It boasts the most controversial rear end styling of any current main stream car, yet it’s selling like the proverbial hot cakes. Now a familiar sight on the roads, both here and throughout Europe, the Megane hatchback is perhaps no longer a head turner.

Most observers would take it as just another competent car for the masses. However, there is one exception that might not be quite what it seems. It is the Renault Megane Renault sport Cup 225 which is Renault’s answer to the hot hatches offered by Volkswagen, Audi, Ford, Honda, Alfa Romeo, etc.
 

From the rear it has the now familiar Megane rump. There’s no roof spoiler just a pair of oval shaped exhaust pipes protruding from twin egg box grilles. There’s nothing else really distinctive about that speedy car that might just have passed you by.
 

Power comes from a two-litre turbocharged petrol-fuelled engine that draws on Renault’s Grand Prix racing expertise, as well as its experience in developing competitively powered yet very refined road engines.

Power delivery is not quite in the velvet glove category but more than acceptable. And with an output of 222 bhp, it has the credentials to mix it with all the other main contenders in its class. It is deceptively fast off the mark, reaching 60mph from rest in around six seconds.

And it’s good for more than 140mph if you ever have the opportunity to put that to the test. Obviously fuel consumption is dependent on how much work and play you give this car.

The combined figure is an acceptable 32.1mpg, but I would settle for around 25mpg when exploiting the performance factor. There could be a lot of drama with this kind of power if handling, brakes and stability were not up to the job.
 

Thankfully Renault knows its onions and has further honed what is already a good handling/riding car, into one that makes light work of delivering the performance in a safe and sure manner.

And there’s just sufficient driver entertainment to remind one that this is the hot car of the range. You pay the price for the privilege of performance with a fairly firm ride but, with the excellent front seating, most of the jolting on bad road surfaces is easily absorbed.

Complementing the power unit is a six-speed manual gearbox with logically spaced ratios that deal with the outright power, and the flexibility of the power unit. It allows for fast progression up the speed range, once one has got to learn the feel of a none too crisp selector mechanism. Uprated braking, with ABS and electronic brake distribution are effective once you adapt to the feel of the pedal.
 

Leather upholstery is a £600 cost extra, otherwise the model relies on the tasteful and well finished interior decor and executive-class equipment of the range-topping mainstream Megane versions.
 

But you can pay another £500 for two more doors. Boot capacity is reasonable, though the rump-shaped tailgate makes for a lower than usual interior height of the load space.
 

In summary, this model goes exceptionally fast, drives very easily, is more economical, and much cleaner on emissions than I would have expected. In short it is a well-made product that’s ideal for the performance-enjoying introvert..