09 Apr 09
RenaultSport
Another recent edition to the in-house tuners is Renault's recent RenaultSport division. Completely separate from its F1 arm, RS is sharply focused on road cars. Luckily it didn't have to jump in at the deep end, having a fine head-start drawing from talent that brought us the Clio Williams.
Kicking off in 2002, RenaultSport has proved it has a bright future, creating some of the hottest hot hatches to have ever torn up a B&Q car park.
Best car:
Renault Megane R26.R
Nothing can prepare you for how extreme, focused and hardcore the R26.R is. Anything that throws away the rear seats, uses rear perspex windows instead of glass and sports a gorgeous featherlight carbon fibre bonnet has to be taken seriously. It is, quite simply, a sensational car to drive.
What were they thinking: Renault Megane RS175 dCi
Dropping a diesel into hot hatch is brave, but unfortunately for RS, it didn't quite work. Its torquey engine may have provided it with plenty of overtaking clout, but the overall result felt a little lazy and too relaxed for its own good. It also sounded rubbish.
