Over the last 15 years, the Megane-based Renault Sport versions have set the hot hatch standard for ultimate performance and driving thrills. In that time the most radical versions of the Megane RS have successively beaten the front-wheel drive production car lap record for the hugely challenging Nürburgring, a circuit that's recognised around the world as the ultimate proving ground for a car's performance.

The New Renault Megane RS Trophy-R is no exception, setting a new record of 7 minutes 40.1 seconds around the tortuous track famously known as the 'Green Hell'. Yet unlike competitors that simply focus on delivering ever higher power outputs, the engineers at Renault Sport have concentrated on three distinct performance pillars: weight reduction, the maximisation of aerodynamic efficiency and more radical suspension systems. This approach is a Renault Sport trademark, an approach that priorities speed through the corners rather than outright performance in a straight line.

Featuring an impressive weight reduction of 130kg, a totally redesigned suspension set-up and modified aerodynamics the New Megane RS Trophy-R is the most extreme Renault Sport model yet. It also boasts some innovations that are normally the preserve of high end supercars, such as the optional carbon ceramic brakes and carbon fibre wheels. And in its pursuit of undiluted driving pleasure it removes items such as the rear seats, while the composite Sabelt seats can be ordered with six-point racing harnesses - this is a car that puts the driver front and centre.