When you put your foot down in this car, you get a very quick sensation of accelerated excitement. This car is definitely not for the faint hearted!

It may look funny but the performance is serious. Very serious!

The name 'Renaultsport' is to Renault what HSV or FPV is to Holden or Ford. Renaultsport also do the Clio Renaultsport 182 and you can see our road test on it here.

There is just one mission at Renaultsport! And that is performance. And that's performance with a capital 'P', if you get my drift!

The Megane 225 brings turbo performance to the mid-size class. The performance comes from a 1,998 cc 16-valve 4-cylinder turbo-charged engine. Power is rated at 165kW at 5,500 rpm and the torque is an exciting 300Nm at 3,000 rpm.

Acceleration, according to Renault's figures, is 0-100 km/h in 6.5 seconds. Staggering, just staggering! Perhaps too staggering. Because I found the torque-steer in this car, so pronounced it often invited me to back-off somewhat! And back-off I did. The front-wheel drive is good, but an all-wheel drive system would be a better idea for this particular car.

The steering and handling are brilliant. The ride is excellent. The manual 6-speed gearbox is exciting. Yes, that's right, you've read that correctly, this car has a manual gearbox which delights me! You won't be able to quote me often about being excited with a manual gearbox, but this is one of only a handful of cars which has an excellent manual gearbox (from my perspective).

The Megane 225 was just recently upgraded to 'Cup' specifications. The current recommended retail price is $42,990. The only option for the new 'Cup' model is the $4,000 "LX" pack, which is a combination of leather trim, 6-disc in-dash CD stacker and a sunroof. Although I don't particularly like sunroofs, the package at $4,000 is worthwhile for the leather trim and 6-stack CD player.

This model is well equipped, just as you would expect for a over $40,000 car and, in particular, a high-performance car of the calibre of the Renaultsport 225.

On the road is where this car belongs. It is a particularly rewarding drive. It is comfortable and the driving dynamics are impeccable. It has an excellent manner, but just a little too much power. Does anyone know if this is the first time a motoring journalist has said that a car has too much power? I'll get over it! I learnt not to floor the go pedal!

Let me say, in conclusion, that the price is right, but there is just too much performance as you can feel the 'torque-steer' under brisk acceleration. This car has looks that attract attention, so you'll need an outgoing personality to feel comfortable with this very hot car. It's a rewarding drive, that is clearly evident, but be very careful when you choose to let some-one else drive this car. This is a car for very experienced drivers only. And then only a driver who respects power!