RE: Renault Sport Megane Trophy-R spied!

[anonymous-user]

CraigV6 said:

The Civic is an abomination.

Back on topic, I expect Renault will get this thing round the ring quicker than any other in the class. It’s a loss leading marketing exercise that will sell out regardless of price and might attract interest and sell a few more 280’s and Trophy’s.

I think the new Renault looks a bit grim tbh.

[WCZ]

D7Cup said:

Given the general praise of the previous trophy r may I ask what was it that you didn't like? Genuine question.

just felt a bit too big and not as a raw as I expected. (on track) - haven't driven one on the road.

[MiseryStreak]

robm3 said:

IanJ9375 said:

Guvernator said:

I always reference the BMW M3 CSL in this regard, it lost 110kgs but still retained the rear seats, if it hadn't I don't think it would have sold a fraction as many or reached such a lofty status as one of the best BMW's made. The GTS that followed it with the rear seats removed doesn't get half as much love or attention despite being a better, more hardcore drivers car.

Remember BMW struggled to shift the CSL when it was new despite having the rear seats in place, it's only later in life become an icon.
When my brother was picking up his E60 M5 it was the same price as a CSL at the same dealer, think it was £24-25k back then, well before the lofty heights of today.

Yep, brought my CSL second hand from BMW as approved used with warranty for 23K!

Not helped by the appalling review in EVO magazine at the time, which I never understood. It was just an M3 with less weight, more power, and nicer seats, yet they rated it lower than a standard M3?

I very nearly bought a CSL 10 years ago when they were around £18-19K, but couldn't quite justify it. Oh the horror of hindsight...

Back on topic - I absolutely love Renaultsport products and wouldn't even mind this five door only Megane, but why do they insist on making the decals more and more offensive every time? I can just about tolerate the decals on the R26.R and 275 Trophy R, but these are just disgusting! I can imagine those getting 'deleted' from quite a few orders.

[Baldchap]

R1nur said:

Snap.

I never understand the hate for 2 seater hatchbacks.

I wish people would say “it doesn’t suit me because I want 4 seats”, not “everyone who buys a 2 seat hatch is an idiot” - my summary!

Every one of my 3 2 seat hatchbacks has been free to run or even made a profit. As well as being the pinnacle of hot hatches at the time. I don’t feel stupid.

I think people are getting their knickers in a twist not because of the number of seats, but because of the redundant doors that presumably open to nowhere.

Seems a bit daft, but historically RS kit has been consistently good, so I'll have a go before I form an opinion.

I do think it looks nice.

[Leins]

Baldchap said:

R1nur said:

Snap.

I never understand the hate for 2 seater hatchbacks.

I wish people would say “it doesn’t suit me because I want 4 seats”, not “everyone who buys a 2 seat hatch is an idiot” - my summary!

Every one of my 3 2 seat hatchbacks has been free to run or even made a profit. As well as being the pinnacle of hot hatches at the time. I don’t feel stupid.

I think people are getting their knickers in a twist not because of the number of seats, but because of the redundant doors that presumably open to nowhere.

Seems a bit daft, but historically RS kit has been consistently good, so I'll have a go before I form an opinion.

I do think it looks nice.

Twisted knickers have very much been in evidence whenever 2-seat hot hatches are mentioned on here

As previously mentioned by another posted in this thread though, I do wonder what the plan is with the rear doors on this and if they will weld them shut

[greenarrow]

Another sceptic here of two seat hot hatches, although like many I'd love a Megane R26-R. I remember the EVO test of the Golf Clubsport against a Seat Leon 290 - not a Nurburgring edition model either, just a regular 3 door 290 with Michelin Pilot Cup tyres on it, like the Golf. Despite all the ballyhoo, the Golf lapped whatever track they used in almost an identical time to the less powerful Seat. The Golf might have been 0.1 or 0.05 seconds faster, but the difference was negligible, which left me wondering if the removal of the rear seats is little more than a gimmick.

[EdHall697]

It's very easy to dismiss Renaultsport's in general, but they're seriously good if your looking for B' road toy or track toy. They can appear to be quite cheap, but don't let that fool you and be prepared for replacing steering and suspension parts, oh and the labour, what can be a cheap toy can turn rather expensive very quickly. They're good under the bonnet provided they're serviced regularly.

Now back to this Trophy-R, I think this could be the cat amongst the pigeons here, but it will be interesting to see what price they put it up at and whether it resembles what is pictured. But I suspect these will be collectors toys rather than mass production.

The market is very confusing for hot hatches at the moment, with the Golf R, the focus RS, Audi S3/RS3 as these are sold two a penny. Years ago if you saw an Escort Cosworth it was a rarity, now the Focus RS is almost everywhere and the same with the Golf R. So they're not that special or rare, if anything I am absolutely bored of the sight of them.

[Itsallicanafford]

Renaultsport 275 cup-s owner here. The rear doors would actually be quite handy for manoeuvring your track wheels into the back, always a bit of a stretch in the 3 door mk3...there, a practical use for a 5 door, 2 seater hot hatch.

[IanJ9375]

MiseryStreak said:

Not helped by the appalling review in EVO magazine at the time, which I never understood. It was just an M3 with less weight, more power, and nicer seats, yet they rated it lower than a standard M3?

I very nearly bought a CSL 10 years ago when they were around £18-19K, but couldn't quite justify it. Oh the horror of hindsight...

Back on topic - I absolutely love Renaultsport products and wouldn't even mind this five door only Megane, but why do they insist on making the decals more and more offensive every time? I can just about tolerate the decals on the R26.R and 275 Trophy R, but these are just disgusting! I can imagine those getting 'deleted' from quite a few orders.

I think the problem was the M3 was well received, the extra outlay from one of those to a CSL probably put it in a bad light.
When they dropped to mid 20's everyone seems to have accepted them as "GT3" type icons and they've risen since

Assuming the decals will be an option to tick or not, guess most will tick as residuals will be on their mind

[Track_Cit]

Still can't believe some of you are bleating on about the fact it has 5 doors, will you give over....

This is the platform RS team have to work with. The base model is a 5 door, therefore any 'hot' versions they make will be based on the same version. Get over it FFS!

The comment above regarding the Mk3Trophy R not being hardcore enough is just utter b*llox, sorry. They are a mega car and hold their own against most machinery costing three times as much. B roads - amazing, track - amazing, What more do you want??!?

I am sure if past results are anything to go by Renault will do well with this one in terms of record setting and it will be the same car that goes on sale *cough* not like Honda. Yes it's a bit gimmicky but it's cool that manufacturers are still making modified versions of their production models. In a few years the very same cry babies will be on here whinging that they are no longer produced due to environmental reasons. Enjoy it while you can, it ain't gonna last.

Edited by Track_Cit on Tuesday 9th April 16:03

[DoubleD]

Track_Cit said:

Still can't believe some of you are bleating on about the fact it has 5 doors, will you give over....

This is the platform RS team have to work with. The base model is a 5 door, therefore any 'hot' versions they make will be based on the same version. Get over it FFS!

Edited by Track_Cit on Tuesday 9th April 16:03

Im not over the fact that its a 5 door only car so I will keep bleating.

[Jon_S_Rally]

greenarrow said:

Another sceptic here of two seat hot hatches, although like many I'd love a Megane R26-R. I remember the EVO test of the Golf Clubsport against a Seat Leon 290 - not a Nurburgring edition model either, just a regular 3 door 290 with Michelin Pilot Cup tyres on it, like the Golf. Despite all the ballyhoo, the Golf lapped whatever track they used in almost an identical time to the less powerful Seat. The Golf might have been 0.1 or 0.05 seconds faster, but the difference was negligible, which left me wondering if the removal of the rear seats is little more than a gimmick.

Rear seat removal is a bit of a gimmick in a way. Let's face it, most of us would never get anywhere near what these cars are capable of but, for many, it's about the experience and the feeling of having "the best", so the track addenda and limited production run are all part of the experience. They're halo cars for the manufacturer too, so a few USPs help with the marketing.

Track_Cit said:

Still can't believe some of you are bleating on about the fact it has 5 doors, will you give over....

This is the platform RS team have to work with. The base model is a 5 door, therefore any 'hot' versions they make will be based on the same version. Get over it FFS!

The comment above regarding the Mk3Trophy R not being hardcore enough is just utter b*llox, sorry. They are a mega car and hold their own against most machinery costing three times as much. B roads - amazing, track - amazing, What more do you want??!?

I am sure if past results are anything to go by Renault will do well with this one in terms of record setting and it will be the same car that goes on sale *cough* not like Honda. Yes it's a bit gimmicky but it's cool that manufacturers are still making modified versions of their production models. In a few years the very same cry babies will be on here whinging that they are no longer produced due to environmental reasons. Enjoy it while you can, it ain't gonna last.

Edited by Track_Cit on Tuesday 9th April 16:03

No no no, you've got it all wrong. Renault Sport should have spent millions upon million of Euros developing a 3dr body especially for the R.S. models, just to satisfy the people that are obsessed by how many doors a car has Funny isn't it, if they'd done that, the haters would then moan about it being too expensive instead

[DoubleD]

Jon_S_Rally said:

No no no, you've got it all wrong. Renault Sport should have spent millions upon million of Euros developing a 3dr body especially for the R.S. models, just to satisfy the people that are obsessed by how many doors a car has Funny isn't it, if they'd done that, the haters would then moan about it being too expensive instead

Whats really funny is that some on a motoring forum for petrol heads dont understand that some would have liked a 3 door.

[SidewaysSi]

DoubleD said:

Track_Cit said:

Still can't believe some of you are bleating on about the fact it has 5 doors, will you give over....

This is the platform RS team have to work with. The base model is a 5 door, therefore any 'hot' versions they make will be based on the same version. Get over it FFS!

Edited by Track_Cit on Tuesday 9th April 16:03

Im not over the fact that its a 5 door only car so I will keep bleating.

For me it has to be a 5 door and with rear seats. These aren't really hardcore sports cars so having a hatch with all the practicality of an Elise makes little sense.

However as a fun family machine to sit alongside something like a Lotus, now you're talking..

[anonymous-user]

A 5 door car is stiffer than a 3. Isn’t that the point

Anyway. It looks silly, absolutely tragic with the additional 12 year old graphics.

Honda managed to make the FD2 work with back seats?

[DoubleD]

SidewaysSi said:

For me it has to be a 5 door and with rear seats. These aren't really hardcore sports cars so having a hatch with all the practicality of an Elise makes little sense.

However as a fun family machine to sit alongside something like a Lotus, now you're talking..

Choice is a wonderful thing though isnt it.

Obviously a hatch minus its rear seats is less practical than one with, but it is still more practical than an elise.

[Leins]

I predict the forthcoming MINI GP3 will go single-seater and PH will subsequently implode

[nickfrog]

Leins said:

I predict the forthcoming MINI GP3 will go single-seater and PH will subsequently implode

I hope they do a MINI Countryman GP3 with 5 doors and 1 seat for maximum PH implosion.

[heisthegaffer]

yonex said:

A 5 door car is stiffer than a 3. Isn’t that the point

Is a 5 door stiffer than a 3 door? I'm a little surprised. More openings, more opportunities for body flex. Is there evidence to say otherwise?

[nickfrog]

I doubt there is much difference in torsional rigidity but my guess is the 5 door is a little stiffer because of the stronger B pillar.