Test drive by Renault Megane Sedan 1999 - 2003 sedan

For love and calculation

There was a stereotype in Russia, according to which a foreign car should be either German or Japanese. And Renault-Magan, like most French cars, buy those who just like this car. Well, to marry love is not forbidden. Especially if it is profitable
Personal opinion
Attachment to one or another brands exist in many countries. For example, in Spain, the number one is considered a prestigious car, and in neighboring France they bow to the BMW. England is cool about German cars, but it accepts the French well.
In Russia, if we talk about golf class sedans (officially segment C), indisputable sales leaders are expensive boron and economical almer and carismation. You can also buy a borus or almere to make it no worse than that of a neighbor. But more and more people are striving to buy a car not the same as that of a neighbor, but one that I like. With regard to golf class models, this approach is justified. In terms of image, design and operating costs, they are all approximately the same. Therefore, you only need to decide on personal preferences and the main criteria of choice in order not to lose sight of the nuances fundamental for you. And the conversations that one model is better and the other, similar, and for the same money is much worse, are only appropriate in a warm company for cold beer.
 
After the 1999 restyling, Megan received headlights and a radiator grille of a new shape
      
Megan -classic profile is very proportional - rare quality for a compact sedan
  

Renault Megane
common data
 
Body
5-seater sedan
 
Equipped mass, kg
1095
 
Complete mass, kg
1600
 
Maximum speed, km/h
195
 
Acceleration time 0100 km/h, with
9.8
 
Highway fuel consumption/city, l/100 km
5.7/9.4
 
Fuel supply, l
60 (AI-95)
 
Engine
 
Location
Front, transversely
 
Design

gasoline, 4-cylinder, in order, in order
with two upper distributions
and distributed fuel injection
 
The number of valves per cylinder
four
 
Diam. cylinder x Piston stroke, mm
79.5 x 80.5
 
Working volume, SMZ
1598
 
Compression ratio
10.0
 
Power, L.S. (kW) at rpm
107/5750
 
Maximum torque, kgsm (nm) at rpm
15,1/3750
 
Chassis
 
Transmission
front -wheel drive
 
Transmission
Mechanical, 5-speed
 
Transporting numbers
I; II; III; IV; V; h. X.
3.36; 1.86; 1.32; 1.03; 0.82; 3.55
 
Suspension
 
front
Independent, such as McExeson,
with a reptile stabilizer,
on the subframe
 
behind
 
torsionnaya, on longitudinal levers,
tied with an elastic transverse beam
 
Steering
REMENCH with an amplifier
 
Brakes:
front/behind
 
disco ventilated/drum with an amplifier and abs
 
Tires
195/60 R15, Pirelli P6000
 
Why is Renault interesting? First of all, with its solid appearance. The point is not even that the bumers of Megan are shared impressive for their class 4.4 m. A rare compact sedan looks so harmonious. Some will also pay attention to a highly planted body. In our conditions, this is not the last dignity. We will consider in more detail the pros and cons of Megan. But first we will study
  price list
It follows from it that in the eyes of others the owner of Megan, it will not be possible to pretend to be a rich Pinocchio, who bought a small car only because he does not need a big car. Unlike the same bore or focus, the luxurious versions of Megan are not delivered to us, which are a business class in miniature- with a leather salon, climate and cruise control, at a price of more than $ 20,000. But all other modifications are characterized by a rather profitable ratio of price and equipment.
This was achieved due to the fact that the cars supplied to Russia are assembled in Turkey, where labor is cheaper, and are equipped with all inclusive system. In other words, the number of custom equipment was reduced to a minimum, and what is present in all machines has become significantly cheaper. The buyer can choose the sedan body called the classic (stress on the last syllable), or the station wagon - BREK, as well as one of two 16 -valve engines with a volume of 1.4 and 1.6 liters with a capacity of 95 and 107 liters. With. respectively.
Megan-classic-1,4 is sold for $ 13,500. The machine contains the ABS brakes with a system of distribution of brake force, two front airbags, an immobilizer, a steering column adjustable in height, air conditioning, filter in the system of ventilation, radio, front-line electric windows and central castle. With a remote key. The standard even includes athermal windshield, which, when sunlight gets on it, darkens on the outside like a chameleon. In summer, the salon will heat less. For surcharge, you can only get the color of metallic, which is estimated at $ 250. However, dealers are usually inferior to metallic free.
The classic and Brack with the engine are one and six are the same - $ 14,900. In this case, the equipment is complemented by side airbags, electric and heating mirrors, an on -board computer, a pair of stereo columns, adjusting a lumbar at a driver's seat and foggy tumors. On order, cast discs ($ 330) and a winter package, including the washer of the headlights, as well as heating of seats and windshield ($ 520), are offered. Automatic gearbox (plus $ 1000) is possible only for the sedan.
So, almost 15 thousand per model, which will be replaced in a year. It would seem that it is not so profitable in comparison with younger Europeans do not rush with conclusions. The new model will not reach Russia at once and even later the version adapted for our roads will appear. And it will cost like young Europeans. That is, initially there may be $ 13,500. But only for everything except ABS, two pillows and central castle, it will be necessary to pay extra. If you fit the level of equipment of the young European to today Megan-1,6, it turns out about 17 thousand. Agree, in this price category $ 2000 is money.
We came to the same conclusion and chose the most sold modification for acquaintance-Megan-classic-1,6 with a mechanical gearbox.
 
A small bulb-indicator of the central castle sheltered on the ceiling, in front of internal light lamps

The cup holders are located on the back of the glove box cover
         
Make-up mirrors in sunscreen visors for some reason are enclosed in a black frame
 
Outside and inside
Judging objectively, hatchback or station wagon is better suited as a family car. And the golf class sedans are usually bought, guided by an emotional motive: despite the modest size, the car should be as solid and representative as possible. Unfortunately, many compact sedans look unpretentious, since they are created by gluing a separate trunk to the hatchback.
Megan -classic is a pleasant exception. Long body overhangs, an elegant line of the stern. With such proportions, it is not a shame to appear in a higher - middle class. The 1999 restyling also benefited, thanks to which the form of headlights and radiator grilles changed. Adds solidity of chrome mirror between the rear lights (with a 1.4 engine - black). Going around the car, I did not find a single occasion to express fi about the Turkish assembly: all the details are tightly fitted, the gaps are uniform, the quality of the color is quite decent.
But it's time to open the door. After all, truly cars with a chrome rhombus on the hood are known in the cabin. This is what Renault either loves or does not accept. This is an incomparable French charm. If I were a psychiatrist, I certainly prescribed Renault cars to secure patients as a means to achieve mental comfort. Moreover, not only cute fragile creatures, but also to aggressive guys who believe that others prevent them from living.
        
A very spacious megan salon for its class has a pleasant velor upholstery to the touch. And the rear sofa in a folded state forms an even loading platform
 
It is worth flopping into the Megan chair, as the law of preservation of negative energy ceases to operate. Where did aggression and irritability go? Is it really dissolved in soft plush seats or in bizarre contours of light gray plastic? Once in the interior of Megan, you begin to handle various buttons, levers, handles carefully, without unnecessary efforts. No, not because the details of the salon are flimsy. It’s just that inside the machine is perceived by a living creature who does not want to hurt. This is one of the reasons why the ladies like Megan.
However, a pair of roughnesses was also discovered: the ashtray cover and light installed with a slight distort, when braking, which breaks into the gap between the posterior shelf and the body of the third stop signal installed on it. But only one who is poorly familiar with the European one can write off such trifles about the Turkish assembly. Therefore, as they say, we drove.
The main advantage of the salon is the scope. Megan is one of the few golf -class cars, in which four people are quite comfortable 185 cm tall. And with some constraint, you can take the fifth into the company. The benefit of the place above the head is enough behind, and the low tunnel on the floor practically does not interfere.
 
The station wagon is offered only with the engine one and six
 
Unlike the sedan, there is both upholstery and inner handle on the lid of the trunk of the station wagon

The threshold of the trunk of Megan-Brack is on the same level with the floor, and the rear sofa folds in parts

Behind the wheel
The originality of the interior of Megan sometimes turns into strange quirks - both pleasant and not very. This is most clearly manifested in the place of the driver. You open the door and expect to fall down for a long time, as in most cars. But the support under the sciatic part appears unexpectedly early. Indeed, even in the lower position, the seat pillow is located quite high. It is good that you will evaluate when during the Saturday trips to shops you will have to enter and get out of the car ten times a day. But there is still an adjustment in height. Plus, you can change the deflection of the lumbar roller, which does not look excess for a soft, typically French chair.
The steering wheel, as on many models of Renault, is located in a battleship in a semi-coronontal plane. Small pedal are also suspended almost horizontally - you press them, as if on the keys of the piano. Such a landing, along with a highly located pillow of the chair, really like miniature women. But I had to lower the steering wheel almost to the stop. Only then did she take a more or less vertical position. True, having mastered behind the wheel, you find that the devices are read well, and it is easy to operate with steering wheel switches. It is especially convenient to turn over the readings of the on -board computer with the button in the end of the right lever that control the wipers.
But the climate control unit fell victim to designer delights. On a convex, as a hemisphere, the central console was found only at the very bottom. Not only that all the regulators are rejected from the driver in the opposite direction, but the gearbox lever also interferes. For a long time I was looking for a button for blocking the central lock. I ended up there, on the console, only from the passenger’s side and, accordingly, turned to him a couple of times. But how to find out now whether the door is locked or not? After all, lifting buttons-stamps or rotary dogs are absent from the inside. It turned out that under the ceiling, near the mirror, a small bulb with the image of the castle lurked. When it is blocked, the light bulb is on a strange solution.
Ta-ak, this is in our opinion, in French. On both sunscreen visors there are makeup mirrors, a driver’s, which is nice, covered with a lid. But it is worth raising the lid, as you see your own display in the black frame. Apparently, this should be understood as follows: looking in a make -up mirror on the move is dangerously good parting words. Now, praying, you can also on the road. Although not. To take a breath, we will examine the trunk.
      
Safety
The Germans and Scandinavians like to boast of what they make safe cars. The French were modestly silent. Until in 1999, Megan was recognized as the safest model in his class according to the results of the front and lateral crash tests conducted according to the Euro NCAP methodology. Even with two frontal airbags, the results were very high, and after the side pillows were included in the European market in the European market, the car earned the highest assessment. Needless to talk about such things as belt pretensors, anti -jacket bars in the doors, the optimized power structure of the body (see. Fig.), Etc.?
In Russia, we recall, side pillows are offered only with a 1.6 liter engine. And buyers of modifications are one and four are content with frontal. It should be noted that the front passenger pillow does not turn off. Therefore, the children's chair in the front passenger seat can only be fixed in the direction of movement. The instructions in sunscreen visors are warned about this. In our conditions, as a means of ensuring personal security, it is necessary to perceive the ability to program the central lock to automatically lock when reaching 6 km/h. To do this, the lock button must be held pressed for a few seconds before the signal appears.
In the pantry
The trunk of a megan-classic with a capacity of 530 liters is a record large by the standards of golf class. Perhaps it is small in internal height, but in the area it is simply huge. In many ways, this was achieved due to a compact torsion suspension, which almost completely fits under the floor. The possibilities of transformation are also surprising. Usually in the sedans only the back of the rear sofa folds. It lays on the pillow, which does not allow you to get an even platform. Here, the pillow rises up, as in the station wagons, and the back lies in its place. As a result, an absolutely flat floor is formed. The sizes of the opening between the trunk and the salon are also impressive. This is not a narrow embrasure, as in most sedans, but a real rectangular window in the entire wall. Here you can really transport a bicycle.
Not without a spoon of tar. Even two. Firstly, the sofa is not laid out in parts, although the back of the back is clearly divided in half. Secondly, the trunk lid does not have inner upholstery. The sharp edges of the internal amplifiers are at your service
After that, it involuntarily recalls the surprisingly beautiful and functional Megan-Brack. He also has a rear seat in parts, and there is upholstery on the fifth door, and a wagon is over the rear passengers of space. And, most importantly, it costs as much as the sedan, although the station wagons are usually more than $ 500-700 more expensive. If you can overcome the Soviet complex of the barn, I recommend taking a closer look at Brack.
 
Governing bodies
1. Buttons of electric windows.
2. The handle of an electric drive of mirrors.
3. Pillows of safety.
4. Remote control panel of the radio.
5. Information display.
6. The circuit breakers of the alarm and blocking the central lock.
7. The rear window heating switch.
8. Ventilation and heating control unit.
 
   
Social warning signs are made in Russian

Thanks to the compact rear suspension appropriate under the floor, the trunk was made very large in area
 
On the roads and without them
Until that moment, we, as if on the scales, weighed the pros and cons of Megan. Is there a real highlight in it? There is. And she is hidden under the hood. A 1.6 liter engine is one of the most powerful and dynamic in class. This is indirectly evidenced by acceleration figures to 100 km/h. Compare them with competitors. Like many 16-classmates, he lacks craving at low speeds, so when touched to the hill, he has to play along with a gas pedal. But after 3,500 revolutions and up to the restriction of the limiter, the song.
True, in this range the engine becomes too noisy, so after a while you will handle the gas pedal more delicately. Yes, and no one forces you to twist the motor in ringing. With moderate-intensity acceleration in the city, the motor rarely works at high speeds, and along the suburban road you can quickly go in high gear. The benefit of chain and very sensitive brakes are ready to swallow any speed they proposed. ABS enters into work when it is really necessary. By the way, I quickly began to feel the back size of the car. But through the back glass of many modern sedans you see only the horizon. Another plus of Megan.
The gear rates in a five -speed box are also well selected. That's just the clarity of the inclusion of the gears leaves much to be desired, and the lever itself lives its own life: it deviates forward when dumping gas and backwards - when accelerated. This is a branded feature of many Renault models, which you just need to get used to.
There are also no special claims to controllability: the reactions are clear, predictable, and the steering wheel is always poured with sufficient effort. If you sort out at a speed in a steep turn, the food unequivocally hints at the skid. This can hardly be considered a serious drawback for a long trunk sedan. Moreover, it is possible to find yourself in a similar situation only in the case of a sudden obstacle or if the road turns before the driver.
On our roads we should be more worried about the smoothness of the course. Well, the adapted Magan suspension copes with his task not bad. And on minor irregularities it does not annoy the shaking, and the potholes are more serious. True, large irregularities, for example, tram tracks, are carried on the body with a muffled-metallic boom m. But, I think, this can be forgiven for Megan. Indeed, in the Russian specification, the machine is designed not only for parquet asphalt. Road clearance is quite decent. The engine and gearbox from below are covered with a powerful iron sheet of protection, pipelines are also enclosed in a steel shell. And the back suspension is designed so that there is nothing special to tear off in it. Therefore, on a broken crushed stone embankment, where Lada rides without problems, you should only remember the long body overhangs.
 
Chromewood on the lid of the trunk is a distinctive feature of cars with a motor one and six
       
Dashboard

1. Speedometer. 2. Fuel level indicator. 3. The indicator of the temperature of the coolant. 4. Tachometer. 5. The odometer scoreboard. 6. Block of control lamps.
  
Engine

1. Bay neck of a glass washer tank. 2. Accumulator battery. 3. Air filter. 4. The tank of the main brake cylinder. 5. Expansion tank of the cooling system. 6. Oil probe. 7. Tank of the power steering. 8. Oil -free neck.

 
Service
Having bought Megan, you can be sure that during the year any malfunction that arose through the fault of the plant will be eliminated for free. The mileage is not limited. Visiting the branded technical center is prescribed once a year or every 15,000 km, but dealers recommend in our conditions to reduce the interval interval to 10,000 km. Today in 18 cities of Russia there are 32 dealers of Renault, of which 13 in Moscow and 2 in St. Petersburg.
Since 1999, a training center has opened in Moscow for personnel of authorized technical centers, thanks to which the quality of the work of small and newly created dealers has increased. Since that time, the central warehouse of spare parts has been operating, on which more than 13,000 items of parts are stored. Spare parts are delivered to Moscow and St. Petersburg in 24 hours, and in the regions - within a week.
The program of round -the -clock technical assistance of Renault Assistan, which has been operating in Moscow and the nearest Moscow region, has been special attention to special attention. Your car will be repaired on the spot or taken to the authorized technical center Renault. In the Renault Assistan service, fixed rates operate: $ 40 - repairs on the spot and $ 35 - evacuation, regardless of distance.
 
Car dimensions, mm
 
Salon dimensions, mm
 
We liked

Management of the main functions of the radio is carried out on the steering wheel remote control

The presence of sidebags in standard configuration
 
The parallelogram mechanism of the trunk lid does not eat its volume

Protective rubber moldings not only on the doors, but also in the most vulnerable places - at the corners of the bumper

As well as:
spacious salon,
capacious trunk,
powerful motor,
good smoothness
  
We didn't like it
  
The hilt of the climate control unit is deployed downward

Lack of internal upholstery of trunk lid

Without lifting buttons of the lock, it is impossible to visually control the locking of doors

As well as:
Door thresholds are quickly covered with road mud
The back of the rear sofa does not fold in parts
Engine noise at speeds above average
Unshassable access to the battery and oil probe of the motor
The ABS block is immediately behind the bumper. It can be damaged even with a relatively easy collision
  
Measure the experts of the magazine limousine
Weather
Temperature + 12-18
Pressure, mm Hg. Art. 740
Humidity, % 80-95
Asphalt concrete coating
Dynamic qualities
(partial load - 2 people + 25 kg)
Acceleration, C:
040 km/h 2.6
060 km/h 5.1
080 km/h 8.1
0100 km/h 12.1
0120 km/h 17.9
0140 km/h 26.1
0160 km/h 38.3
0400 m 18.2 (121.0 km/h)
01000 m 33.8 (153.9 km/h)
Maximum speed, km/h 183.2
Speedometer error, % 3.9
Elasticity, p
60-100 km/h (IV) 11.8
80-120 km/h (V) 18.2
Running, m
12050 km/h 1394
500 km/h 570
Braking with 100 km/h
Braking distance, m 41.5
Slow down, m/s2 9.3
  
Prices for spare parts and that, USD
TO1 10,000 km $ 166
TO2 20,000 km $ 260
TO3 30,000 km $ 166
Hood $ 247
Front wing $ 92
Rear $ 752 wing
Front door $ 353
Rear door $ 344
Front bumper assembly $ 221
Rear bumper assembly $ 223
Lobic glass 166/326*
Side glass $ 80
Front headlight assembly $ 151
Rear lamp assembly $ 105
Oil filter $ 7
Air filter $ 15
Fuel filter $ 7.6
Brake pads
front/rear $ 69/76
Timing belt $ 25
Front shock absorber $ 70
Rear shock absorber $ 65
Steering Tip
Ball support $ 26
* Athermal glass.
    
We decided:
If you need a golf class sedan (or station wagon), and Renault-Magan just like it, do not torment yourself with doubts.
 
Alexander Konov, photo Alexander Sadovnikov
 

Source: Magazine "Limousine" [01-02/02]