| First Drive | Ljubljana, Slovenia | Renault Twingo |
You're not alone if you ever wondered what the left-hand drive only Renault Twingo was like. With its one-box shape, sliding rear seat and central instrument cluster the Twingo seems so futuristic in 1993, particularly when you consider it was cheaper than
frites and yet was still tough enough to withstand the rigours of a life in downtown Paris.
Of course, it had its problems. Many people couldn't stand its cuter-than-an Andrex puppy looks and it was launched in an array of colours and trims so vivid only colour-blind extroverts could bear take the initial plunge. Neither was it very profitable for Renault, which is why it has taken so long for it to be replaced, but Renault isn't about to make the same mistakes again.
Instead of just one engine, the all-new Twingo is going to be offered with four (including a diesel) and it's also being built in right-hand drive to increase its reach. The wattage of the colours has also been turned down to broaden its appeal still further, while the interior style is tasteful, easy on the eye and not as 'bargain bin' as before. The nauseating cuteness has been moulded into a more palatable kind of adorable with a grown-up two-box profile and a considerably more muscular stance. In every respect, the Twingo has matured, essentially creating ann entirely different machine. The Twingo is dead, it seems. Long live the Twingo!
I, for one, like the looks of the new car (and I really didn't like the original). From most angles, the new Twingo is rather dinky; the grille-less bonnet and big bright 'eyes' give it a cheery and distinctive expression, while the wheel-at-each corner profile is perfectly executed and excellently proportioned, wisely avoiding the too-tall stance of the likes of the
Mitsubishi Colt and
Fiat Panda. Only the rear end disappoints, looking unresolved and sloppily drab compared to the pinchable cuteness of the rest of the car. Still, its bum isn't bad enough to put me off completely given that there are reportedly a million city car buyers in Europe, the Twingo should appeal to enough of them to make it worth Renault's while.
Throw open a door (still achieved by fumbling with a stump rather than pulling a handle) and a cabin that's high on upmarket extras - if a little lacking in pizzazz - is revealed. Sadly, the centre digital speedometer remains, but is at least legible at a glance and is accompanied centre-stage by the stereo display and warning lights. In the space vacated in front of the driver there's just that - a space. Actually, to be more precise it's a storage compartment that is actually quite useless, as items reflect dangerously in the windscreen. Indeed, the cabin is full of rather useless storage areas (with the exception of the large glovebox), the worst of which are cup holders that are only suitable for use when absolutely stationary on a calm day. At least the clever sliding rear seat concept is retained and can even be swapped for two individual reclining and sliding chairs for those who use their Twingos as limousines as well as shopping carts, as many Parisians do.
The front seats aren't nearly so interesting, but they are sumptuously comfortable by city car standards even if they're hopelessly lacking in lateral support. Even though the stereo and heater controls are almost at right angles to one another and the dials are a foot from where they should be, the whole dashboard still somehow functions rather well. Only the curious placement of the horn button (hidden in a recess at the end of the indicator stalk) upsets the Twingo's simple functionality, especially in Slovenia where cutting people up seems to be the national pastime and making yourself heard is a vital survival tool.
Mechanically, the new Twingo is about as conservative and cost effective as you're going to find. Front struts and a torsion beam in the rear comprise the suspension, all of which has been borrowed from the Clio Campus (AKA 'the old Clio'), while a range of off-the-shelf engines drive the front wheels through the same five-speed gearbox. Although four engines are offered throughout parts of Europe, the UK will receive just two. First up is a 75bhp 1.2-litre 16-valve four-cylinder, but stealing the headlines is the spunky new 99bhp, turbo-charged 1.2-litre TCE (it stands for Turbo Charged Engine - original, huh?).
At launch, only the 1.2-litre turbo was available and while its 99bhp and 107lb.ft of torque won't exactly pin you to your comfy chair it is amusingly nippy and about as fast as the chassis can handle. Admittedly, it's not the smoothest engine in the world, but it gets the job done in an economical and relatively environmentally-friendly way and isn't prone to turbo lag. It's only available in GT specification, which is whimsically stylish with nifty alloys and a suggestive body kit, but with a 0-62mph time of just under ten seconds and a laboured top speed of 117mph, it's not exactly a hot hatch. Or a warm hatch. Or even a room temperature hatch, if we're honest.
But, as a city car, the Twingo is all you could hope for. It proves to be light-footed and agile through traffic with decently quick steering, light controls and great visibility. It rides outstandingly well, too, unlike most modern cars, and on the open road it proves to be an astonishingly good cruiser - quiet, serene and terrifically stable. In the twisty stuff it's less accomplished, pushing through corners with its tyres and passengers howling in protest. It also rolls quite a bit and, as already mentioned, the seats do a rather half-arsed job of keeping you in place.
The tragic thing is that with a few minor tweaks the Twingo GT could be a little spanker. Put some proper seats in it and ditch those economy oriented Continental tyres and you'd have a genuinely entertaining little car. As it is, you're too busy choking on the seatbelt and wondering if you'd just driven over ice to notice how fluid the chassis manages to be and how refreshingly free from stodge the steering is, unlike the rest of the current Renault range. It's also pretty deft at being steered on the throttle (again, provided you don't ask too much of the front tyres), which suggests it could be quite an interesting car to drive if it had any bit of front end bite at all. The 1.5-litre diesel version (available to drive at the launch but not coming here, yet) had a little more weight over the front wheels and rolled a touch more, which seemed to help front end grip levels and as a result was marginally more fun to drive than the GT even if it accelerated with a pace that makes coastal erosion seem nippy.
By and large, though, we liked the new Twingo. It's cute, not bad to drive, rides exceptionally and is really good value, with prices starting at just £8,375. It's just that it's not the earth-shattering revolution the last car was - not even close, in fact. Ironically, it'll probably sell a lot better and have the desired effect of wooing first time buyers and marrying them into the Renault family nice and young, but for car lovers it's a bit disappointing. It's so conventional, so run-of-the-mill, so the opposite of what we'd expected from Renault we can't help but feel a little deflated. Perhaps away from the glare of a launch it will make more sense in everyday motoring. For now, though, we like the new Renault Twingo, but we don't love it.
2007 Renault Twingo range overview
- Renault Twingo Dynamique 1.2 16v 75: £8,375
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Renault Twingo GT 1.2 TCE: £9,995
