other thing to remember is this is a humdrum manufacturer that has made a world beating hot hatch that is still revered 6 years after production ended. The car in itself was an evolution of Engine & Gearbox with the power & torque turned up. Not a Clean sheet design like the Civic with brand new tech in 2016 and inherent excellence in engine building.

[Not a Diesel]

If I was to criticise I would Criticise Renault UK for there lack of support of the brand and there subsequent poor dealership knowledge & service levels.

[Ella Jean]

I’ve just got rid of a Megane RS250 Cup. Many years before this I also ran a 172 for 2 yrs.

Both were great cars and 100% reliable but I did spend a bit on maintenance… if you’re driving cars hard you have to accept the odd bill here and there and you also enjoy keeping the car tip top.

If you want 100% reliability the Honda Jazz is the car for you

[ManualOnly]

My 265 was built 2015-06 and is sitting at 31k miles at the moment.
Bought it in 2016 at 3,5k miles from a Renault dealer.

Some problems was solved when the car was still under warranty:
New rear beam (alignment was really bad, probably from factory)
New rear side window and sourrounding rubber trim (rubber surrounding started to deform and point "out". To change rubber trim they had to also change the window. Seems like poor design to me but what do I know)

Repairs I had to pay for:
Oil on rocker cover. Thread seal on rocker cover bolts, so not too expensive. £200
Rear arch extension needed new double-sided adhesive. £200

Annoyance:
c. 1/10 times RS Monitor is "frozen" No information is shown.
Been like that from the start of my ownership.

Gear shift is not great.


Positve:
Still makes me happy - great fun to drive

Edited by ManualOnly on Wednesday 8th June 23:29

Edited by ManualOnly on Wednesday 8th June 23:30

[Jon_S_Rally]

jenkosrugby said:

To be honest, as nice as these cars are, the faults are unforgivable in this day and age. I had a Renault 1916v back in the late 90's, and guess what gearbox bearing failed......I do appreciate its not just renault that suffers, but the likes of Honda seem to have nailed the high performance reliability thing.

Doesn't the Type-R suffer from gearbox issues?

[Cambs_Stuart]

I can confirm that the service at AW motorworks is fantastic. Probably the best I've had from a garage. Hugely knowledgeable, freindly, and after support is second to none.

[alex_2015]

Jon_S_Rally said:

Doesn't the Type-R suffer from gearbox issues?

If you shift a manual gearbox DCT style it will develop those issues (worn synchros and trouble shifting afterwards). It's a manual not a PDK.

Edited by alex_2015 on Thursday 9th June 07:46

[Save the manuals]

Consensus seems to have changed in last years, the Megane RS 250-275 was generally considered reliable. Perhaps time has proven that to be wrong?

I had a 265 cup from new for four years and 60000 mostly trouble free miles. The clutch was replaced under warranty, annoyingly can't remember why. The battery had to be replaced once. That was pretty much it, apart from regular maintainence. Resonable service costs but needed a full set of new tires every 1250 (street!) miles.

It was a bit painful to live with as a daily driver but incredibly good to drive, at any speed really. Makes perfect sense as a B-road and track day toy, if you have something more comfortable for daily journeys.

Feel sorry for Ben! But imagine the bill if similar work was needed on a Porsche...

[solopb]

HAD ONE YRS AGO, KEPT IT FOR A COUPLE OF MONTHS, oil haze down off side of car, poor build quality, and

[fantheman80]

Jon_S_Rally said:

Doesn't the Type-R suffer from gearbox issues?

There are a very small percentage that come from the factory wrong for sure and need replacing (although honda have been hit and miss with how they treated those people) they dont tend to go wrong over time maybe like a Meg RS

I am on 53K on my fk8 coming up to 5 years in sept. Nothing has gone wrong, and I d be struggling to name many common faults from the forums so you can drive a hot hatch hard and still have reliability. Of course you go through consumables and the purchase price is much higher, but Honda having more reliability than a Renault probably isn't too surprising to many so you pays your money takes your chances

[PaulJC84]

If you visit the Nürburgring you will see loads of this shape Megane going around. Probably the 3rd most common car used on track.

[richinlondon]

I admire people's commitment here (having done similar level of works on an M3 e36 evo but at a much greater age). It almost annoys me on peoples' behalf though that a modern can be turned out of the factory with such a short lifespan on some components - hard driven or not...

[Jon_S_Rally]

alex_2015 said:

If you shift a manual gearbox DCT style it will develop those issues (worn synchros and trouble shifting afterwards). It's a manual not a PDK.

Edited by alex_2015 on Thursday 9th June 07:46

I didn't mention DCTs? I just said that I had heard of issues with the gearbox in the Type-R, which contradicted what the poster said about them being significantly better than others.

I ran a Meg 265 for a year and didn't have any issues with it really. I think it had a sensor done at the end of its warranty, but I don't recall anything else.

[WayOutWest]

Save the manuals said:

Consensus seems to have changed in last years, the Megane RS 250-275 was generally considered reliable. Perhaps time has proven that to be wrong?

I had a 265 cup from new for four years and 60000 mostly trouble free miles. The clutch was replaced under warranty, annoyingly can't remember why. The battery had to be replaced once. That was pretty much it, apart from regular maintainence. Resonable service costs but needed a full set of new tires every 1250 (street!) miles.

It was a bit painful to live with as a daily driver but incredibly good to drive, at any speed really. Makes perfect sense as a B-road and track day toy, if you have something more comfortable for daily journeys.

Feel sorry for Ben! But imagine the bill if similar work was needed on a Porsche...

I ordered a 265, which then changed to a 275 midway through the wait, and the consensus at the time was that the Megane was pretty bulletproof and had gradually evolved through 250/265/275 with any minor niggles sorted out. But it seems they introduced some new ones. I sold my 275 at under 2 years old and only a few thousand miles so nothing had time to break.

Would I have another? Probably not. It was a fantastic drivers car, and one of the best cars I've owned in some ways, but if I needed space and practicality I'd go for an RS Megane 280/300 - still the best looking 5 door hot hatch on sale imo - and if not, roll the dice on a used Cayman, which will probably cost even more to maintain if you're unlucky, but hey, it's a Porsche.

[Motormatt]

richinlondon said:

I admire people's commitment here (having done similar level of works on an M3 e36 evo but at a much greater age). It almost annoys me on peoples' behalf though that a modern can be turned out of the factory with such a short lifespan on some components - hard driven or not...

I'm with you in principle, it feels almost inexcusable in this day and age but being realistic, the Megane RS has relatively humble origins being based on the underpinnings of a car that was built down to a budget and designed as every day transport, not as a sports car.

I could easily forgive a car like this for needing a few quid spending relatively early in life. I'd struggle justifying the sort of bills that sports cars costing many times the Meganes list price throw up for similarly well known issues though.

[alex_2015]

Jon_S_Rally said:

I didn't mention DCTs? I just said that I had heard of issues with the gearbox in the Type-R, which contradicted what the poster said about them being significantly better than others.

I ran a Meg 265 for a year and didn't have any issues with it really. I think it had a sensor done at the end of its warranty, but I don't recall anything else.

And I was ironic saying that people shift these Type R manual gearboxes like they were DCTs: hardly clutch fully depressed, throw the stick asap in the new gear, slam as hard as possible the clutch back. Who cares if the synchros did their job? Not needed.

This causes most of the Type R gearbox problems. Expecting it to shift like a PDK.

Edited by alex_2015 on Thursday 9th June 12:12

[davyvee]

The gearbox issues are mainly with the Cup-S apparently.

Earlier cars much less prone according to chappy at KTR.

[integra1799]

My partners gearbox has just failed on her Megane 275 Cup-S and that's only done 25k miles. Does seem to very common issue on these, a quick search on google highlights lots of posts by owners of cars when they were pretty new with gearbox issues at low miles.

It is booked in with AW Motor works to have this rebuilt.

[PJ_Parsons]

Is the gearbox repair a once in the lifetime of the car kind of job? Or, is it fundamentally flawed? You'd think car manufacturers would know how to make a good gearbox by now.