Renault has regained the Nurburgring lap record for a front-wheel drive car with a 7 min 54.36 second lap time on the Nordschleife - in a run made last month, the Renault Megane RS 275 Trophy-R snatched back the title from the Seat Leon Cupra 280, which held the outgoing record of 7 min 58.4 seconds.

The Megane RS 275 Trophy-R is the third Renault Sport vehicle to hold the FWD lap record, following on the achievements of the Megane R26.R in 2008 and Megane RS 265 Trophy in 2011. It's a two-seater derivative of the recently-announced RS 275 Trophy, and weighs 100 kg less than the latter.

The Trophy-R ditches the rear seats, and the front seats are Recaro Pôle Position polycarbonate monocoque units, the switch to the latter yielding a weight saving of 42 kg. Three-point seat belts are fitted as standard, but a six-point harness with aviation-style buckle is available as an option. Elsewhere, the use of a lithium-ion battery trims the overall weight by another 16 kg.

Mise en page 1

The car also gets a special braking kit, with 350/28-diameter steel and aluminium discs shaving a further three kilograms. Adapted to intensive circuit use, these Renault Sport-etched brakes endow the vehicle with a sharper bite.

Otherwise, the Trophy-R is very much a RS 275 Trophy, complete with the base car's titanium Akrapovic exhaust system, Öhlins Road&Track one-way adjustable dampers with composite springs and dedicated Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres.

The edition gets a two-tone colour scheme with an Etoile Black roof mated with a Pearlescent White finish, red graphics and 19-inch Speedline wheels dressed in black or red. Production will be limited to 250 examples, and the car will be sold in some 15 countries.