2016 Renault Mégane GT Nav 1.6 TCe 205 EDC first drive

Designing a modern, sporty hatchback is a dark art. If your job is creating Ferraris or Lamborghinis, then life’s a breeze: make it fast, make it look good and make it exciting. Simple.

Yet for a sporty family car, such as this new Renault Mégane GT 205, the brief is so much broader. It has to handle but be comfortable, be quick but drivable and stylish but practical. The juxtapositions are seemingly endless, but the budgets constraining you aren’t. So much so, in fact, you have to wonder how on earth they do it for just £25,500.

Read our full review of the Renault Mégane here

So, let’s run through the Mégane GT's highlights. Its 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol is from the Renault Clio RS 200 and produces a decent 202bhp and 207lb ft. As with the Clio, it comes with the EDC seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission as standard.

The Mégane GT is underpinned by Renault’s four-year-old CMF platform, but Renault Sport has played about with the springs, dampers, steering ratio and engine breathing. Although on that last point, don’t be fooled by the twin rear exhaust pipes: one is a dummy.

Renault Sport has also tuned the Mégane GT’s standard 4Control four-wheel steering. Switch it to RS mode and below 50mph the rear wheels steer 2.7deg in the opposite direction to the fronts, sharpening turn-in; above 50mph they steer 1.0deg in the same direction, aiding high-speed stability.

Unique in the class is a huge 8.7in portrait touchscreen, which is complemented by other technology that, while prolific elsewhere, is still noteworthy for the Mégane: LED headlights, traffic sign recognition and launch control, to name but a few. All of this can be had for just £25,500, remember. Of course the burning question is whether or not it's a good sporty hatch.

This engine isn’t a work of art, as we know from the Clio RS. It’s not beset with the mechanical sweetness of the powerplant used in the last warmed-up Mégane, the 220 GT, and it hides its occasionally discordant resonances behind synthesized automotive noises, which are piped in through the speakers.

The Mégane GT's problem isn’t merely one of character; it’s also one of performance. A peak output of 202bhp used to be ample for a C-segment car, but with nigh-on 1500kg to lug around, this Mégane feels a bit flat. Other than that, there are no other big performance holes to pick. Yes, peak torque comes in at a relatively lofty 2400rpm, but there’s still enough low-end to get you moving, albeit not at the pace you might have hoped for after seeing all those Renault Sport badges plastered over the outside.

The transmission mostly slips smoothly through its gears, but when you are pressing on it occasionally faffs about before selecting the cog you need. It’s also a shame that the gearshift paddles don’t have a better-engineered feel; their sloppy action is more befitting of a cheaply built PlayStation accessory than a car.

As always, Renault Sport has done an ace job on the spring and damper rates. Excess energy from a crest or dip is dissipated satisfyingly with just one vertical bounce, and as you tuck the car in to a bend there’s enough stiffness to stifle excessive body lean. It’s pretty comfortable, too, as long as you accept it wants hug the roads and follow every surface undulation. Importantly, though, the Mégane GT retains the compliance to filter out most heavy hits – aside from the odd cosmic crater that UK roads seem to specialise in.