So, it's arguably better looking than a Scirocco, it goes as well, it handles better, and it costs a lot less. It grips so reassuringly I hardly ever strayed into the realms of understeer, despite some really serious cornering speeds. And, though stiffer by 19%, the suspension is still soft enough to stop the car leaping across the road on white lines like a BMW 123i, or a Scirocco on 18" wheels. Like the hatchback, the steering is very informative. Show it a corner, or better still a series of fast bends, and it really comes alive. So you have the double benefit of a quick 7.5 second 0-60 and diesel-like flexibility without a horrible power vacuum at very low revs. It pulls about 27mph per 1,000rpm in 5th, so it's a quiet cruiser. The engine is punchy and flexible, making 4th a very usable gear. But the most sensational thing about it is the way it goes. Though even on the 225/44 R17 tyres of our TCE 180 it didn't rattle our teeth over the ridges that Spanish highway engineers lay in your path to slow you down for ‘obras'. Renault engineers stiffened the springs quite a lot, by 19%.
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