SA Road Tests

Welcome

It struck me one day that people who love cabriolets, convertibles, roadsters, drop-tops, sports cars - call them what you will - are probably less concerned with who made them than with how they make their drivers feel. It's rather like motorcycles; there is an indescribable unity with Nature, a one-ness with the road and a bonding with the elements - the sun on your skin, the breeze through your hair and the living sounds of the open road.

That's why I decided to copy and paste all my cabriolet reports into a single folder where drop-top fans can find them all without having to scrabble through endless menus.

I have to warn you that it took a while to warm to the cabriolet phenomenon - convertibles are mostly loved, hankered after and driven by women, so we guys find them hard to appreciate. For that reason, you may find some of the writing a little tongue-in-cheek, sceptical or even downright chauvinist. What can I say? I'm male and I can't help it. Just bear with me though, because I believe that the stories still contain valid information that will hopefully help you make an informed buying decision.


*To read one of our road tests, just select from the drop-down menu that appears as you hover your cursor over the folder's title.
*Please remember too, that prices quoted were those ruling on the days I wrote the reports, so even if you're looking to buy second-hand, you have an idea of what it cost originally.


We develop a deeper understanding of cabriolets in the 2011 Renault Mègane CC

Stylish and practical

At 02:30 on the morning of writing this, we had an epiphany. Just as Douglas Adams, writer of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – a trilogy in four parts discovered that the answer to 'Life, The Universe and Everything' is 42, we now know why cabriolets truly are 'girly' cars.

It's simple. Women are usually shorter than we are, so there is no need for drivers' and front passengers' chairs to be pushed really far back. This leaves a workable quantity of legroom for their equally short women friends in the back seat. They also love being appreciated, which is why they like to drive in pretty little cabriolets with the roofs down. It’s so Joe Public and his brother can admire them. (Don’t mind us; just being politically incorrect today.)

To summarise then: They love being stared at. They fit. So cabriolets are girly. The mind is now free to ponder important stuff like why the Sharks and the Dolphins can be all-conquering until they get to a really important game. Then they play like a bunch of high school girls driving topless cars on summer break.

Don't get us wrong. The Mègane CC (coupé cabriolet) is gorgeous and it looks even more so with its roof folded and stowed away. Not only that, it’s one of six Renaults nominated for Women’s Car of the Year 2011, so it’s more than just a pretty face. It goes well too. The 1400 cc turbomotor propels it from standstill to a hundred clicks in 10,7 seconds and on to a top speed of 200 km/h. Maximum torque is developed at 2250 rpm so there is good pulling power in all six gears offered by the smooth-shifting manual gearbox. It's more rigidly built than the old one too, so it's stronger and handles better.

Safety is a prime consideration. In case of a rollover, a survival cell formed by the reinforced and extremely rigid windscreen pillar assembly in front and rollover hoops at the rear, work together to protect occupants. Located just behind the rear headrests, pyrotechnic hoops deploy automatically should a rollover be imminent. All these are designed to work in conjunction with Renault's third-generation Restraint and Protection System (SRP3) that includes seat belt pre-tensioners, dual-volume adaptive front airbags, anti-submarining airbags in the front seat cushions, double side-impact crash sensors and seat-mounted dual-chamber lateral head/thorax/groin airbags. Isofix child seat anchorage points are fitted to the rear seats. Active safety measures include ABS, EBD, EBA and ESC with understeer control.

Practical stuff includes a 417 dm3 boot ( 211 dm3 when the roof is stowed) with knee-level loading height and very little sill depth, front chairs that return to their previous positions once rear passengers are seated, an automatic parking brake, dual channel air conditioning, a TomTom navigation system that is easily updated via its SD memory card and an Arkamys 3D sound system with auxiliary and USB connectors, plus Bluetooth for audio streaming and hands-free cellphone use. Directional bi-xenon headlamps help with turning and parking.

While cruisers in topless cars usually parade gently along beachfronts and boulevards, it’s sometimes done at higher speeds too. We tried it at 100 km/h with a single passenger and experienced very little wind noise with no buffeting. It's apparently even quieter with two more in the back and a special gadget is provided to cut down on turbulence at higher speeds when driving two-up. This lives in a bag in the boot. We didn't bother unpacking and erecting it because there were other tests to conduct and time was limited.

When not in cabriolet mode, the Mègane CC is a very neat coupé with steel top and a black glass sunroof that lets in lots of light, giving an airy and spacious feel to the car. A shadecloth inner screen provides extra protection on really bright days. We would prefer an opaque liner for greater privacy, but it's probably a matter of taste. How long does it take to raise or lower the roof? Quicker than most, actually - Renault claims 21 seconds for 'down' and 22 for 'up'. By the way, the cubby locks by itself when the top is down and the doors are locked. You don't even have to remember; it happens automatically as you walk away with the smart key.

That early morning insight clarified a years-old question and we enjoyed this time with the Mègane CC. Our only regret is that this, like most other cabriolets, was built either just for two or is meant only for shorter people.

The numbers
Price: R359 900
Engine: 1 397 cc, DOHC, 16-valve, turbocharged
Power: 96 kW at 5 500 rpm
Torque: 190 Nm at 2 250 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 10,7 seconds
Maximum speed: 200 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: about 8,7 l/100 km
CO2 emissions: 169 gm/km
Tank: 60 litres
Servicing: Every 15 000 km/1 year
Warranty: 5 years/150 000 km
Service plan: 5 years/100 000 km


What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that road test cars entrusted to me are driven only by me. Some reviewers hand test cars over to their partners to use as day-to-day transport and barely experience them for themselves.

What this means to you is that every car reviewed is given my own personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.
Every car goes through real world testing; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.

My articles appear every Wednesday in the motoring pages of The Witness, South Africa's oldest continuously running newspaper, and occasionally on Saturdays in Weekend Witness as well. I drive eight to ten vehicles most months of the year (press cars are withdrawn over the festive season - wonder why?) so not everything gets published in the paper. Those that are, get a tagline but the rest is virgin, unpublished and unedited by the political-correctness police. Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. As quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so I do actually exist.

I am based in Pietermaritzburg, KZN, South Africa. This is the central hub of the KZN Midlands farming community; the place farmers go to buy their supplies and equipment, truck their goods to market, send their kids to school and go to kick back and relax.
So occasionally a cow, a goat or a horse may add a little local colour by finding its way into the story or one of the pictures. It's all part of the ambience!

Comments?
Want to ask a question, comment or just tell me you thoroughly disagree with what I say? That's your privilege, because if everybody agreed on everything, the world would be a boring place. All I ask is that you remain calm, so please blow off a little steam before venting too vigorously.