Mégane Coupé is shaping up

By Mark Nichol

26th September 2008

The new Mégane Coupé is out in the open! Our pictures show the production-ready Renault for the first time – thanks to another European Patent Office leak.

The design was supposed to remain secret until the car’s debut at this week’s Paris Motor Show, but the surprise has been ruined by this latest slip. Marking a return to the days of the MkI Mégane, when the three-door was badged Coupé to separate it from the more family oriented five-door, the car looks stunning.

It’s distinguished from the new five-door by unique front and rear styling – in particular the pair of silver inserts below the headlamps, which make the car appear lower and wider. As you can see, the existing Mégane’s rump has made way for a more curved look, with a shallow windscreen and high shoulder line.Underpinning the Coupé is a modified version of the current Mégane chassis. This has kept costs down and let Renault focus on solving the quality and reliability issues that have hit the current car.

There will be a choice of six diesel engines, with three offering CO2 emissions equal to or below 120g/km. Launch models will get dCi units with between 84bhp and 128bhp, while 150bhp and 160bhp engines will follow later.

Petrol fans can take their pick from 1.6-litre engines with either 99bhp or 108bhp, as well as a 2.0-litre with 138bhp and a 178bhp turbocharged 1.4-litre TCe engine. Five and six-speed auto and manual transmissions will be available from launch.

Performance fans won’t have to wait long for top-of-the-range petrol and diesel Renaultsport models to arrive, either.