Renault Megane RS 250 beats its previous Sepang lap record by five seconds!

The Renault Megane RS 250 recently revisited Sepang and in the process, rewrote its personal best laptime of the F1 track in the hands of Denis Lian. If you remember, Denis, a brand manager at Wearnes Singapore with some race experience, did 2:43.02 with a stock Megane RS 250 in November 2010, just before the car was officially launched here.

That was a great lap time for a stock hot hatch, but the folks at TC Euro Cars were quietly confident that they could do better with a clear track and favourable conditions. So they invited the Singaporean down to Sepang for another go, this time with semi slick Toyo tyres on the same stock standard unit.

Renault Megane RS 250 beats its previous Sepang lap record by five seconds!

The unit was and still is TCEC’s only test car, abused by customers and journos alike, with 30k km on the clock. Standard alignment settings (no funny cambers), shocks and brakes, with only the brake pads recently changed. As stock as they come, which is intentional on TCEC’s part – they want to prove that the Megane RS is a master of road and track straight out of the box.

“You can drive the car back as is, pick up your wife and kids, and they wont complain about the loud exhaust, stiff suspension – all the things normally associated with a car of heavy tune,” Reza Mutalib, GM of TCEC told me. We know the Megane well, and it’s hard to disagree.

Renault Megane RS 250 beats its previous Sepang lap record by five seconds!

Anyway, the target was to beat 2:40, so it was a job well done with a best time of 2:38.16. Very impressive. If you’re wondering, Denis did the deed at the recent exclusive Renault Sport track day for owners and prospects. He was there early, and “work” was finished when I reached in the morning. According to him, it wasn’t as straightforward as hitting the track and trying until he hit the mark.

Apparently, the Toyo Proxes R888 rubber used has a sweet spot, and performed the best at 37 PSI front, 38 PSI rear when hot, with performance dropping off outside of that window. So Denis had to be consistent to perform when the window opened.

Renault Megane RS 250 beats its previous Sepang lap record by five seconds!

The Megane RS 250 is capable and great fun on track. You can read my non professional view of the car on track here, but here’s what Denis had to say. “The brakes are overspecified, and more than adequate for the car. They’re easy to modulate and there’s a nice feel and linear fashion to how it works.”

But that’s not what he likes most about the Megane RS, which is brought in with the Cup chassis as standard. “The chassis is very neutral. While it resists understeer very well, the back still works,” referring to the lively rear end of the Renault on the limit. “It reaches the traction limit in a linear ‘flowy’ manner, and lets go progressively. You can see this in Turn 13 to 14, a nice flowing rotation, like a rear wheel drive car,” he enthused.

“It’s unusual for a modern FWD car, very old school, but without the snap oversteer,” Denis noted. If you think the chap is being very generous, he has this to say: “I’m a good judge because I don’t like FWD cars!”

Renault Megane RS 250 beats its previous Sepang lap record by five seconds!

Is this the best time the Megane RS can do at Sepang? Denis thinks that a further two seconds can be shaved off with full slicks, but the reason they chose semi slicks is to demonstrate that owners can get a lot more out of the RS without going to the extreme. Judging from the seriousness I witnessed at the track day, I think many of them already know that for a fact!

Our impressions of the Megane RS on road and track can be found here and here.

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Danny Tan

Danny Tan loves driving as much as he loves a certain herbal meat soup, and sweet engine music as much as drum beats. He has been in the auto industry since 2006, previously filling the pages of two motoring magazines before joining this website. Enjoys detailing the experience more than the technical details.

 

Comments

  • kington on Feb 13, 2012 at 7:21 pm

    5 seconds seems quite a lot unless traffic really played a part which might have hampered the first run on the previous model.

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  • James Veerapen on Feb 13, 2012 at 7:56 pm

    Earlier throttle, smoother lap, and in the right hands (no offense to Dennis); one can only ponder how fast this ‘thing’ actually goes.

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  • armandd on Feb 13, 2012 at 8:59 pm

    I believe this Megane RS250 WILL beat an FD2 type-r in Sepang, then drive home comfortably..

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    • kington on Feb 14, 2012 at 9:25 am

      In this range we could look at the FD2R, this RS250 and the Mazda MPS.

      Paul, it would be interesting if we could arrange for a run at Sepang with these 3 cars.

      The MPS could be slower among the 3 but it is a very easy car to use and almost effortless in squeezing its horses but it’s the FD2R’s immediate power hike that makes it feel like a grasshopper. Never had a chance to drive this RS though.

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    • armandd on Feb 14, 2012 at 7:23 pm

      Must be the honda fanboys who thumbed me down, hahah.. Grow up pls, there are other FWD cars faster than the type-r you worshipped.

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      • Harrier on Feb 14, 2012 at 11:19 pm

        Bro… u should check more on other web site regarding this 2 car lah…. different type !! Type r is NA engine n Megane is turbo charge… ok ?should is different categories… FD2R (NA Engine) is more racing focus n more hardcore not suitable for daily use… go test drive u know it !!! Megane,, i have test drive once… Nice Euro feel n Very comfortable compare to R n got more technology !!! (Dont call me i am Honda Fanboys) (I own FD2R but i admire Megane for style n comfort n More Torque !!…) Thinking to get 1 in my garage !! or waiting FT-86 ?? when will come???

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    • veeda afterlife service sdn bhd on Feb 15, 2012 at 5:59 pm

      Possible to beat EVO X as well?

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  • Simon Ng on Feb 13, 2012 at 9:18 pm

    Is not that I can afford the car now. The impression that I get about Renault car is reliability, spare parts issues, 2nd hand value and expensive to maintain. Does any sifu out there can comment? The people that I talked to, has never owned a Renault. All are just “I got this friend who owns a Renault”.

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    • kington on Feb 14, 2012 at 9:14 am

      Under ETCM, it could’ve improved, at least it’s glad to know that they are here for the long haul unlike the previous partnership with Federal Auto back in the 90s.

      Used carefully, i believe the new Renaults aren’t that bad. Because of the poor sales figure, we could probably check with the owners of Peugeots to see how their cars are doing.

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  • Gavin on Feb 13, 2012 at 9:45 pm

    Rich people toys

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  • Simon , i’ve clocked 30k with my Megane ….yeap service is expensive lor …Engine oil is Elf , needs 6L for each 10k , so far roughly around RM 600 per service , reliability so far so good trouble free . I need to change my rear brake pads soon …1 pair quoted as abt RM 800 .

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    • Like that consider expensive?do you loan your car?

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    • Simon Ng on Feb 14, 2012 at 8:53 am

      Thanks! Does not sound too bad at all. My W124 service is around 400+ for 8000 KM.

      I just find it amazing that people would draw conclusions about something just based on “I heard it from a friend’s friend.”

      Maybe, just maybe one day I might own it. :-)

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    • if u can afford to buy this car, i don’t think that is expensive.

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  • Expensive is relative la guys …it”s not like everyone is earning > 20k /month here what . YOu think everyone who drives a 3 series BMW rich aa ? It’s always relative . My friend who earns 40k/month and drives a 3 series changed his brake pads recently was charged 500/pair admitted the Renault brake pads are more expensive than his BMW . So get the point ?

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  • after this the ‘p’ fanboy will claim their car can easily ‘eat’ this car

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    • veeda afterlife service sdn bhd on Feb 15, 2012 at 6:05 pm

      pagani or porsche or peugeot or perodua/proton or piaggio bikes? LOL

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  • dear all, for the record, i have never been a fan of french cars let alone renaults for that matter. however, my inner curiosity and desire to own a sporting coupe before i get too old for it and get laughed out of the car by younger men had spurred me on to at least have a look at the megane rs plus the fact that i heard porsches are very expensive to maintain and service. of course, my ultimate aim and goal is still to own a porsche sometime soon before all my hair turns grey or disappeared, given that this would not be happening so soon, (getting a porsche that is) i have decided to have a look at the megane rs. i heard that it is the ultimate track car with superb handling. test drove it last weekend and i must say i was suitably impressed by the sporting nature of the vehicle. however, as one reader mentioned, I am also equally concern about the following factors, ie. reliability, spare parts issues and being expensive to maintain. can anyone of the 85 current megane rs owners shed some light to my concerns highlighted here? of course, buying a french car, we would not expect much in terms of resale value as they are already reasonably affordable. or should i stick with german cars and go for a volkwagen golf gti instead? please advise! thanks a bunch everybody!

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