Yesterday's publication of the Renault Mégane RS 275 Trophy-R 's record-breaking drive (the fastest time between the front wheels) on the North Loop of the German Nürburgring sparked an avalanche of reactions not only among fans, but also among journalists and even representatives of Seat . Most of them point out that the Leon Cupra , which held the record before it, was actually completely serial, on the contrary, the Mégane was very affected by various modifications.
The most obvious ones are mentioned most often – missing rear seats , sound insulation, air conditioning, radio and rear wiper, lighter front seats, major modifications to the chassis or a lighter lithium-ion battery. In addition, everything goes into context with the high price of the Mégane , which in conversion is around 1.2 million crowns (+ surcharge for brakes with a 10 mm larger disc diameter or the already mentioned battery). On the other hand, the Cupra was driven in almost stock condition , where only a certain Performance package was added (it should add about 86,000 CZK to the price of the car) with different brakes, lighter wheels, new thresholds and, of course, the Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires that it had the Mégane also wore shoes during the record-breaking drive. Price for a Cupra? Without the Performance package, Seat can be purchased "from" CZK 669,900… In terms of price, performance and useful features , Seat clearly leads.
But now comes the stumbling block. Why didn't the Spanish car company publish that the record time was driven by a car covered with adhesive tape that covers the joints (as you know, they worsen the car's aerodynamics) and without air conditioning? I'm not counting the 5 hp stronger engine (it's negligible here) and other weather conditions… And then, of course, the problem with availability – the Leon was supposed to be the fastest production front-wheel drive on the Ring, but until today (the record set in March) the package did not appear in the car's price list Performance and wonder, not even adhesive tape to seal the joints… On the other hand, the 275 Trophy-R can normally be ordered from a Renault dealer, in the same specification with which the car set the record, even if there will only be 250 of them, and you don't need any additional flex for cutting out the air conditioner and tape for pasting the body. Yes, you can't go shopping with Mégane , but for a) no one expects this from it and for b) even Renault itself does not present the car in this way… Anyone who buys it must know that he is buying a toy to fool around, to go on a circuit, just a little Caterham among hatchbacks.
I definitely don't want to put the Leon Cupra down with this, on the contrary… As already written before me, the Mégane's record shows how fast the Leon actually is and how much effort is needed to overcome it (although there is again a "but" in the form of a different age, because the basis of the Mégane RS comes from 2009 and the Cupra from 2014)… According to all the reviews, it is one of the most capable sharp hatchbacks in terms of driving (no one from the editorial staff has personally driven the car yet), looks damn good and sits in it anyway. With this article, criticism , offensive I don't know what (call it whatever you like), I only wanted to show that when criticizing or comparing times on the legendary circuit , the media should point to a) i.e. the modifications to the Mégane, but its relative availability, but also to b) i.e. the relative seriality of the Leon, but its actually even more significant modifications that cannot be built into the series…
The Nordschleife presented by the Mégane RS 275 Trophy-R…
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… and presented by Leon Cupra 280.
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