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our test drives or view them all

Renault Megane 1.9 dCi Privilege five-door hatch

THE latest Renault Megane hatch is not the most exciting car I’ve driven. It’s a classic high-tech plodder designed for honest family slogging and delivers its promise with great equipment in place of sharp dynamics.

That may sound like a turn off – but wait.

The vast majority of buyers are slap bang in this kind of territory and want nothing more than a dependable, well-appointed five-door family holdall that is comfortable and won’t break the bank to buy or run.

Meet the Megane hatch – and particularly the modest 1.9 dCi turbodiesel I had on test. It’s a perfect foil for the family buyer who needs to lug a car-load of people and gear but who also craves some luxury and a willing diesel heart.

There are 19 Megane hatches in the range, but only two are offered with the "old" 1.9 dCi – a cracking unit that has given sterling service for years. It may have been around for a while but it spits out a useful 130bhp with pulling power of 222lb.ft slurping in from just 1750rpm. It adds up to a relaxing drive that may not set the heather on fire, but will eke out a gallon of diesel to an average 55mpg.

My time with the Megane coincided with a week of high winds and torrential rain – perfect Highland weather that’s sure to highlight any discomfort issues.

Over hundreds of miles I found the Privilege was a balanced holdall with good seating front and back and an interior build quality that is up with the latest Laguna as Renault’s best to date.

But I can’t say I’m a fan of the dash design. It certainly is well assembled, but the layout is awkward and the position of the radio a real pain because it’s so low on the central console. I was also disappointed with the standard climate control that was hard to stabilise and run at a given temperature.

But as a useful family carry-all it works well. The boot is marred by a high sill but the floor is flat and with the rear seats in place it swallows 372 litres of luggage – impressive though not quite as commodious as the Ford Focus with 385 litres. Dropping the rear seats and folding the flimsy rear seat squabs forward delivers a maximum 1129 litres – good for most family use but still short of the rival Focus that can manage 1247 litres.

However it’s how the Megane drives that sets it apart. It has a genuinely compliant ride and even with the Privilege’s oversize 17-inch alloys comfort for driver and passengers is not an issue. Road and wind noise are well suppressed and the road comfort factor is helped by Renault’s sensible adoption of deep-sided 50 section Continental tyres.

At £19,535 the Privilege costs £900 more than the better value Dynamique. The extra cash gets you some trim differentials including 16-inch multi-spoke alloys, electrically folding door mirrors, dual zone climate control, an automatic fade-dip rear view mirror and useful rear parking sensors. But there’s little in it – mechanically they are identical with one offering a little more luxury than the other.

However there’s better value still, with little to give up in the comfort stakes, if you look further down the new Megane range.

Renault recently introduced a special edition model badged "World Series" that’s available with either a 110bhp 1.6 petrol or the excellent 106bhp 1.5 dCi turbodiesel – one of the best small diesels offered in any family car today.

The "World Series" version comes with attractive body kitting that smartens up the rather "frumpish" design of the latest Megane. You also get a spoiler, 17-inch alloys, Megane Coupe front grille intakes and body-colour inserts.

The overall effect is to lighten the car’s appearance, add even more value and give it a more youthful character. But just why Renault couldn’t have done this across the range is a real mystery.

While the 110bhp 1.6 petrol version is good value at £17,045 before discount, the real attraction here must be the outstanding 1.5 dCi turbodiesel. At £18,595 before any price reductions are negotiated, it offers excellent value compared to the 130bhp 1.9 dCi Privilege. The 1.5 is significantly quieter than the older-technology 1.9 and a lot less gruff under power. Better still is its smooth and sprightly performance and its easy average of 62.8mpg from an engine that falls into an affordable 120g/km emission bracket and is a lot cheaper to insure than the 1.9 Privilege by slotting into Group 6 – that’s four groups lower than the larger-engined Megane.

The test car came with an embedded TomTom sat-nav system – a £450 extra that is good value over many manufacturer-fitted navigation suites that can set you back scandalously large amounts of money, often approaching £2000.

But while the TomTom worked well on my gale and rainswept drives around the Highlands, it had a curious "historic" aspect to its content.

Presumably using mapping information collated by a Frenchman with an interest in railways it included some fascinating trackwork – but sadly a lot of it was woefully out of date.

On the positive side the Megane’s sat-nav system was easy to use and updated quickly if you overshot or took a wrong turning. If you really want an in-built full-screen navigation system instead of a cheaper portable windscreen-mount unit, this Renault TomTom is good value.

As a family front-drive car with good comfort and safety, the Megane fits the bill. It’s not particularly involving to drive and its shape is less dramatic than its attractive bustle-tailed predecessor, but it should deliver reliable transport with a relaxed air.

The Privilege comes with an impressive five-star NCAP safety rating, front and side airbags, ABS braking, electronic stability programme, climate control, alloys, useful rear parking sensor, four powered windows, improved power steering and cruise control.

Metallic paint costs £395 while full leather is £900 and a powered sunroof £600. The car’s standard warranty is three years or 60,000 miles and the 1.9 dCi needs servicing every 18,000 miles.

Rating: 6.5/10

FINAL THOUGHT: Renault’s latest Megane is classic “family fare” – an honest holdall that should be cheap and dependable to run in perky 130bhp 1.9 dCi guise. As a Privilege model it is too expensive at £19,535 and there is far better value much further down the range in 1.6 litre 100bhp petrol and outstanding 86bhp 1.5 dCi turbodiesel guise where prices start from £13,250 and £14,950 respectively.

Renault Megane 1.9 dCi Privilege five-door hatch

• Price: £19,535
• Capacity: 1870cc
• Power: 130bhp
• 0-62mph: 9.5 seconds
• Maximum speed: 127mph
• Economy: Combined 55.4mpg; Urban 45.6mpg
• CO2 emissions: 134g/km
• ESP: Standard
• Insurance: Group 10