Renaultsport & VW
Discussion
Testdove a couple of cars yesterday, looking for a replacement for the gf's A3, but something still practical (for the dog)and fun to drive. Max budget is £9K, so was initially looking at Mk5 golf GTIs and RenaultSport Meganes.
After reading all the reviews I was half expecting that we would fall for the golf with its handling and nice interior. IMO The Renaults don't look as good, and in comparison have a cheaper interior (no offence to anyone that's got one), but I wanted to drive an RS megane as the reviews were so good and to have a decent benchmark for the GTI.
We went to a decent independent dealer that had some good examples of both cars and took out an 07 RS Megane 230 F1 (23K miles, I think that's the right name - the one with the LSD).
All I can say is that within the first 1/4 mile it just felt great. The ride was supple but you could feel everything going on through the chassis and once it had warmed up it really took off. The engine felt a lot stronger than I was expecting. The whole car just felt right and I had the confidence to chuck it around a bit from the offset.
Next up was a 56 plate golf GTI (56K miles). After the Megane it felt smooth, but relatively slow. It's obviously not a slow car, but the engine wasn't nearly as strong. Ride wise it was slightly more comfortable than the Megane, but less "locked in" to the road if that makes sense?
After the 1st mile the golf felt a bit boring to be honest. It was quite competent, but didn't have the spark of the Megane. I was quite disappointed as they were both 5 star Evo cars. It's obvious that the Megane may be the better driver's car, but I didn't expect such a marked difference.
I was expecting the better interior of the Golf to swing the decision as we will be doing some long journeys in the car. But instead i'm trying to justify the the "fun" of the Megane, and it's winning over the much better interior of the GTI.
So In summary, as i've waffled on more than intended, I felt a bit let down by the golf compared to the image I had in my head - it felt like a more competent version of the A3 that my gf has already, not the hot hatch hero I was expecting. Whereas the Renault blew me away as was an even better drive than I was expecting.
Has anyone experienced / owned the 2? Can the golf feel a bit sterile but get better as you get to know it? and is there much difference between the 08 megane 225 (as ive found a v.low milage one) compared to the F1 230??
After reading all the reviews I was half expecting that we would fall for the golf with its handling and nice interior. IMO The Renaults don't look as good, and in comparison have a cheaper interior (no offence to anyone that's got one), but I wanted to drive an RS megane as the reviews were so good and to have a decent benchmark for the GTI.
We went to a decent independent dealer that had some good examples of both cars and took out an 07 RS Megane 230 F1 (23K miles, I think that's the right name - the one with the LSD).
All I can say is that within the first 1/4 mile it just felt great. The ride was supple but you could feel everything going on through the chassis and once it had warmed up it really took off. The engine felt a lot stronger than I was expecting. The whole car just felt right and I had the confidence to chuck it around a bit from the offset.
Next up was a 56 plate golf GTI (56K miles). After the Megane it felt smooth, but relatively slow. It's obviously not a slow car, but the engine wasn't nearly as strong. Ride wise it was slightly more comfortable than the Megane, but less "locked in" to the road if that makes sense?
After the 1st mile the golf felt a bit boring to be honest. It was quite competent, but didn't have the spark of the Megane. I was quite disappointed as they were both 5 star Evo cars. It's obvious that the Megane may be the better driver's car, but I didn't expect such a marked difference.
I was expecting the better interior of the Golf to swing the decision as we will be doing some long journeys in the car. But instead i'm trying to justify the the "fun" of the Megane, and it's winning over the much better interior of the GTI.
So In summary, as i've waffled on more than intended, I felt a bit let down by the golf compared to the image I had in my head - it felt like a more competent version of the A3 that my gf has already, not the hot hatch hero I was expecting. Whereas the Renault blew me away as was an even better drive than I was expecting.
Has anyone experienced / owned the 2? Can the golf feel a bit sterile but get better as you get to know it? and is there much difference between the 08 megane 225 (as ive found a v.low milage one) compared to the F1 230??
GTI in later marks has definitely become more of a competent grand tourer hatch rather than an out and out bone shatteringly stiff hot hatch that Renaultsport seem to turf out on the regular, so much so that it seems that the recent Mk6 GTI has been completely disregarded in its class as it just cant compete with the Meg 250/Focus RS etc.
If your budget is 9k...
Do you really need the larger models or is a pristine Clio 182 or perhaps a 197/early 200 an option?
If you're looking for a fun, well handling/priced car you can't do much better than a pristine 182 or 197/ early 200.
I have had my Twingo 133 Cup for roughly 3/4 months now and I absolutely adore it, yes the interior appears to be made out of plastic cups and lego, but for the sheer pleasure of driving and putting a smile on my face nothing I test drove comes close. I did have a look at Clio 200's but unfortunately they were just a step too far in terms of costs. The interior did however feel well put together and more refined than my Twingo hence my recommendation of a 197/early 200?
With regards to the Megane, the Mk2 seemed to be quite poorly put together and a bit ropey in some areas. However it is still a fantastic car, IF you can put up with its shortcomings for the sake of the more rewarding drive and character compared to the Golf. One of the reasons that pushed me immeasurably towards the Twingo despite its downfalls in terms of interior/refinement etc. was that it more than made up for these shortfalls with character and sheer driving pleasure, if you can cope with the downfalls of the Megane/other Renaultsports for the sake of the drive I thoroughly recommend one.
If your budget is 9k...
Do you really need the larger models or is a pristine Clio 182 or perhaps a 197/early 200 an option?
If you're looking for a fun, well handling/priced car you can't do much better than a pristine 182 or 197/ early 200.
I have had my Twingo 133 Cup for roughly 3/4 months now and I absolutely adore it, yes the interior appears to be made out of plastic cups and lego, but for the sheer pleasure of driving and putting a smile on my face nothing I test drove comes close. I did have a look at Clio 200's but unfortunately they were just a step too far in terms of costs. The interior did however feel well put together and more refined than my Twingo hence my recommendation of a 197/early 200?
With regards to the Megane, the Mk2 seemed to be quite poorly put together and a bit ropey in some areas. However it is still a fantastic car, IF you can put up with its shortcomings for the sake of the more rewarding drive and character compared to the Golf. One of the reasons that pushed me immeasurably towards the Twingo despite its downfalls in terms of interior/refinement etc. was that it more than made up for these shortfalls with character and sheer driving pleasure, if you can cope with the downfalls of the Megane/other Renaultsports for the sake of the drive I thoroughly recommend one.
Edited by doodles19 on Sunday 14th August 12:46
It's going to be my girlfriends car to replace her mk1 1.8T Audi A3 so we need the space of the bigger megane / golf sized car compared to the next range down clio / polo etc as the dog goes in the back and we use it for suitcases and trips etc. I've got the Z4 as my daily driver or if it's just the 2 of us.
Was always drawn to the 182 after having a Saxo VTS (quite) a few years back now, But it's just too small and would be me influencing the choice just too much, as The gf has to use it as her daily driver and it will have to happily cruise up and down the motorway - hence needing 6th gear etc. I'm amazed she even liked the RS to be fair, thought the golf would have been a winner from a girls perspective...
Was always drawn to the 182 after having a Saxo VTS (quite) a few years back now, But it's just too small and would be me influencing the choice just too much, as The gf has to use it as her daily driver and it will have to happily cruise up and down the motorway - hence needing 6th gear etc. I'm amazed she even liked the RS to be fair, thought the golf would have been a winner from a girls perspective...
ratty6464 said:
It's going to be my girlfriends car to replace her mk1 1.8T Audi A3 so we need the space of the bigger megane / golf sized car compared to the next range down clio / polo etc as the dog goes in the back and we use it for suitcases and trips etc. I've got the Z4 as my daily driver or if it's just the 2 of us.
Was always drawn to the 182 after having a Saxo VTS (quite) a few years back now, But it's just too small and would be me influencing the choice just too much, as The gf has to use it as her daily driver and it will have to happily cruise up and down the motorway - hence needing 6th gear etc. I'm amazed she even liked the RS to be fair, thought the golf would have been a winner from a girls perspective...
Just some other suggestions then.Was always drawn to the 182 after having a Saxo VTS (quite) a few years back now, But it's just too small and would be me influencing the choice just too much, as The gf has to use it as her daily driver and it will have to happily cruise up and down the motorway - hence needing 6th gear etc. I'm amazed she even liked the RS to be fair, thought the golf would have been a winner from a girls perspective...
Seat Leon Cupra? Seems to be a decent fan base for them and better loved than the Golf despite being VAG. Would be a decent motorway cruiser as well.
Focus ST? Straight 5 good-ness. Fairly comfortable and great on the motorway, chews fuel though.
You could get a reaaaaly nice EP3 Civic Type R for that sort of whack. Could get tiresome on the motorway doing high rpms.
Mazda 3 MPS - Really really fast 2.3t engine and loads of kit, bose sound system etc. Great cars. 6 gears, cruise control whats not to like!
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