Frankfurt Motor Show: 2018 Renault Sport Megane RS revealed

The all-new Renault Sport Megane RS has been revealed at the Frankfurt Motor Show.

Pleasingly for enthusiasts, including the large Aussie contingent or Renault Sport enthusiasts, the new Megane RS does not depart as drastically from its iconic predecessor as the Clio RS did back in 2013.

Under the bonnet is a new 1.8-litre turbocharged four-cylinder, to be shared with the forthcoming Alpine A110. Despite the 200cc drop in capacity outputs increase to 205kW and 390Nm, fed through either a six-speed manual (hooray!) or six-speed dual-clutch transmission like that found in the Clio.

We’d expect the 0-100km/h time to be around the 5.7sec mark (there is no claim as yet) however hot Meganes have always been about the quality of their chassis and this latest generation should be no different.

There are wider tracks front and rear covering either 18- or 19-inch wheels. Two chassis will be offered, Sport and a more focused Cup version, both with independent steering axis front suspension to reduce torque steer and hydraulic bump stops at all four corners.

All-wheel steering is also standard, however, sadly it appears that only cars equipped with the Cup chassis will come fitted with a Torsen mechanical limited-slip differential, a key feature of the previous-generation Megane RS.

Drivers can select from five driving modes – Comfort, Normal, Sport, Race and Perso (Personalisation) – and there’s an R.S. Monitor that allows drivers to film their drive and analyse data later.

Unusually, Renault Sport has confirmed a 221kW/400Nm ‘Trophy’ version of the Megane RS to be released towards the end of 2018.

European order books open for the Megane RS in December 2017 with the first Australian cars expected in early 2018.