Who here owns a Renaultsport?

Soldato
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8 Dec 2005
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10,542
Under 8k, 5 doors and as fast as possible... recommendations? I like the look of the Meganes with 250 ish bhp. I think the cup ones with the LSD, but did they ever come in 5 door?
5 door nope never made. You can get an estate version of the Megane 3 though with 5 doors someone in france modded theirs with some RS parts! All UK 5 door Megane 3 estates are diesel though I believe and not going to be fast enough for you!

Your looking at 3 door coupe in UK really you want either an RS 250 circa 2010-2011 (for under £8K) or try to find a GT220 or TCE 180 (3d coupes). GT220 & TCE 180 are slightly less powerful versions of the same engine as the RS250 but with more comfort (you can stage 1 chip both to within 5% of the RS250 power!). These 2010-2011 2.0L Renault engines also come with an undocumented over boost feature so when you go full throttle you get another few % turbo over boost for a few seconds which means on a dyno you get another 7-8% NM & BHP!!

Do not be too fussy this is how many RS250 were sold in the UK 2010-2011 (Renault stopped giving sales numbers after then) they are pretty rare for sale nowadays! You might see a few on autotrader unless they have serious issues they do not remain unsold for long!

RS250 2010:
411 Total UK Sales
18 Extreme Blue
78 Oyster Grey
10 mercury
9 Diamond Black
81 Sport Yellow
33 Capsicum Red
157 Glacier White
25 Pearl Black

RS250 2011:
886 Total UK Sales
26 Extreme Blue
254 Oyster Grey
23 Mercury
111 Diamond Black
107 Sport Yellow
32 Capsicum Red
275 Glacier White
58 Pearl Black

RS265 Trophy 2011:
50 Total UK Sales
12 Diamond Black
38 Liquid Yellow

Engines are bulletproof & up to 200K should not be any issues (unless they hammered the clutch!). For £8K you are looking at a 2010-11 RS250 realistically with up to 70-80k which is fine mileage wise. Cambelt needs to be done every 5 years or 72K if its not mentioned in the ad then assume its not been done as most owners sell before forking out the cost to get this done! (main dealer £1K ish independent around £500-600).

Otherwise look at TCE180 or GT220 for around £3-4K leaving you enough to chip the engine a little more (the max engine stage 1 tune is sub £400 either bluefin or race chip which adds another 51BHP + 70NM to the TCE 180 or GT220 taking them to around 340-360NM which is more or less the same as the RS250 std power). Race chip is undetectable to the ECU it plugs under the bonnet to the fuel rails. Bluefin needs reverting to base ECU under the dashboard.
 
Soldato
Joined
10 Jul 2008
Posts
7,740
5 door nope never made. You can get an estate version of the Megane 3 though with 5 doors someone in france modded theirs with some RS parts! All UK 5 door Megane 3 estates are diesel though I believe and not going to be fast enough for you!

Your looking at 3 door coupe in UK really you want either an RS 250 circa 2010-2011 (for under £8K) or try to find a GT220 or TCE 180 (3d coupes). GT220 & TCE 180 are slightly less powerful versions of the same engine as the RS250 but with more comfort (you can stage 1 chip both to within 5% of the RS250 power!). These 2010-2011 2.0L Renault engines also come with an undocumented over boost feature so when you go full throttle you get another few % turbo over boost for a few seconds which means on a dyno you get another 7-8% NM & BHP!!

Do not be too fussy this is how many RS250 were sold in the UK 2010-2011 (Renault stopped giving sales numbers after then) they are pretty rare for sale nowadays! You might see a few on autotrader unless they have serious issues they do not remain unsold for long!

RS250 2010:
411 Total UK Sales
18 Extreme Blue
78 Oyster Grey
10 mercury
9 Diamond Black
81 Sport Yellow
33 Capsicum Red
157 Glacier White
25 Pearl Black

RS250 2011:
886 Total UK Sales
26 Extreme Blue
254 Oyster Grey
23 Mercury
111 Diamond Black
107 Sport Yellow
32 Capsicum Red
275 Glacier White
58 Pearl Black

RS265 Trophy 2011:
50 Total UK Sales
12 Diamond Black
38 Liquid Yellow

Engines are bulletproof & up to 200K should not be any issues (unless they hammered the clutch!). For £8K you are looking at a 2010-11 RS250 realistically with up to 70-80k which is fine mileage wise. Cambelt needs to be done every 5 years or 72K if its not mentioned in the ad then assume its not been done as most owners sell before forking out the cost to get this done! (main dealer £1K ish independent around £500-600).

Otherwise look at TCE180 or GT220 for around £3-4K leaving you enough to chip the engine a little more (the max engine stage 1 tune is sub £400 either bluefin or race chip which adds another 51BHP + 70NM to the TCE 180 or GT220 taking them to around 340-360NM which is more or less the same as the RS250 std power). Race chip is undetectable to the ECU it plugs under the bonnet to the fuel rails. Bluefin needs reverting to base ECU under the dashboard.

Great info thanks. Can you confirm which ones come with the LSD and is it worth it when remapping to 300bhp. I would assume so.
 
Soldato
Joined
8 Dec 2005
Posts
10,542
2010 RS250 LSD is optional only so check the car specs when you get the reg no or come back here & ask!
2010 RS250 Cup Chassis Pack = LSD as std
2011 RS265 LSD is std

TCE 180 has traction control as std.
TCE 180 is 2010-2011 only it was not sold in 2012.
GT220 does not have LSD at all so probably discount that!

Regarding chipping well the engine design (F4RT) is easily capable of 300-450 BHP! (someone got 500BHP from theirs using an extreme race setup!). Clutch & gearbox though 300BHP is probably close to the limit! I would do the following:

Stage 1 remap to add another 40-50BHP + 60-70NM £400
Exchange the intercooler to a slightly larger model (engine will run cooler last longer!) £600
Put a Hybrid race turbo on it £2K
You can get another 5-7 BHP by just changing the air filter. Turbo BOV are a big no no apparently the turbo will break easily if you do this!
Sports exhaust can add another 10 BHP but cost £500-700!

Do not bother with larger alloys as this means the speedo & fuel consumption reading would be wrong & the ECU is protected from modding!

These few mods would cost you more than the car cost though so make sure you want to keep it for a while!

This green RS I think is a stunning example of what is possible for €30K worth of mods!! Its been sold recently to someone in Belgium the previous French owner spent €10K on the green metallic paint & another €20K on mods like 19" alloys, lowered suspension & several engine mods to give well over 300 BHP! Bagged Green Renault Megane RS - Accelerations, Sounds, ... - YouTube

For £8K all your going to get is either 2010-11 RS250 or TCE 180. Just settle for that see how you get on with it before thinking about more engine power! They are very quick as standard due to the compact chassis & sub 1400KG kerb weight combined with massive torque! 340-360NM for RS250 & 300-322NM for TCE 180 (renault has a hidden turbo over boost facility as well when you floor it you get a few % more power!).

With regards family members well the RS & TCE180 are 2 + 3. You can easily get 2 adults plus a centre child seat in the back or 3 children up to young teens age (over 6ft is probably too much it would be cramped leg room wise but boot is also surprisingly large for weekly shops school runs etc etc!).

Avoid any which you think might have been used on the track for long as the clutch will most likely be knackered !!! (big money to replace those) look for something which has been mainly normal road mileage.

In france there is a big mod scene but the main website is only in french some great mods done by those owners they really love their Meganes! They get Renault factory support & access as some of the forum members work for Renault! Once you drive one you can understand what makes them great cars (if you choose the right model...most of the diesel range are pretty poor engine wise but the petrol turbo 2.0L range are in another league :D). You can spend 2-3 times as much on a german or asian badged equivalent but I seriously doubt you will get 2-3 times road going enjoyment out of them vs a decent Megane ;)
http://www.megane3.fr/
 
Soldato
Joined
23 Mar 2011
Posts
10,753
Today marks 1 Week with the RS Trophy!

Love it so far. Coming up with excuses to nip out all week. Not done a major journey yet though.

My only main gripe I would say is with the interface/screen. It's not as simple to navigate as it could be. Keep forgetting how to get to certain sections etc.

Driving the EDC variant has gone down well. In comfort made the gears change nice and smoothly when they need to. Sometimes I feel it may stay in a lower gear for longer than I would in a manual so in that instance I'll paddle up but for the most part it feels right.

It certainly turns heads for better or worse. Had conversations struck up with strangers that come in and out of work asking about it in the car park which is nice :D
 
Soldato
Joined
8 Dec 2005
Posts
10,542
2021 exhaust sound & great launch videos from the owner in Denmark :D
Renault Megane RS Trophy Udstødning | 300 HK - YouTube

April 2021 model at Renault stunning colour before going out to be delivered to 1 lucky owner!
https://youtu.be/SAvNGFAMb1g

Cannot believe in the UK the waiting list I have been quoted for brand new is 6-8 months :eek: so I can either put the order in & wait & hope for a cancellation or buy a nearly new one from the dealer network :( (I really want to spec it exactly myself no RS monitor for me would never use it!). Looks like last year Renault will be selling these due to new harsher emission laws in France next year mean the tax make them not economically viable anymore sadly :(

Need to wait another few weeks to start a new well paid job (onboarding takes forever nowadays!) then I will either get whatever I can then from the dealer network or look for a decent 2015 Cup 275 (I really like the 2015 mk3 styling & design slightly more than the latest one but the RS300 engine & gearbox are obviously way ahead in every possible way!).
 
Last edited:
Soldato
Joined
23 Mar 2011
Posts
10,753
2021 exhaust sound & great launch videos from the owner in Denmark :D
Renault Megane RS Trophy Udstødning | 300 HK - YouTube

April 2021 model at Renault stunning colour before going out to be delivered to 1 lucky owner!
https://youtu.be/SAvNGFAMb1g

Cannot believe in the UK the waiting list I have been quoted for brand new is 6-8 months :eek: so I can either put the order in & wait & hope for a cancellation or buy a nearly new one from the dealer network :( (I really want to spec it exactly myself no RS monitor for me would never use it!). Looks like last year Renault will be selling these due to new harsher emission laws in France next year mean the tax make them not economically viable anymore sadly :(

Need to wait another few weeks to start a new well paid job (onboarding takes forever nowadays!) then I will either get whatever I can then from the dealer network or look for a decent 2015 Cup 275 (I really like the 2015 mk3 styling & design slightly more than the latest one but the RS300 engine & gearbox are obviously way ahead in every possible way!).

What even is the RS monitor? Seems like a bit of a gimmick?

Not sure if I have it or not, isn't it just an app?

It's a shame that cars are having to change to benefit the emission laws etc :(
 
Soldato
Joined
8 Dec 2005
Posts
10,542
What even is the RS monitor? Seems like a bit of a gimmick?

Not sure if I have it or not, isn't it just an app?

It's a shame that cars are having to change to benefit the emission laws etc :(
Its a gimmick unless your spending a lot of time on track! Its just software which shows a lot of detail from lap times (or road even!) to help improve drivers times & also gives more indepth info on the cars engine temps, fuel consumption & a whole load of other parameters! Was free now its £350 even on older RS models :rolleyes: Renault like to extract more money from loyal owners which is why no Haynes manual for RS or TCE180-GT ranges (all designed, & tweaked by the same RS division. TCE 180 & GT220 use same engine as the RS260-265 range just detuned a little & chassis & suspension is also very similar just more comfort based than track!).

Big shame these cars are probably going away (not official but unlikely they will go on more than another year or so) but France is their biggest market by far so that dictates the global sales & marketing. In UK its currently a 6-8 month wait for brand new right now not sure I ever get to have new looking like I need to settle for nearly new but really wanted to add options like the £2.5K Akrapovic Titanium exhaust system ;) (4.4KG less weight & slightly more power but better sound lots of pops & crackles!).
 
Soldato
Joined
24 Jan 2007
Posts
3,442
Location
Bristol
What even is the RS monitor? Seems like a bit of a gimmick?

Not sure if I have it or not, isn't it just an app?

It's a shame that cars are having to change to benefit the emission laws etc :(

On my 275 Cup-S it could:

  • Change throttle maps
  • Show circuit maps
  • Track lap times
  • Show G-Force outputs
  • Show Power/Torque
  • Show wheel spin/wheel slip
  • Show detailed data (Oil temp, inlet temp, gearbox temp, boost pressure etc)
  • Track tyre/brake pad/suspension life
RS-Monitor-wykres.jpg


If you have it, there will be an icon in your R-Link screen to it
 
Soldato
Joined
8 Dec 2005
Posts
10,542
The RS MK4 Phase 2 will now be produced all next year according to Renault. Shame waiting times are 6-8 months for new right now (Dealers quote 3-4 months so buyers do not get put off but the reality is 6-8 months from when you order a new one!). This really puts me off brand new as I want the car like yesterday if I am shelling out big money for one so this forces me to look at nearly new (which may or may not have the D.E.S.S battery issue).
 
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