VW Golf Mk 3, Opel Astra F, Ford Escort etc. It featured a pillar mounted three-point seatbelt for the middle rear occupant (replacing the common 'lap strap'), standard front belt pre tensioners and load limiters, driver's airbag (passenger airbag from 1996) and an impressive safety structure – a specification ahead of all rivals in 1995, e.g. Safety was a key focus of the Mégane I, Renault's first car reflecting their new focus of selling on safety. Sales in the United Kingdom commenced in April 1996. Market launch began on 15 November 1995 in France, and 15 December 1995 for the coupé. Īs with the 19 and the 11 before it, the Mégane was produced at Renault's Douai plant in northern France starting in July 1995, and at the Spanish plant of Palencia. Renault decided to add an acute accent to the vehicle name (M égane), in order to assert its European identity, in a context of growing competition of newer car manufacturers coming from Japan. Taking its name from a Renault concept car shown in 1988, the Mégane further developed the new corporate styling theme introduced by Patrick Le Quément on the Laguna, most notably the "bird beak" front grille – a styling cue borrowed from the Renault 16 of the 1960s. The car was essentially a reskin of its predecessor, and carried over the 19's floorpan, engines, transmissions and chassis design, albeit with much modification. The Mégane I was unveiled in September 1995, at the Frankfurt Motor Show, as a replacement for the Renault 19. In June 1993, Renault purchased production tooling for the X64, with the first test unit being assembled at the Douai plant in October 1994, and pre production units being constructed from December 1994 to the middle of 1995. Approximately 432 prototypes were built (at Rueil assembly) and destroyed during development. ![]() The first prototypes were built and presented to management in December 1992. Theme C by Michel Jardin was chosen by Le Quement and frozen for production in April 1992. ![]() In March 1991, all four styling proposals were developed into full scale (1:1). ![]() Renault Mégane Coupé 16V Monte Carlo (pre-facelift)
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