A few weeks ago, following on the tail of the SMMT North test day, we were invited down to the Cotswolds to drive two new promising cars. The words I read were as follows, “Rear engine, rear wheel drive, there’ll be an NA and a turbo to try out”. Now if that’s not a red rag to a 911 owning bull then I don’t know what is. The fact it was Renault, no strangers to the ultimate packaging layout with the Alpine under their belt, simply sealed the deal. A mini 911, what’s not to like?
So, timing it out as just down the road a bit further, we trekked off to Dormy House on the Tuesday night. Upon arrival we were handed a hearty meal, some friendly chat and an early night. Had I not been trying to process a day’s worth of trying out new cars we might have sat up longer and enjoyed the hosting as fully as some of the other guests appeared to have done at breakfast the next morning.
Bright as a button we drove off to the meeting point where we were presented with the two new Twingos. The city car with a 1 litre 70hp NA engine and the sport pack version with the 90hp 900cc turbo. I made the mistake of thinking we had time to do both and nipped out in the city car, following the test route, and was rewarded with 72 miles of easy bends and long straights. By the time I arrived back at base it was time to leave. That was silly. More thought on the test route may have been the key here but it is what it is and it did give me time to get to know the other parts of the car.
The looks are quirky. The rear doors are “hidden” well and the Sport Pack touches help out even further. You can’t get away from the Fiat 500 similarities but that’s not a bad thing.
The interior is basic but you have everything you expect from a modern super mini. The dash mounted android phone holder which then acts as your infotainment and satnav system worked surprisingly well. The controls are laid out nicely and due to it’s sparse nature the Twingo feels quite roomy inside. Exposed? Maybe a little but then show me a French car in this sector with good visibility that doesn’t feel like that. It adds to the excitement.
And add it must. I’ll be honest here, the city car is not quick. 800 odd kgs and 70bhp used to feel great in a phase 1 Peugeot 106. The stats in the Twingo feel more economy driven. The turbo might have the torque to give you some get up and go but everyone who thinks like me will appreciate what you gain with a turbo you lose in equal amounts elsewhere. Superchargers, superchargers, superchargers…….
Top speed is 90mph and you can do 60 in second gear. You have to really work that little litre engine to get there. Mechanical sympathy is straight out the window. Are we asking too much from the young apprentice?
The chassis. This is where Renault excel. From the R5 GT Turbo to the clio V6 there was no mistaking what you are driving. There’s a reason R26Rs are so quick. Pile head long into a bend in the Twingo, trail braking to get some physics on the go and…..voila! There it is. The back end steps out in a nice controlled manner and you can settle into the corner riding towards the apex. Had you the power to slingshot out the corner you’d be pestering the life out of some fwd hot hatches. Smashing.
And there it lies, the burning question, “Will there be a RenaultSport model?” The only answer we got on the day was that it was still a possibility. I’ll leave you with this picture from the brochure to help you all write the strongly worded emails. “Dear Renault, bring us the goods or Nicole gets it.”
- Expression SCE 70 as tested
- Price – From £9,495.
- Layout – Rear Rear
- Gearbox – Manual
- Max speed – 94mph
- 0-60mph – quite a bit
- Potential…….absolutely
