Renault didn’t like it at all when SEAT snatched the Nurburgring front-wheel-drive lap record from them with their Leo Cupra 280. In fact, some of the engineers locked themselves in the workshop and vowed not to come out until they make something capable of getting that record back.

The result of their endeavors was Renault Megane RS 275 Trophy R, which has just popped in a Nurburgring front-wheel-drive lap record of 7 minutes 54.36 seconds, which is 4 seconds faster than the previous record set by the Cupra.

The RS 275 made it look almost easy, but it really wasn’t. To get that performance out of the Megane RS the engineers had to tune it almost to the edge of destruction. They shaved almost 100 kg off the weight of the normal Trophy model to make the R, and boosted the output of its 2.0 liter turbo four-pot to 275 brake horsepower. A bespoke cup chassis was then installed to take care of the handling.

The limited edition Renault Megane RS 275 Trophy is visually distinguished over its normal brethren thanks to special front blade, chequered flag graphic at the bottom of the front doors and graphics on the side of the car are all picked out in Vif Red, as well as 19-inch Speedline wheels. Other color combos are also available.

Inside you get Alcantara-trimmed steering wheel and handbrake bellows, leather gearshift knob and red seatbelts which match the visible stitching of the seats and steering wheel.