End of a magical era: this legend says goodbye

Anyone who loves hot hatches loves the Renault Mégane RS. After twenty years his career is really over. Unfortunately, but fortunately, the Frenchman goes out with a bang.

Renault drew the digital canvas of the Mégane RS Ultime. It’s a limited swing-out model of the legendary Hot Hatch, which is basically “just” a Megane RS Trophy. But then, as befits a swing-out model, just a little sharper.

New logo for Mégane RS

Let’s start with the looks. First of all, this Ultime includes unique graphic elements on its car. See for example the diamonds that refer to the new Renault logo. The French give this Megane RS standard matte black stripes on the roof, rear bumper, doors and fenders. These graphic elements all contrast with the three colors available for this Ultime: Pearl White, Sirius Yellow and Tonic Orange.

This Ultime therefore looks a bit thicker, but it actually is. Renault reports that the body has grown by 6 centimeters at the front. The rear of the Megane RS Ultime has also gotten a bit wider: it’s 4.5 centimeters wider than the RS Trophy. In addition, numerous elements of this Goodbye Edition are black as standard. Think of the logos, door handles, window frames and wheels.

Laurent Hurgon

In the Renault Mégane RS Ultime we find, among other things, Recaro seats, unique wear plates and a plaque with the serial number right next to the gear lever. Each model also bears the signature of Laurent Hurgon, who has helped develop the iconic Hot Hatch throughout the Mégane RS’s career.

Then the bad news. Renault will not endlessly build copies of this Mégane RS Ultime. The model appears in a limited edition. The French build a total of 1976 copies of the Ultime. That may sound like a number pulled out of thin air, but of course it isn’t. The number is a reference to 1976, when the Renault Sport division was created. You can also find this number on the right flank of the Mégane RS Utlime.

nicely done?

There is also bad news when it comes to the powertrain. This does not change compared to the Mégane RS Trophy. Although we can’t call that bad news, as the 300bhp 1.8-litre four-cylinder was already a party in this car. Oh, and if you want one, you’re out of luck either. Renault Netherlands will not receive a single example of the 1976 Méganes RS Ultime. Not very surprising since the RS Trophy and even the regular hatchback Mégane have not been available in our country for a while. Anyone who still wants to drive a Mégane in the Netherlands is condemned to the Estate or the Elektro-E-Tech Electric.

Tomorrow Renault will open the physical curtain of this Mégane RS Trophy. It does at the Tokyo Auto Salon. This auto show will go down in the books as the place where Renault’s last RS model was presented. Every sporty model from the manufacturer will soon bear the Alpine suffix.