Renault Clio and Megane 2004 review

"It is a little unusual to put two models into a small-volume segment like the sports hatch at the same time but they are very different cars that will give shoppers a welcome choice," says Renault Australia's managing director Rudi Koenig.

"The opportunity to offer such a different choice was a big part of the decision to use the five-door variant for the Megane."

Both cars come out of the Renault Sport garages at the Dieppe facility where shells and basic chassis from the garden variety cars are worked over by Renault's 500-strong performance crew.

The outcome for the Clio and Megane is a Charles Atlas act. The Clio weighs in with 131kW and 200Nm while the Megane, from the same 2.0-litre 16-valve engine, manages 165kW and 300Nm, 90 per cent of which is delivered on a torque curve so flat you could sleep on it between 2000 and 6000rpm.

Koenig says he accepts that the Clio and Megane Sports will not add significant volume to Renault's Australian sales (about 50 cars a month combined) but believes they have an important role to play.

"Renault's history in motorsport is significant and on-going and we need to leverage off that in Australia for brand recognition.

"We also need to continue to re-inforce the determination of Renault to be in Australia for the long haul and offering as wide a model line-up as possible is a part of that."

Unlike the previous Clio Sport, 80 of which were made available as part of Renault's re-introduction to Australia in 2001, the new model will not be supply restricted.

With full availability the Clio Sport 182 will go head to head with Euro-hotties like the Peugeot 206 GTi 180 and BMW's soon-to-be launched 1-Series. For the Megane 225 the targets are likely to be a fair bit more disparate ranging across a wider power/price band that covers anything from a Subaru WRX through to Mazda's RX-8.

While the Renault performance pair shares the same basic engine there are plenty of differences in the cars.

The Clio has a five-speed close ratio box against the six-speed shifter in the Megane. Both are very well suited to their task with the aggression of third and fourth in the naturally aspirated Clio encouraging high-revving fun. For the Megane's part the extra ratio makes cruising a dream while the huge lumps of torque on tap in any gear take care of the fun factor.

With its extra grunt and weight (1361kg against 1090kg) the Megane reasonably needs better stoppers and with 312mm four-pot front and 300mm single-pot rear discs, pulling the car down from speed is not an issue.

That is not to say the Clio is underbraked. Its 2800mm vented front and 238mm solid rear discs do an admirable job but tend towards a slight fade on quick-repeat use.

In raw performance figures there is not a great deal between the two cars with the Megane sprinting to 100km/h in 6.5 seconds on its way to 236km/h while the Clio takes 7.1 seconds to put the 100km/h behind it on track to a top speed of 222km/h.

The most noticeable difference, other than in ride where the Megane retains a softer quality than the hunker-down and get on with it Clio, is how effortlessly the turbo-charged Megane picks up in any gear short of sixth when asked for an overtaking surge.

In keeping with its likely more "civilised" owner the Megane features some extra electronic wizardry with an anti-skid and understeer control program on top of the stability program and ABS. The Clio's nod to electronic aids is restricted to a switchable ESP and anti-skid brakes.

Both cars carry Renault's now almost-standard five-star NCAP safety rating. The Clio has front and side airbags while the Megane adds front lateral and curtain bags to the equation.

The seating in both cars is up to Renault Sport's usual high standard of comfort and bolstering. The Clio rides on 16-inch alloys with the newly developed Michelin Exalto rubber 205/45 profile. The Megane's 17-inch alloys are shod with 225/45 Continental ContiSportContact.

The Renault Sport Clio 182 is priced at $32,990 with the Clio 182 Cup $34,490 (add stiffer, lower suspension). Metallic paint is a $600 option.

The Renault Sport Megane 225 is $42,990. A $4000 LX pack adds sunroof, six-stacker CD and full leather.