Renault Megane Coupe Cabriolet driven

Coupe-cabriolets are all about style, so given that the Megane three-door is more of a slinky coupe than a typical hatch, Renault was starting from a pretty high water mark when it set about creating its latest CC.

The glass roof

The CC is an eye-catching car, but perhaps the most striking feature is its two-piece folding roof, which is made almost entirely of glass. As a result, and to quote almost every estate agent in the land, 'with the roof up you still feel like youre bringing the outside in'.

The biggest drawback of two-piece roof designs is that the windscreen pillars tend to extend a long way back. This means they figure prominently in your peripheral vision and you need to be a little careful not to bang your head when getting into and out of the car.

Renault has manage to package the roof extremely well even if there are plenty of brackets and hydraulic parts on show when you lift the lid because even when the roof is stored in the boot there are still 211 litres of space available. With the roof up you free up 417-litres of luggage room.

Like most other four-seat convertibles, theres not a lot of room for rear-seat passengers, because adults are almost forced to sit cross-legged in the rear seats.

Equipment

The cabin is pretty well appointed and constructed from high-quality materials.

Entry-level cars come with 17-inch alloys, air-conditioning, Bluetooth connectivity, automatic headlights and wipers, cruise control, a fixed glass wind deflector and fully integrated Tom Tom sat-nav.

Engines and dynamics

In total there are six engines to choose from, four petrol and two diesels. Weve driven the 158bhp 2.0-litre turbodiesel and its an absolute peach. It's quiet, free-revving and powerful, and more proof that few manufacturers build better diesel engines than Renault.

Well have to wait until we get a drive of the CC on UK roads to assess the ride quality, but its obvious that Renault chassis engineers have erred on the side of comfort rather than sportiness.

The steering is light and the car is a little slow to change direction, and when the roof is folded youre certainly aware of the extra weight over the back wheels when you up the pace a bit.

Of course, this wont matter one jot when youre cruising down the high street checking your reflection in the glass-fronted shops, at which point you'll feel pretty good about your Megane CC.

What Car? says