2004 Renault Megane Renaultsport 225 from UK and Ireland - Comments

General poor quality control at both Renault and dealer as car was received with minor paint defects, scuff marks on interior trim.

The front offside wheel trim was extensively damage and showed evidence of having been driven off a ramp with the retaining clasp attached.

The diagnostic light came on when the car was just 7 weeks old and the car had to be returned to the garage on 4 separate ocassions before if was finally repaired. It spent a total of 3 weeks off the road.

Now the car is running as it should it is astonishingly quick although the handling is a bit twitchy. The engine's power delivery is throughout the rev range and just doesn't let up. There are faster cars, but why?

The car is very smooth and quiet on the motorway; more a GT than a hot hatch. It is exactly the sort of car I thought it was when decided to buy it.

The interior is fantastic and a very enjoyable place to spend time.

Agree absolutely with quality control issues. My RS 225 arrived with intermittently functioning power steering, a rattling steering rack and a gear box that wouldn't engage second. In addition to those problems (which Renault have now fixed), I have very noisy brakes, the auto windscreen wipers don't work and the 'one-touch' function on the electric windows has ceased to operate. And I have only had the car for a month!

We got our 225 in December and have (touch wood) so far had no problems with it at all.

Going from a 1.4 16v Megane Dynamique (2003 new shape) to the 225 has been a totally mind blowing experience. The ride is so much more enjoyable.

The only thing I will say is that on average we get around 24mpg out of it, but then we do do a lot of small journeys and sitting in traffic. On the Motorway, we've had 35mpg out of it with the cruise control on (Edinburgh to Birmingham with still 1/4 tank left).

Anyone else having emission light problems? Took my 225 (2300 miles; 4 months old) into the shop today because the light was flashing non-stop from London to Bristol and back at the weekend, and the manual is a bit light on information about what it actually means. A couple of words of advice for Renault though:

1. Renault's advice is to slow the engine speed when the emission light comes on. This is not a very practical suggestion if it comes on on the motorway. And, in fact, the problem is worse in traffic, when the engine is already only just above idle.

2. Does the emission light actually denote anything important? If so, this should be made clear in the manual (I've just driven 300 miles with it flashing, under the assumption that it's something pretty trivial) ; if not, it should be more discrete (ever tried driving 300 miles with a bright orange light flashing in front of your eyes? Not much fun).

The emission light was flashing on my 225. Once the 18,000 mile service had been done it stopped coming on. Also, the mpg steadily decreased, again this has been improved as a result of the service.