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Tuesday, January 3, 2023

Forbidden Fruit: we have a go with the Renault Twingo


Renault Twingo (23033444306).jpg
The Renault Twingo has a rear-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout; which means in theory the Twingo should be the Porsche of city cars. However, if you approach the Twingo with this line of thinking you’ll be bitterly disappointed. Here’s why:

The 1-liter three-cylinder offers a decent turn of pace around town, but you’ll find yourself revving it hard to keep up on faster paced roads. The mid-range 0.9 turbo has more flexibility but is quite tricky to drive smoothly from a standstill due to the large amount of turbo lag which makes it feel hesitant off the line. You can option for a more powerful version of the 0.9 turbo which offers spirited acceleration but is the most expensive of the range. Our tester car came fitted with the 0.9 turbo and again we found that you won’t have to rev the engine to hard when on faster paced roads, but dear lord is the engine noisy while doing so. We only had the 1-liter for a short time before trading it in for a different vehicle altogether, due to the engine check light that wouldn’t shutoff.

The Twingo in theory should have a well-balanced ride with plenty of road holding manners; after all it does have a rear-engine rear-wheel-drive layout. However, you’ll be disappointed that this is far from the case. We do love how tight the turning circle is.  You’ll become the champ of narrow roundabouts, squeezing in and out of tight parking spaces and also navigating through the narrow streets of Amsterdam. However, that’s where the fun ends if you venture outside of the city limits. The ride comfort is only so-so and the steering becomes almost vacant. The engine is at the rear and it’s rear-wheel-drive so you’d think it handles the corners well but it doesn’t. The Volkswagen Up and Fiat Panda are better options if you want a small car to do long distances in and enjoy the miles.

The Twingo has decent space for four people, and seems to be commonplace for cars of this size. The boot space is not as spacious with the rear seat in place as in some of its rivals which have front-mounted engines. You can hold the rear seat down and open up more space if you need it. However, what we find is a big waste is the lack of trunk space in front, the engine is in the rear and it’s rear-wheel-drive. A boot in the front would’ve made it a class rarity. Visibility all round is good and the electric sunshine roof helps lighten up the cabin and makes it feel airy. The infotainment screen on lower spec models is basically controlled through your mobile device. The Iconic trim we had feature a touch screen display which we found a little fiddly to navigate through but once  you’ve mastered it, it’s pretty easy to use.

Our Twingo came fitted with a full fabric sunroof, leatherette seating surfaces, 16-inch alloy wheels and automatic windshield wipers and headlights. If we had to pick a Twingo it would be the Play trim which adds air-con and height adjustments for the driver’s seat. The entry-level Expression is just downright mean when it comes to standard kit. We know that trim comes fitted with the 1-liter three-cylinder but we’d prefer that engine with the driving environment that comes associated with Amsterdam. The streets are narrow and the engine is powerful enough.

The Renault Twingo is supposed to be a fun to drive city car in theory thanks to it’s rear-engine and rear-wheel-drive chassis. Sadly though that’s not the case, you’ll enjoy it more in the city where it belongs and well there are more talented options out there that are more fun to drive. You’d buy the Twingo because you want the extensive options to personalize your Twingo to your liking, everyone would benefit from the much more upscale Volkswagen Up and value for money Kia Picanto.

Likes: It has a rear-engine and rear-wheel-drive layout with decent space for four and low running costs. The turning circle is so amazing that it could embarrass other city cars easily.

Dislikes: The turbo engine has massive turbo lag. The standard kit on the base is pretty stingy. It’s nowhere near as fun to drive as it should be.

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