Turbodiesel to join RenaultSport range Down Under

Renault Australia will launch two new RenaultSport models this year -- and one of them's a diesel!

Set to arrive in October, the Megane RenaultSport dCi will be the French marque's first foray into performance diesels Down Under. The five-door hatch will join the new Clio III RenaultSport 197, due in late July, and the company's carryover hot hatch models, the turbocharged petrol Megane RenaultSport 225 and 225 Cup.

The two additions will take the total number of RS models sold in Australia to four. Once current stocks are exhausted, the limited edition Megane RenaultSport R26 three-door will exit the local line-up

The new RenaultSport dCi features an all-new 2.0-litre turbodiesel powerplant coupled with a six-speed manual gearbox. There is no auto version.

With 127kW and 360Nm at its disposal, it comprehensively outguns the 1.9-litre turbodiesel currently fitted to the standard Megane dCi. And though the 225's turbocharged 2.0-litre petrol powerplant beats the dCi in terms of power (165kW), even it is 20Nm behind on torque.

Though the dCi is slower off the line than its petrol stablemate (8.3sec 0-100km/h versus 6.5), its big torque number augurs well for in-gear performance. As an added advantage, the dCi records an impressive 6.5L/100km (combined) according to ADR fuel economy testing.

Built on the same line as the 225 at RenaultSport's Dieppe (France) facility, the dCi features the same chassis and suspension enhancements as the petrol RenaultSport Megane. Front suspension rates have been retuned for the heavier diesel powerplant, but save for the R26's limited slip differential, the running gear is largely unchanged.

Equipment levels are expected to echo the 225 and indicative pricing places the RenaultSport dCi underneath the turbo petrol 225 ($42,490) and 225 Cup ($44,490).

"We're looking forward to the RenaultSport dCi arriving Down Under," Renault Australia's Craig Smith told the Carsales Network.

"While diesels make sense from a pragmatic point of view, we're keen to show there's an emotional side to our turbodiesels. They're great cars to drive and the RenaultSport dCi is especially so," Smith opined.

"The purists will still go for the 225 Cup, but the dCi should bring new people to the segment and to Megane and Renault," he said.

The RenaultSport dCi is the first Megane hatch to be offered with a turbodiesel powertrain Down Under. Previously the sole turbodiesel Megane was the sedan.

Like the diesel passenger car marketplace as a whole, the rank of small sporting diesels is growing apace. VW's Golf GT TDI recently displaced the Alfa 147 JTD as perhaps the most overtly sporting affordable diesel, however, Renault's move and expected models from Skoda (Octavia vRS TDI), Volvo and the other French marques, should see Aussies soon spoiled for choice.