The wraps have just come off the new Renault Megane here in Paris, and we can report that in the metal it's a fine-looking car.
Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn admits that the new car is the company's most important model since it launched the current Clio. The Megane has to improve the brand's fortunes after the current Laguna flopped.Renault has reverted to the trick it used with the original Megane, offering a lower and sportier three-door version, which is described as a coupe.
Keen entry level pricing will mean the 1.6-litre, three-door version costs £13,995 when it goes on sale in the UK in November.
Renault's environmental credentials are also very much to the fore here on the Paris show floor, with Renault emphasising that four models in the new Megane range will offer CO2 emissions of under 120g/km.
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it will be interesting to
Re: Paris show: Renault Megane
Either way, I think many of the European brands need to learn from the Japanese and Korean companies.
Have Renault announced if they'll be offering the 5 year warranty for the new Megane that they started with teh Laguna? Haven't read anything about this, but it could be a good move to restore some faith and beat the Euro premium brands to it.
Re: Paris show: Renault Megane
from what i know, the megane 2 suffers particular and peculiar faults not necessarily experienced by other renaults...
the clio is probably their most well regarded car for reliabilty, and certainly the 172 generation.
while each owners experience is individual, i know from the uk forum that the megane has many common, persistent and expensive faults, and that many owners still love them, while just as many despise them.
im not quite sure where i would fit in as mine is so inconsistent that my relationship with it changes daily.
i wonder if the laguna sales decline is part of a wider renault backlash...certainly renault needs to address reliability and brand confidence, but toning the design down when that is what used to actually sell them, and, concentrating on (unproven) quality, which most certainly didn't, appears not to be paying off.
i do hope renaults become more durable, and the confidence returns to recover their design flair.