Renault’s original 1992 Twingo was only available in LHD and just a few examples made it to Ireland. In Europe, the Patrick le Quément designed front engined/front-wheel drive machine was a big success. It was a peoples' car - cheap to buy and run. Twingo, a combination of Twist, Swing and Tango continued with the 2nd generation that was available in RHD. It was more refined - yet still super frugal to run. Now the latest five-door is the result of a partnership with Smart (Daimler) who shared its development for its latest Smart ‘ForFour’. Both machines are built in Slovenia at Renault's production plant.
Twingo is cute and looks an awful lot like an original FIAT 500 - it was rear-engined/rear-drive too. Twingo is now shorter by 100mm yet the wheelbase has been stretched by 120mm to 2.49 metres. This frees up interior space and aids stability. Twingo has a tiny, best in class turning circle that you must experience. Twingo is brilliantly manoeuvrable!
The engine is mounted at an angle under the high boot floor to minimise space used. Should you be shunted from the rear, the engine block will deflect under the passenger cell. Sadly there is no spare wheel – just an inflation kit. The bonnet doesn’t open conventionally and unlike the original Fiat 500 there is no storage under Twingos’, just access to the various fluid reservoirs and battery. The mechanism to open the bonnet is flimsy at best, and I wouldn’t’ recommend trying to open it on a windy day as it is very fiddly. Access to the engine is discouraged too. Under the boot carpet you have to release some nuts to open a metal panel to get to the engine bay. Although in fairness, how many owners of runabouts go anywhere near an engine bay!
Inside there is loads of space and seating for four. The floor is quite high and this means everyone gets a good view out. The dash layout is wonderfully simple and quite cool. The urban machine features some nice cost saving touches like the smartphone integration. We downloaded the free Renault ‘R&Go’ app and instantly got free sat navigation (with UK & Ireland mapping) plus vehicle data and further controls for our phone and music media.
Boot space is cosy at 188-litre but this can expand up to 219 with the rear seat backs set at 'Cargo' (90 degree angle). With the 50/50 split rear seat backs down there is up to 980-litres of space - the passenger seat folds flat as standard too! The i10 and Suzuki Celerio are the only rivals that have more room.
Petrol power comes from a choice of two, three-cylinder engines, with 70hp (1-litre) or 90hp (0.9-litre turbo). So is Twingo, with its rear wheel drive a Drifters’ dream? On the road Twingo has electronic stability control as standard and it ‘understeers’ long before the back end wants to step out… so – no!
Twingo is quiet on the move - as the thing that makes the most noise is in the boot! Prices start at €13,990 (PCP financing is €130 per month - PCP is expected to account for 50% of sales). The three trim levels are: Expression, Play and Dynamique. Renault Ireland expects to sell around 200 in a full year.
Twingo is a fun machine that made us smile.
Michael Sheridan
