No sooner has Renault unveiled its new Megane hatchback family than we’ve caught its red-hot sibling: the Renaultsport hot hatch.

Our spies caught the high-performance Megane as it tested at the Nurburgring circuit in Germany – a year ahead of its on-sale date.

We’ll see the new Renaultsport Megane at the 2009 Geneva motor show next spring before it rolls into dealerships in
September.

As our revealing photos prove, the new hot hatch will be available only in the svelte new three-door bodystyle, now badged coupé rather than sport hatch.

The car pictured is not quite the finished version, and you can expect a more aggressive front chin and spoiler pack on production models.

However, huge front brake discs and a centre-exit rear exhaust are visible on this prototype.

It will be powered by a development of the 2.0-litre turbo in the current R26 Megane, and engineers are tuning the power output to somewhere north of 230bhp.

Drive will be sent through the front wheels via a limited slip diff to stop the Renaultsport Megane careering into the nearest hedge.

Hot Renaults are popular in the UK, which takes the lion’s share of Renaultsport models in Europe.

And the company expects sales of the three-door to rise from 15 to 20% of the Megane range, as the more distinctive coupé tempts more buyers.