2008 Renault Megane Review
March 11, 2008 by Matt Brogan
2008 Renault Megane dCi Expression Review
An economic European for a bargain price.
Model tested:
- 2008 Renault Megane dCi Expression Sedan 1.9 litre diesel automatic – $27,990
- Options: Metallic Paint – $700
European Pedigree, Great Fuel Economy, Comfortable Interior
Curious Styling, Heavy Clutch, Plastic Steering Wheel
CarAdvice rating: 
- by Matt Brogan
Renault has been around for about as long as the car itself (1898), though in Australia at least, they’re not overly well represented on our roads. Whilst I’m sure this doesn’t exactly surprise any one, it is quite an interesting comparison when you consider that Renault is the number one selling car is Europe.
Fair enough, that’s where they’re made, it makes sense, but other than geography why aren’t there more on our roads? After all, they’re one of the world’s foremost Formula One teams and are one of only three teams who actually build and race their own cars.
A pioneer in safety too, Renault also has some boasting to do here with eight cars on their range having a five-star European NCAP rating (this one included). That’s more than Mercedes and Volvo combined!
With all this promising background evidence to behold I was eager to drive one and see if the car was really worth the hype. After all, if they’re that popular surely they’ve got to have something going for them. So it was off to Renault to grab the, err… keys and take the Megane for a week of scrutiny.
My Megane is five years old, has 40,000 km, has gone through three electric windows in the first three years but apart from that has been fine. The windows seem to be a real problem with this car. The good points are the fantastic seats, the clever storage areas, the build quality, the huge boot, the safety gear and the motor. The negatives are the auto box, some buzzing from the dash and the bloody annoying seat belt chime. Theyd do far better with some decent marketing and motivated dealerships.