In the coming years, Renault will largely shift its attention to electric cars. Existing models may not be able to participate in that transition and the Mégane seems to be high on the elimination list.
For all major car manufacturers, this decade is all about the switch to electric cars. Complete EV model ranges are being built out of the ground and will eventually refer traditional models more and more to the exit. Renault plans to have eight electrically powered cars on offer by 2023. It looks like it could cost the Mégane, as Renault is shifting the development budget to the newcomers. At least that is what Renault’s chief designer Laurens van den Acker suggests AutoExpress.
According to the Dutchman, it is logical that because of the EV extension, pots have to be pushed and that the less successful models than possibly leave the field: “We cannot afford to continue developing all this at the same time, so some cars will have to The Mégane is in an increasingly difficult segment. You have to invest your money in the future of the market, “says Van den Acker.
Although the Mégane still sells well, there is a downward trend. Twenty years ago, Renault still sold some 300,000 Méganes in Europe on an annual basis, with in 2004 even an outlier to nearly 500,000. After 2012 it did not exceed 170,000 per year and the past two years the French sold roughly 130,000 Méganes on an annual basis. In the Netherlands, the current Mégane is currently also significantly less successful than its predecessors, with the 7,722 copies sold from 2017 as the provisional highlight. Last year, Renault sold 3,775 Méganes here.