Renault Mégane
French hatch is down on power in this company. We find out if that holds it back
MODELTESTED: Renault Mégane dci 110 Signature Nav PRICE: £23,115 ENGINE: 1.5-litre 4cyl, 108bhp THE Renault Mégane is a handsome hatch and has plenty of tech, while the dci 110 turbodiesel engine is a top pick. In high-spec £23,115 Signature Nav trim it’s very well priced and comes loaded with equipment, too. The Mégane has fought it out with the Astra for the family hatch crown for years now, but is it a better choice than its rivals in this spec?
Design & engineering
A DISTINCTIVE design is one of the Mégane’s most attractive features, but there’s engineering substance to back up this style. It’s based on the Renault-nissan Alliance’s CMF-CD platform, which also underpins the brand’s Kadjar SUV as well as the Scenic and Grand Scenic MPVS.
Renaultsport’s version of the Mégane will also hit the UK soon, featuring a special rear-wheel steering system, but this diesel car is much more conventional underneath. There’s Macpherson strut suspension up front and the rear axle is a torsion-beam design, which is typical for a compact family hatch.
Given how affordable the Mégane is in Signature Nav trim, it brings lots of kit. An 8.7-inch portraitstyle touchscreen replaces the 7.0-inch unit on lowerspec models, and it’s well integrated into the hatch’s dash. Interior quality impresses overall, although there are a few harsher, less premium plastics here and there. It’s still the best of the three cars here in that regard. Sat-nav, Bluetooth, parking sensors, cruise control and a reversing camera are standard.
This model also gets 18-inch alloys, LED headlights and leather seats included. It misses out on blind spot monitoring, which the Civic features, but at £500 it’s £250 cheaper as an option than it is on the Astra.
Driving
THE Mégane has the least powerful engine of the three cars here and it’s also the heaviest choice, which explains why its performance figures in our tests were behind both the Honda and Vauxhall’s. It’s also down on torque, with its 260Nm trailing 40Nm behind the Civic and 60Nm adrift of the Astra.
You don’t have to work the engine hard to get maximum performance, though, because the 1.5-litre dci unit produces its maximum torque lower down the rev range than either of its rivals, from just 1,750rpm. Still, the Mégane’s 30-70mph time of 11.8 seconds was some way behind the Civic and Astra’s respective 8.9-second and 8.3-second efforts, which is telling.
The Renault’s gearshift is similar to the Vauxhall’s, in that it’s good enough and nothing more. That’s in contrast to the Honda’s superb, slick shift that’s a joy to use. It’s a shame, as in the Mégane you’ll need to change down more often to overtake, for example.
You can switch between Sport, Comfort and Eco driving modes using the touchscreen display, but they don’t make a huge difference.
The French hatchback rides most surfaces with a fluid feel, offering compliant damping to deliver a decent level of comfort and a good level of relaxation, although harsher shocks to the suspension do crash through the cabin.
Keep things at a leisurely pace and the Renault flows nicely. The lighter Honda and Vauxhall contenders manage to do the same thing with slightly more agility, though.
Practicality
WHILE the Mégane has more boot space than the Civic and Astra with its rear seats folded, its capacity is only two litres larger than the Honda’s. At 1,247 litres it’s the biggest of the three, beating the Vauxhall’s 1,210-litre area. Yet most owners use family hatches with all five seats in place.
Here the 434-litre Mégane falls a little behind the Honda’s 478 litres, but it’s still some margin ahead of the (still reasonably practical) Astra at 370 litres, so the Renault will deliver more than enough flexibility.
There is a fairly high loading lip to lift bags over, but rear head and legroom is still plentiful. The exterior design means the view out for back seat passengers isn’t great. Still, occupants won’t feel too cramped, and like its rivals, access is easy. There’s plenty of storage, with lots of trays and bins.
Ownership
RENAULT recorded disappointing results in our Driver Power 2017 survey – its 22nd place finish was well behind Honda, but still one place ahead of Vauxhall. Its dealers came in 11th, but again Honda was well ahead here. Renault has also reduced its warranty and roadside assistance package from four years to three, but this still falls in line with its rivals here.
The Mégane scored a full five-star Euro NCAP safety rating, too, but autonomous braking is a £400 extra even on this trim level, with the safety Pack Premium also adding distance warning and adaptive cruise. Even with this option the Renault is still very affordable, and it boosts the respectable level of standard safety kit on offer.
Running costs
OUR experts predict that the Signature Nav dci 110 Mégane will resist depreciation relatively well, with an anticipated residual value of 37.7 per cent after three years/36,000 miles.
This is by no means a stellar figure, but it is ahead of the 34.6 per cent the Astra is expected to retain. It means private buyers will lose £14,390 on the Renault and £15,046 on the Vauxhall, with the cars worth £8,700 and £8,259 respectively after this period.
However, both were eclipsed by the newer Honda’s residual prediction of 42.7 per cent, which equates to less depreciation, at £14,275, even though it’s a pricier car initially. It will be worth £10,650 after the same 36-month period.