Living with the Renault Mégane R.S Trophy-R
Review by Jacob Lerklint
Been a couple of months since I reviewed the “regular“ Renault Megane R.S Trophy, and what a great car that was. Potent on the road but still enough comfort for four adults and their luggage. A very capable day to day hot hatch. So, how is this hardcore, track focused 56000 euro Trophy-R version compared to it? Have they ruined it? Lets find out.
Just by looking at it you can immediately tell this is no ordinary Megane, it’s finished in a red and white paint scheme as were the previous hardcore Megane’s. There is a NACA duct (google it) on the feather light carbon-composite hood, you get lightweight 19” Fuji wheels and a massive F1 style carbon fiber diffuser. They even removed the Daytime running lights to improve the cooling.
Stepping into the Trophy-R first thing you’ll see is a little plaque on the doorsill that’s says “104/500” yes, the Trophy-R is limited to only 500 cars worldwide. Only 30 of those will be getting the Nürburgring record pack which includes carbon fiber wheels and carbon ceramic brakes. Yes, carbon fiber wheels on a megane, insane. This specific press car was not specced with either of those options which would have saved another 20kg (and added 20k euro to the already high price tag). We weighed the car at 1310kg without a driver. A total of 110kg less than the regular Trophy, impressive. Inside the car it’s not really as sparse as you would think, it still has an infotainment screen (albeit the one from a base megane) with navigation and CarPlay. You sit firm but comfortable in the Sabelt lightweight bucket seats which has 6 point harnesses attached to it, though you’ll need a spanner to adjust them. It’s not until you look behind you’ll notice the lack of rear seats. Things are getting serious, the ’lack of things’ list is becoming longer.
They even removed the talked about 4Control, four wheel steering system. Underneath the car there is a full titanium exhaust from Akrapovic which not only looks great, it makes very nice noises.
Just after a few minutes behind the wheel of the Trophy-R you notice some things straight away, the ride is harsh although not unbearable. It drones quite a bit due to the lack of sound insulation and the non existent rear seats. This specific car is equipped with Michelin Cup 2 (245/30/19) tires and not the factory specced Bridgestones. You need to have a firm grip on the steering wheel, the car seems very willing to tramline, though not as bad the regular Trophy did with the Bridgestone tires. After a couple of days of not using its full potential it’s now time to find some good roads and find out if it can justify its silly price tag. I really liked the regular Trophy so this better be good. So?
It does not disappoint, on a curvy road this thing gets a move-on like no other fwd I’ve driven. You get so much feel through the steering, the Torsen differential does its job well. It never seems like it wants to understeer. A 100kg+ weight loss makes wonders for it. You don’t get more power in the Trophy-R, it still is at 300hp and 400nm. More power would have been useless. The Michelin cup 2 tires is in my opinion a much better choice than the Bridgestones. They find grip where I think the Bridgestones would have suffered, especially in the rain.
The Trophy-R comes with fully adjustable Öhlins dampers which you can stiffen or loosen depending on what you prefer. You can even lower it 16mm. I can’t think of a car I’ve driven that felt so stable in the corners, no body-roll whatsoever. The 1.8 liter 4 cylinder engine is very rev happy and rewards you with some nice pops and bangs at the 7000rpm redline. Not everything is perfect though, the gearbox is unchanged from the regular Trophy which still is way too notchy. The clutch did not impress me either, way too high release point. With all the weight savings Renault Sport made to this car, including removing the rear seats, you’d think they’ve removed the rear floor mats, but they are still there! For whom? Would also had like to see a half cage in the back like the R26R had.
So, after almost spending a week in the 56000 euro Renault Megane R.S Trophy-R, what’s my final verdict? The Trophy-R is another level from the standard Trophy, it sets the benchmark for fwd cars, but not only for that, it has one of the best chassis on the market. If you think a car needs to be rwd to be fun or awd to have traction, then you need to drive one of these. No wonder it’s the quickest fwd car on the Nürburgring.
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