Renault Mégane Sport Tourer
MODEL TESTED: Renault Mégane Sport Tourer 1.5 dci Dynamique S Nav PRICE: £22,640 ENGINE: 1.5-litre 4cyl, 108bhp Family favourite offers an appealing blend of practicality and stylish good looks
THE Mégane Sport Tourer made a winning debut (Issue 1,456) against the Vauxhall Astra and Peugeot 308 estates, so it’s the car to beat here.
Spacious, stylish and refined, the well packaged Renault is a desirable choice for growing families. Once again, we test the car in popular and greatvalue £22,640 1.5 dci Dynamique S Nav guise.
DESIGN & ENGINEERING
THE five-door Mégane is one of the most eye-catching hatchback models, and happily the same design flair has been carried over to the Sport Tourer. By stretching the wheelbase by 43mm and the overall length by 267mm, Renault’s designers have added an estate rear end without spoiling the Mégane’s proportions. It has the boxy Skoda and subtle VW beaten for kerb appeal.
Underneath the car’s sleek lines is the same Renault-nissan Alliance CMF CD platform that underpins everything from Renault’s larger Scenic MPV to the Nissan X-trail SUV. It features a simple layout of strut suspension both front and rear, while the transverse engine layout is standard for the class. However, the Renault is the only car here to get a six-speed manual as standard – the Octavia and Golf make do with five-speed units. As with its rivals, a six-speed twin-clutch transmission is an option.
Climb aboard and you’ll discover the car feels remarkably upmarket. The wraparound dash is clearly laid out, and features classy TFT dials and Renault’s portrait-style R-link infotainment system. Highquality materials are used throughout, and the fit and finish are easily a match for the Skoda’s, and only a little way behind the premium-feeling VW.
There’s also plenty of equipment, with our Dynamique S Nav featuring sat-nav, climate control, Bluetooth and ambient cabin lighting.
DRIVING
AS with the hatch variant, the Sport Tourer’s driving dynamics are geared towards comfort and refinement rather than driving thrills. This approach is underlined by the 1.5-litre dci diesel engine, which packs the lightest punch here with 108bhp. It’s smooth and unobtrusive, but at the track it completed the 0-60mph sprint in 10.9 seconds, which was nearly a full second slower than the Skoda.
However, thanks to the Renault’s closely stacked ratios and decent 250Nm torque output, it put on a stronger display during our in-gear tests, where it had the edge over both its five-speed rivals. As a result, it doesn’t trail its rivals on the road. Here the Mégane responds eagerly enough, and rarely feels as underpowered as its on-paper figures suggest.
The focus on comfort is highlighted by the car’s soft and supple suspension. Large potholes can send a shudder through the cabin, but for most of the time the Renault effortlessly soaks up bumps. It’s quiet, too, transmitting less wind and road noise into the cabin than the more stiffly suspended VW.
The price you pay for this comfort is less assured handling. The Renault’s steering is quick and light with strong grip, but the car rolls more through bends and the suspension struggles to contain bigger body movements as effectively as its rivals.
PRACTICALITY
THE Renault trails its rivals for space with its rear seats up. The Mégane’s luggage area will hold 580 litres, which trails the Skoda and VW by 30 and 25 litres respectively.
However, lower the rear bench using the levers in the boot and you liberate a handy 1,695 litres of capacity, making it roomier than the Golf and only a fraction smaller than the Octavia. The load area is versatile, too, with a boot floor that features a pop-up load divider and a deep hidden storage area beneath. There are also deep cubbies set into the boot sides, shopping bag hooks and a 12V power supply.
The practical theme continues elsewhere, because you’ll discover large door bins, a lidded compartment between the front seats and a handy tray ahead of the gearlever. However, as with many French machines, the Renault’s glovebox has to share space with the fuses.
OWNERSHIP
RENAULT ’S excellent display in our annual Driver Power satisfaction survey is nothing short of remarkable. With its improved products and customer service, the brand has clawed its way up the order, finishing in a strong eighth place in 2016. However, even this seems like an underachievement when you consider the maker’s garages topped the dealer charts in the same poll, ahead of even Skoda.
There’s more good news when it comes to safety, because the Mégane was handed a five-star crash rating by Euro NCAP. All versions get six airbags and stability control, while Dynamique models and above add lane-departure warning and traffic-sign recognition. However, autonomous emergency braking and adaptive cruise are part of a £400 pack.
RUNNING COSTS
AT £22,640, the Renault falls between its rivals here on price, yet it has both of them narrowly beaten for standard equipment. The CO2 emissions of 96g/km also mean the Mégane will cost company car users the least to tax, with lower-rate earners saving around £100 a year compared to the Golf.
The news isn’t so good for private buyers, with our experts calculating the Sport Tourer will retain a disappointing 36.6 per cent of its value after three years. On the plus side, Renault offers a four-year/100,000-mile warranty, as well as a pre-paid servicing pack that covers three years of maintenance for £459. We also recorded a frugal 49.6mpg at the pumps.