Renault Megane RS250 vs Golf GTI review

[MurphyTheElf]

Well, I appreciate the input, Ideo. You state your preferences without prejudice or bias - exactly how all forum members should behave.

[Capercat]

Real grown up mate. Real grown up. You asked for my feedback. There it is.

Now, go away and play in the sandpit. The grown-ups are talking now.

Congratulations, you decided to go with the laggy, boring uninspiring AWD R. You must feel like a grown up buying the lesser S3 eh?

Oh, just another forum opinion

[WhiteJames]

Caradvice.com.au review appears odd to me. No pics of the Megane RS250 and Golf GTI together in the one shot. Statements indicating that the Megane was not driven on the public roadway. I'd say that the writer has driven both GTI and RS250 separate occassions ... then strung together a comparison between the two vehicles. It'd be a better review if the internet journo drove the two vehicles back to back on the same roadways on the same day for a direct comparison. Apart from the manual only / 3-door only / limited dealer presence / no-DCC suspension - The RS250 Megane is starting to grow on me. I found the interior and exterior quality very close to the Golf Mk6 in terms of quality.

After that came the RS. Great car to drive in my short drive, but a bit frantic for what I am after – I don’t drive much around the city, but I do a lot of country driving and highway driving and it simply isn’t as comfortable doing that.

Same deal with me. 80% long distance travel has me prefering the Golf GTI with DCC suspension for added refinement with little loss in handling prowess.

Cheers.
WJ

[OilBurna]

i suspect you are right WJ another re-hash from CarAdvice

[Capercat]

The MK6 interior is a step backwards from the MK5 IMO. The RS250 leather Recaro's are better than the "Sports" seats in my 2010 Porsche. Renault have come a long way in this department, but I'm still not liking the big ass.

[break]

I think some of you are missing the point.

Different tools for different jobs, us RS people certainly don't look down on the GTI for what it's purposed to do (it's the best compromise of performance/comfort/build quality IMO).

Comparing the GTI to the RS250 is comparing apples to oranges. One is an all round hot hatch, the other is a focuse drivers car packaged in a hatch.

Both are great, both are at the top of the game for their respective classes, and you'd be hard to go wrong putting cash down for either.

The question is merely what do you want in a car? I wanted the best drivers experience possible, so I jumped ship to the RS camp and I haven't looked back. If my needs were different, I'd imagine my choice would be too.

[Capercat]

Having owned both the MK4 & MK5 GTI, I always knew I was buying a compromised semi hot hatch, no secretes there...

I was hoping VW would ramp it up for the MK6, but wasn't too be.
Anyhow, I kinda got jack of seeing soft middle aged women drive around in my car (MK5 GTI at the time), hence the main reason I sold out. Sure it sounds snobby, but at least I'm honest.

[Ideo]

Congratulations, you decided to go with the laggy, boring uninspiring AWD R. You must feel like a grown up buying the lesser S3 eh?

Oh, just another forum opinion

It was the car that best suited my needs. The RS was a better drivers car overall, but wasn't suitable to what I needed. Just a decision based on my needs. Which I fully explained. Don't see the point in getting into a pointless pissing contest about which car is better as they go about it in different ways. Both have pros and cons, and it's up to the buyer to work out which direction they lean.

Break - very good points. I can fully understand the choice. If my situation was different I might have gone the other way.

[sabloke]

Not snobbier than "it's French, enough said!"
Have to admit, I wouldn't like to own a car you see at every corner. Most probably there's so many around because they are good cars, but still...

Not exactly on topic, but since GTIs practicality and day-to-day usability was brought into discussion, I gotta ask: why not Octavia RS? It is a bit cheaper, has more room for "practicality", and, according to the poms, is better built using the same transmission and engine. Or is it that the Golf has a tinge of Premium and Skoda doesn't, not yet? Good on VW for managing to look like a premium brand down under, in Europe they are just like our Toyota

[Ideo]

Not snobbier than "it's French, enough said!"
Have to admit, I wouldn't like to own a car you see at every corner. Most probably there's so many around because they are good cars, but still...

Well, after the 306 XSI I owned for a short period that had some pretty amusing issues...

But I still want to revisit pug ownership in a 306 GTi-6. One of those or a 172/182 cup would make a great little club car/hillclimb whilst still being road legal