Renault Megane Renaultsport 250

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What is it?

Renaultsport is to Renault as AMG is to Mercedes-Benz and the M Division is to BMW: a small collective of speed-obsessed in-house engineers that take regular cars and make them borderline outrageous. The difference is that Renaultsport's products are accessible to those on regular incomes, which is always good news.

The '250' bit is its metric horsepower figure, which equates to 247bhp in old money. Depending on which hot hatch you're comparing it to, that will either sound fiery or rather underwhelming: this car sits pretty between the 207bhp Golf GTI and the 301bhp Focus RS. But it's priced much closer to the former and better equipped, which makes it look like a bit of a hot hatch bargain. And that's not the whole story...

Is it any good?

It's more a question of whether 'they're' any good rather than 'it', because when the Mégane Renaultsport 250 (RS250) hits dealerships in January there'll be two versions to choose from: Sport and Cup. To explain, both cars look identical (the Cup's red brake callipers aside), but the Cup is a harder, more driver focused car, set up with track enthusiast types in mind. It has less standard kit, so it's £1,000 cheaper than the £23,000 Sport version.

The latter is loaded with equipment, including leather sports seats, dual-zone climate control, and automatic wipers and lights. But the fundamental difference is with the chassis: the Sport has a softer, more pliable setup that makes it a comfortable day-to-day driver. There is, however, a £2,000 'Cup pack' that adds the chassis setup of the Cup car (which we'll get to) and a lovely pair of leather-wrapped Recaro bucket seats.

It's more than just a gimmick too, because there's a marked difference between the two cars. Let's start with the shared stuff first though. Power comes from a heavily revised version of the 2.0-litre turbo engine found in the last Renaultsport Mégane, linked to a six-speed manual gearbox and driving the front wheels. The brakes are massive Brembo units that provide neck-craning stopping power, which is a good job because the RS250 hurtles from rest to 62mph in just 6.1 seconds. Most of its 251lb.ft of pulling power is available from below 2,000rpm too, which makes it feel rapid and flexible, although the barking noise from the engine lacks the character of some rivals.

But the most impressive thing about the car is its cornering ability, which is very good in Sport guise and exceptional in Cup. The former setup is supple enough to soak up most road lumps effectively - even on the optional 19-inch wheels of our test car - and that makes it a comfortable cruiser. However, the Cup chassis is 15 percent stiffer, which makes a tangible difference to its steering feel and the feedback it transmits from the road into the cabin, plus it has a limited slip differential for better performance on the track and in 'more enthusiastic' cornering. Both cars have oodles of grip, but the Cup is tangibly the sharper of the two. The trade-off for that, though, is a harsher ride that might grate during the day-to-day monotony of being in traffic jams and such like.

Should I call the bank manager?

In either guise the RS250 is a compelling driver's car, although it arguably lacks the character of the later iterations of the last-generation version. But by releasing two distinct editions, Renault has genuinely offered something for everyone - assuming they all want a fast car, that is - and they're both keenly priced. At £23,000 the Sport is better equipped, more powerful than and just as justifiable as an everyday car as the Golf GTI. It doesn't quite have the quality, though, and some might find its looks a little too 'boy racer'.

The Cup version, however, is a real bargain - and the one we'd go for. It's hardly threadbare in the cabin, but it still offers the same driver involvement and composure that the similarly powered Mazda3 MPS, for example, just isn't capable of. The running costs are reasonable too, with a claimed 33.6mpg combined, and Renaultsport's reputation likely to keep residuals decent.

But like the coupé it's based on, the RS250 suffers from cramped back seats and shocking rear visibility, and because it's likely there'll never be a five-door version, family practicality is something that most rivals have in their favour. That said, Renault bosses told us that the Mégane Sport Tourer estate might get the Renaultsport treatment at some stage. That'll be interesting...

Summary

Usually Renault waits for a while before releasing the more focused Cup version of its Renaultsport cars, but in offering the RS250 Cup from launch it's pulled off a marketing coup: nobody can accuse the newcomer of being soft. Having driven both, we can't help but be captivated by the more hardcore version - even though it might prove a bit of a pain to live with on knobbly UK roads - because it's notably sharper and more engaging. Still, either version will offer you rapid acceleration, menacing looks, good value and a responsive, lively drive. We like the RS250, a lot.

Mark Nichol