Facelifted Renault Megane revealed: updated family car gets longer electric range

On sale Autumn | Price from £32,000 (est)

The Renault Megane has been a familiar presence at the family car party for a very long time, but back in 2022 it turned up in new clothes, swapping its hatchback image in favour of a sharper, SUV-inspired look and embracing electric power for the first time. 

And now in 2026, with the party busier than ever, the Megane is being given a new lease of life to help it steal the limelight from rivals including the Cupra Born, MG4 and Peugeot e-308.

From the outside, the new Megane takes on a look very much inspired by the Renault Scenic SUV, with a more prominent, upright front bumper, a new side light signature which makes the car look wider than before, and a completely closed-off grille. 

At the rear, the Megane’s lights get a 3D effect, while the new rear bumper is designed to make this Megane look sportier. As before, drivers can choose from alloy wheels up to 20in in diameter, and there are seven colours to choose from. Elsewhere, this Megane is actually 20mm taller than before, due to a bigger battery that sits under the car’s floor.

That battery now has a usable capacity of 67kWh, yielding an official range of up to 310 miles. That’s 19 miles farther than the outgoing Megane could manage and beats the Peugeot e-308’s figure, but it’s worth knowing that the Born can travel farther still if you go for the version with the biggest (79kWh) battery.

Power in the updated Megane comes courtesy of a 217bhp motor driving the front wheels. The result should be fairly nippy, with the current Megane being able to complete a 0-60mph sprint in less time than the equivalent Born and MG4 can manage.

To go with its longer range, the Megane can now charge at a higher rate than before, with a peak of 165kW. That means a 15-80% top-up of the battery could take as little as 24 minutes if you’re plugged into a powerful enough charger.

If you want to use the Megane’s energy reserves for other things, the car now includes a vehicle-to-load function, so you can use it to power external appliances such as a kettle or coolbox – ideal if you plan on going camping.

Renault says despite its bigger battery (which means more weight), the Megane’s driving manners are unchanged. The old car had tight body control but very light and inconsistent steering. This made cornering less instinctive than in the best-driving family cars, including the Born. 

The centrepiece of the Megane’s interior is its mildly updated 12.0in touchscreen infotainment system, which includes built-in Google Maps and Google Assistant. The system can plan your journey to take into account charging stops en route, and thanks to Google Gemini artificial intelligence, drivers can ask their cars anything they want using natural language.

We’ve already sat inside the facelifted Megane and were impressed by the quality of materials used inside. It feels a cut above the rival e-308 in particular.

New features include the driver attention monitor camera being able to recognise your face and automatically apply your personalised settings when you get into the car, plus faster charging for your phone on the wireless charging pad.

There’s no change to how spacious the Megane is inside, and that means a couple of six-footers will find that their heads graze the rooflining, and that some rivals offer more knee room.

Likewise, the boot continues to have 440 litres of space available. In the outgoing car, it can hold seven carry-on suitcases below the parcel shelf – one more than the Born and two more than the MG4 can manage. The downside is a high load lip at the boot entrance.

To keep an eye on all of the Megane’s functions, Renault’s new smartphone app can let you start route planning from your phone, as well as monitor your car’s health, control charging remotely and see all of your driving information in one place.

There’s expected to be two trim levels to choose from: Techno and Espirit Alpine. Techno is what we recommend with the current Megane, and it comes with everything you’re likely to need, including a heat pump (to more efficiently warm the interior in cold conditions), dual-zone climate control and heated front seats.

The updated Megane will go on sale later this year, and it’s expected to be priced at a broadly similar level to the current car, starting at around £32,000, which will include a £1500 Government grant. That means it will continue to be very competitively priced against the Born and Volkswagen ID 3, while the MG4 will still cost less.

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