Subaru BRZ Versus Renaultsport Megane 265 Trophy on the Track

Whereas in the States, we saw Motor Trend comparing the new rear-wheel drive Subaru BRZ with the likes of the similarly priced 2013 Ford Mustang V6, over in Europe and specifically the UK, EVO magazine tried something a little bit different.

The British publication brought the BRZ to the Bedford Autodrome circuit to see how it stacks against one of the best hot hatches in Europe, the Renault Megane Coupe RS265.

The only common denominators between the two cars are the displacement of their engine and of course, their price as the Subaru BRZ starts at £24,995 (US$40,630) and the RenaultSport 265 at £24,825 (US$40,350) for the Cup edition.

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Subaru BRZ Versus Renaultsport Megane 265 Trophy on the Track

Whereas in the States, we saw Motor Trend comparing the new rear-wheel drive Subaru BRZ with the likes of the similarly priced 2013 Ford Mustang V6, over in Europe and specifically the UK, EVO magazine tried something a little bit different.

The British publication brought the BRZ to the Bedford Autodrome circuit to see how it stacks against one of the best hot hatches in Europe, the Renault Megane Coupe RS265.

The only common denominators between the two cars are the displacement of their engine and of course, their price as the Subaru BRZ starts at £24,995 (US$40,630) and the RenaultSport 265 at £24,825 (US$40,350) for the Cup edition.

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Renault Confirms Pricing for Refreshed 2012 Megane Range in Britain

Renault today announced that its subtly updated Megane 2012 compact model is available for order now in the UK ahead of its official launch on April 1. On-the-road prices start from £16,275 for the 3-door Hatch, £16,775 for the 5-door Coupé and £17,075 for the estate Sport Tourer.

For 2012, the Megane series gains some minor styling tweaks up front that include the addition of LED daytime running lights from the Dynamique TomTom trim level and above, and a revised bumper with a gloss black finish and chrome highlights, plus a new selection of alloy wheel designs.

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Renault Launches Pricey Clio R.S. Red Bull Racing RB7 Edition and Special Mégane R.S F1 Show Cars

Only a few days before this year's Formula 1 season kicks off with the inaugural Australian GP in Melbourne on Sunday, Renault released a special edition version of its sporty Clio R.S. 200 hatch to celebrate its F1 Constructors’ title with Red Bull Racing in 2011.

The Clio R.S. Red Bull Racing RB7 is a limited production model that will be marketed in five countries: France, Spain, Switzerland, Belgium and Austria.

Renault will begin accepting orders in these markets on March 14, with the car’s price in France set at €27,900 (US$36,660), or a little over €4,000 on top of the price of the regular Clio R.S. 200.

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Renault Brings Updated Megane RS with 265HP to the UK

Starting from today, the improved 2012 Renault Megane RS is available for customer ordering in Britain with on-the-road prices set at £24,825 for the 265 Cup edition and £26,025 for 265 model. First deliveries are expected in early April.

The new model sports a more powerful version of Renault's 2.0-liter force-fed four thanks to an increase to the turbo boost pressure by 0.2 bar to 2.5 bar along with a revised air intake system. These changes help lift output by 15hp to 265hp and peak torque by 20Nm (14.8 lb-ft) to 360Nm (266 lb-ft).

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Renault Rejuvenates Megane for 2012 with Subtle Styling and Engine Updates

In the past two months, Renault has launched a budget supermini for the Indian market, added special editions to the line-up of the Megane Coupe-Cabriolet and the Koleos SUV, and revamped the Scenic/Grand Scenic mid-size MPVs and Laguna Coupe.

Therefore, leaving the Megane as it is would be rather strange, that’s why La Regie unveiled today the “Megane Collection 2012” or simply put, the facelifted version of its C-segment model.

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Elia Presents New Packages for 2012 Renault Twingo and Megane Coupe

German based tuning firm of all Renault, Nissan and Dacia models, Elia, has launched two new packages for the recently facelifted Renault Twingo and the Megane Coupe respectively.

For the French city car, Elia has developed a new sports suspension kit that lowers the Twingo's ride height along with a new set of 17-inch alloy rims.

The German tuner also noted that it would soon enhance its range for the 2012 Twingo with a full body kit and a number of performance upgrades.

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Très Chic: New Renault Megane Coupe-Cabriolet Floride

Renault is using the name of its 1960s Floride rear-engined sports car for a new limited edition of the modern-day Mégane Coupé-Cabriolet that will make its first public appearance at the Brussels Motor Show on January 10, 2012.

In France, the Mégane CC Floride will be offered exclusively in a pastel ivory exterior paint that harks back to the 1960s, while the rest of Europe will also get the option of a more mainstream red color.

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SPIED: Renault’s Facelifted Megane Caught Again, this Time with Less Camouflage

Earlier this week, our scoop photographers caught up with the facelifted versions of the Renault Megane hatchback and Sports Tourer during testing. However, we were not able to peek through Renault's full suite of plastic armor.

Fortunately for us, our diligent spies were able to discover a different prototype wearing much less camouflage. This time, the 2012 Megange hatchback was only covered with black duct tape.

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SPIED: 2012 Renault Megane Hatchback and Sport Tourer Facelift

Renault is one of the few remaining mainstream automakers that have yet to adopt the use of vinyl wraps to cover up their prototype models from the prying eyes of spy photographers.

Nevertheless, primitive as cloth/plastic wraps may be, they do get the job done hiding the changes made to their cars like the facelifted Renault Megane hatchback and its station wagon counterpart named the Sports Tourer, that were caught testing in Southern Europe.

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RS Tuning Modifies RenaultSport Megane to 320HP

The Megane RenaultSport 250, as the hottest version of Renault’s compact hatchback is known in the UK, has received the attention of British firm RS Tuning. If the standard model's 250-horsepower put on the road through the front wheels aren’t exciting enough for you, then maybe RS Tuning’s “Stage 2” package is the answer. Read more »

Algerian Driver Won't Stop Even when the Police Officer Jumps on the Hood

What you’re about to see in our latest video find is one very stubborn and irresponsible driver and an equally persistent (but evidently responsible) police officer.

The incident purportedly takes place in rather congested area of Algeria when the driver of a white colored, older generation Renault Megane refuses to conform to the traffic officer's instructions.

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UK Insurer Parts the Most Unreliable and Costly Car to Fix

In an article on a BMW-faced Honda Accord we found for sale on Craigslist back in 2008, we wrote that in a perfect world, our ultimate car would be “designed by Italians, engineered by Germans, built by Japanese and marketed by Americans”.

So, what’s the worst car one could imagine? Well, if we played around with the above statements, we’d say one designed by Japanese, engineered by Americans, built by Italians and marketed by Germans.

But UK insurance firm Warranty Direct had something a little bit different in mind. Instead of playing the origin card, the company decided to check out its database of 50,000 live policies on cars aged five years on average to part the UK’s most unreliable vehicle that would break down every other month and cost an average of £2,050 (equal to US$3,270 - €2,330) to fix each year.

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VIDEO: Renault Megane RS Trophy’s Record Run at the ‘Ring

Last week, Renault upped the ante for front-wheel drive models by setting a new lap record at the Nurburgring Nordschleife with its more powerful Mégane Renaultsport Trophy.

The 265-horsepower strong special edition posted a lap time of 8 minutes and 7.97 seconds in the hands of Renault test driver Laurent Hurgon, smashing the previous record for a front-wheel drive model held by the older generation Mégane RS R26.R by nine seconds. Buckle up, sit tight and enjoy the record run in the video after the break.

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Renault Sets New Nürburgring Lap Record for a Front-Wheel Drive Car with Megane RS Trophy

Renault has slashed its own longstanding lap record for a front-wheel drive production car at the Nordschleife, which the company held since June 23, 2008, with its new Megane RenaultSport (RS) Trophy special.

The 265-horsepower version of the Megane RS completed a full lap around the Nürburgring racetrack in 8 minutes and 7.97 seconds beating the time of the previous generation Mégane Renaultsport R26.R by 9 seconds. In comparison, the now obsolete 305HP Ford Focus RS posted a lap time of 8 minutes and 26 seconds in the summer of 2009.

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Renault Unleashes Super Hot Mégane RS Trophy with 265-Horses

With the Italians still trying to find their way and the Japanese being limited for now to the Mazda3 MPS, it’s up to the French to question the German leadership in the upper range of the hot hatchback segment. Now, Renault is raising the stakes with the presentation of a hotter version of its RenaultSport Mégane boasting more power under its hood.

The Mégane RS Trophy is a special edition version of the standard model with a limited production run of 500 cars. Renault is quick to note that the Trophy is not a successor to the hardcore R26R, which leaves the door open to a more extreme variant in the near future.

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Renault Teases More Potent version of Megane RS

One of Europe’s finest hot hatches is about to get better as Renault is readying a new edition of the Megane RS that will be unveiled to the world on June 17, 2011. The French carmaker released a teaser video of the car from the test runs at the Nurburgring racetrack in Germany.

However, that’s about all Renault is willing to reveal for now so we’ll have to wait and see what kind of upgrades the car will feature and if a power boost and / or a weight reduction and chassis enhancements are part of the package.

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Le Chic...Renault “XV de France” Clio and Megane Editions

For the third year in a row, Renault will have “XV de France” editions of the Clio and Megane models in its lineup, marking the automaker’s involvement in rugby as a sponsor of the French national team. The difference is that this year, the “limited editions” have become full-fledged “versions”, fully integrated into the brand’s catalogue and available for purchase all year-round. The Megane is available in estate, hatch and coupe body styles, while the Clio can be ordered as a 3-door, 5-door and estate.

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Geneva Preshow: Renault's New Monaco GP Limited Editions

Apparently, last year's limited run Laguna Coupe Monaco GP special edition was a success as Renault has just announced three new models featuring the same styling recipe, including the Megane Coupe, Megane Coupe R.S. and the 2011MY Laguna Coupe. The new Monaco GP special editions will go on sale in Europe right after their world premiere at the upcoming Geneva Motor Show in March.

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New Renault Mégane Coupé-Cabriolet to Hit UK Showrooms in July

Renault has confirmed UK pricing and specification for the all-new Megane Coupé-Cabriolet, which completes the French automaker's C-segment range. The new the hardtop convertible models comes in a choice of two trim levels, Dynamique TomTom and GT, priced from £21,595.

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