We review the Renault Megane from price to economy and all its features
HAVE you ever wondered why French bread is so long?
Legend has it that it was Napoleon’s idea. So his soldiers could carry food down their britches.
(And strut around like Ron Jeremy?)
It was for convenience, then. It was simple but clever.
Like the new Renault Megane.
Take the 8.7in UPRIGHT touchscreen, the first one I’ve seen in a £20,000 family car.
It’s slick, logical and easy to use with TomTom Live satnav and shortcut buttons down the side.
There’s no baffling sub-menus within a sub-menu within another sub-menu to switch off the interior light.
There’s one easy button on the steering wheel to keep an eye on mpg/range.
One easy button to save your licence (adaptive cruise control with traffic sign recognition. It slows the car automatically when the speed limit changes).
One easy button for Eco or Sport mode.
One easy button for hands-free parking.
The centre console chills drinks like a MINI-FRIDGE.
There’s an F1-style cap-less fuel filler. Reversing camera and 360-degree sensors.
Hands-free key card that unlocks the car as you walk up, then locks it as you walk away.
The list goes on.
Plus it looks tidy, it handles well, it’s cheap to run and it’ll take more shopping than your bread and butter Focus or Astra.
Prices start at £16,600 for the 1.2-litre petrol. Or £219 a month with £1,830 up front.
But the sweet spot is the mid-range Dynamique S Nav trim, paired with the bulletproof 1.5-litre diesel. It’s good for 50mpg-plus in the real world and has free road tax.That comes in at £20,400 — or £269 a month with £2,140 deposit. The range-topper is the 145mph Megane GT (0-62 in 7.1) with four-wheel steering and launch control.
A diesel-electric hybrid will follow next year.
VERDICT: Clever, simple and efficient. Renault has used its loaf.
