RenaultSport Megane, this is your life

This, boys and girls, is the last RenaultSport Megane 275 to roll off the production line. It’s an occasion worth marking, as with it, it brings the RS version of the mk3 Megane to a close.

We’ve long been fans; it’s a whole seven years old now, yet still continues to offer the most raw and exciting hot hatch driving experience on sale. Not even the slightly mad Honda Civic Type-R is as committed to providing thrills as this, though the Japanese car is undoubtedly a slightly better all-rounder.

What shape the next RS Megane - due in 2018 - will take, we don’t yet know. Talk of paddleshift gearboxes and four-wheel steering have given purists (well, us) the heebie-jeebies, but an engineer we spoke to a few months ago assured us the go-faster mk4 Megane will still offer a ‘raw’ experience. With the Ford Focus RS to fight, it needs to be quite good.

In the meantime, though, let’s celebrate the car it replaces, via a tour of the Megane’s key iterations…

The mk3 Megane first got its RenaultSport badges in 2009, with the launch of the Megane 250. And it was noticeably more mature than the car it replaced.

Its two-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine produced 247bhp (its name refers to its much rounder 250PS output, a running theme here), while a Cup chassis option brought a proper limited-slip differential to ensure it was all put to good use.

It would complete 0-60mph in a smidge over six seconds, on its way to a 156mph. Its toughest contemporary rival was the mk2 Ford Focus RS, 300bhp five-cylinder engine and all. At around 100 kilos less, the Megane was the purer, altogether less yobbish choice.

Those unimpressed by the Megane’s newfound maturity had their concerns answered by this 15bhp-healthier, more track-honed special edition.

Its 0-60mph time and top speed improved marginally, while the only mechanical change was a new 19-inch wheel and Bridgestone tyre combination. It was enough for a renewed attack on the Nürburgring, though, Renault breaking the front-wheel-drive lap record by knocking nine seconds off its own time, the Trophy crossing the line in 8m08s.

While just 500 were made (50 coming to the UK, for around £3,000 more than standard), Renault saw fit to introduce its engine upgrade with the regular RS Megane’s next model year update, the Megane 265 replacing the 250.

A more aesthetically minded special edition, with no mechanical tweaks, just 30 of these came to the UK in 2013. They took the Megane above £28,000 for the first time, too.

Based on the Megane 265, the RB8 celebrated Sebastian Vettel’s seemingly unstoppable success in a Renault-engined Red Bull car, and thus copied his Sunday motor car’s colour scheme and ability to display stickers.

Many option boxes came pre-ticked, too, with the Cup chassis, highly desirable Recaro sports seats and an early version of the RenaultSport Monitor telemetry system all on board.

A year later, and the Megane reached its performance zenith, with the 271bhp Trophy R. Just like the Megane R26.R – the peak of mk2 RS Meganes – it lost the back seats and all manner of trim and equipment in the pursuit of slashing lap times.

Namely, those set around the Nordschleife: its 7m54s briefly held the front-drive ‘Ring record, and slashed a scarcely believable 23 seconds from the time set by that barely-sane R26.R.

It’s worth noting you could also buy a four-seat 275 Trophy and spec all of the R’s nice mechanical bits beneath, creating something far more in touch with the usable ethos of the hot hatch in the process.

The winding down of RS Megane production was marked by this, the Cup-S. From a tasty starting price of £24k, you could add your choice of all the serious bits that made the Trophy R such a hardcore production. The TG review of it is here.

And the car you see here is literally the last one. It’s a yellow Megane 275 Cup-S with the fancy Recaro seats, Ohlins dampers and Michelin cup tyres. It’s headed our way, too, having been specced by Renault’s Dundee dealer, meaning it'll be bought by a resident of one of the Megane's most appreciative markets.

So if you like the look of the car above, best look at how you’re getting up to Scotland…