Renault Megane GT 2016 Review

Renault Megane GT-Line and GT
Preview drive
Anglesea, Victoria

A local taste-test of Renault's all-new Megane hatch reveals a car that is likely to be on point for dynamics, powertrain and technology -- at the least -- when it arrives here in September. Alongside the redesigned five-door hatch will be a new Megane wagon, but there's no replacement for the Megane coupe.

It’s not often that you drive a left-hand drive overseas model on local roads, but there we were rumbling along on Aussie coarse-chip bitumen -- keeping an eye out for the ‘roos that heavily populate the area -- in a left-hook Renault Megane.

These were typical Aussie roads, but you're not allowed to drive on them. We were at the Australian Automotive Research Centre proving ground in Anglesea to drive the new Megane GT-Line and GT. No speed cameras, no traffic, but roads that replicate those beyond the security fence.

This was to be more a taste-test of the fourth-generation Megane than a full meal. We would have to get our fill of the new Megane from four laps of a 4.2km ‘highway’ loop, a 4.4km winding two-lane stretch up and down a five per cent gradient, and steering manoeuvres set out on a skid pan.

Two spec levels were available to drive: the Megane GT-Line and the GT.
Renault wouldn’t spill the beans on the full local Megane line-up, other than to say the GT-Line and a GT models we drove would appear here in local spec.

The GT will be the premium model in the new generation line-up -- until Renault rustles up a yet-to-be announced RS, which will come with five doors this time round.

First up was the GT-Line, with a carry-over 1.2-litre turbo-four that develops 97kW/205Nm. We sampled the six-speed manual, although a seven-speed EDC (dual-clutch) automatic transmission is likely to be offered when Megane arrives in September.

In Comfort mode, the GT-Line needs a moment to collect itself as you take off — its performance is a bit doughy off the line — but it gets into its stride at about 2000rpm, accompanied by a nice nudge in the back. The engine is smooth and quiet to its 6000rpm redline.

By selecting Sport mode, throttle response is much better – you'll probably want to leave it in Sport’ to enjoy this engine at its best.

Gearshifts were precise and the ratios kept the engine on the boil. The clutch felt a little too light and took a bit of trial and error before making me confident of its take-up point.

Punching the 1.2 up the winding 4.4km course, the engine felt like it could do with a few more kiloWatts but still pulled out of the tight corners with eagerness.

The GT-Line looped though tightening-radius corners leaning on its outside front wheel, but the 205/50R17 ContiEcoContact tyres gripped pretty well, steering was accurate and, when backed off mid-corner, the chassis went from a gentle understeer push to a progressive return to the cornering line.

The GT-Line took the open, undulating corners on the highway loop really well, the suspension absorbing the bumps and settling quickly. With a surface change to coarse-chip bitumen, road noise went from just about none to an obvious tyre roar.

Mind you, this won’t be the first car to react like this to our coarse-chip roads. There was a fair bit of wind at Anglesea, which might explain the rustling noise coming from around the exterior mirrors once the GT-Line was wound up to 110km/h.

Then it was into the top-shelf GT, with its 1.6-litre turbo-petrol four that develops 151kW/280Nm and downloads its power to the front wheels via a standard seven-speed EDC auto.

Onto the highway course, where the 1.6 hammered its way quickly and smoothly to 110km/h, with the tacho needle flicking to the 6200rpm redline and even more quickly dropping revs as the EDC hooked up the next well-spaced ratio.

It wasn’t whip-quick, but its 151kW could be put to good use. In sport mode, the engine stuttered slightly as the EDC auto held off an upshift when suddenly easing pressure on the accelerator, but otherwise the auto knew exactly what to do.

Like the GT-Line, the GT’s Comfort mode doesn’t do engine response any favours -- it’s in Sport mode that the 1.6 turbo feels crisp and more worthy of its GT badge.

Even though the GT may not have the power to knock down the current hot-hatch favourites, it’ll serve up a few swift punches though corners. In the search for low-speed agility, the 4CONTROL four-wheel steering turns the rear wheels in the opposite direction to the fronts up to 60km/h in all modes except Sport (where it does so until 80km/h). From the higher speed, it moves the rear wheels in the same direction as the fronts to aid stability.

On the first corner of the 4.4km winding road course, it was unnerving to not feel the typical delay most cars exhibit as the rear axle starts to follow the front’s change of direction. The car just turned in emphatically with no mucking around, with steering that was precise yet lacking feedback.

Even when reaching one of the corner’s tightening-radius points with too much speed, the GT ran wide progressively and after easing off the accelerator it resumed the correct line quickly.

It was on the skidpan that the 4CONTROL system really showed off its stuff. Here the GT’s four-wheel steering made the GT-Line -- and almost any car with a conventional steering set-up -- feel as though the front wasn’t talking to the back.

When looping cones set out in an 8m circle as fast as tyre traction would allow, the GT was able to track around much more quickly and recovered from running wide more quickly too. Some of that can be down to the GT’s stickier 225/45R18 ContiSportContact tyres, but a large part of it comes down to the 4CONTROL.

The interior of both GT-Line and GT were fitted out with supportive, soft front seats. They held you in tightly and, aside from a high side bolster, didn’t make it hard to get in and out of them.

The dash presentation in both was neat, with the large instrument cluster screen ahead and the new 7.0-inch R-Link centre screen offering clear and concise info. We didn’t have time to perfect scrolling through all the infotainment menus. but with the short play we had it seemed to be pretty easy to navigate.

Two bods could get comfortable on the rear seat, but three would be a squeeze. Head and leg room though were very good.

The two sets of GT-Line and GT were pre-production models, but both appeared well put together. Love it or leave it, there’s no doubt that the Megane’s styling makes the Golf look decidedly plain.

The hatch opened up to a large load space, although the lip was high and the depth of the bumper and boot latch trim would make lifting heavy luggage up and over a bit of a chore.

The new Megane looks promising from this first local taste test, with the chassis tune -- especially in the GT -- a stand out. The GT-Line doesn’t have the power that you’d hope something with GT in its name would, but as a ‘sporty’ package it works well

As for the GT, is it a true GTI competitor? Perhaps not, but its appeal probably lies in its handling potential rather than pure straight-line performance. We need more time exploring the GT’s unique-in-class four-wheel steering system, but from this first glance it appears to have a lot of potential.

2016 Renault Megane GT-Line (GT) pricing and specifications:
Price: TBC
On sale: September
Engine: 1.2-litre (1.6-litre) four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 97kW/205Nm (151kW/280Nm)
Transmission: Six-speed manual (seven-speed dual-clutch)
Fuel: 5.3L/100km (6.0L/100km)
CO2: 125g/km (134g/km)
Safety rating: Five-star (Euro NCAP)

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