The Twingo name comes from an amalgamation of the words: “twist” “swing” and “tango”, a bit of a dance theme going on there. The original car grew out of the 1981-84 ECO-200 project which involved all major French auto-manufacturers and the French Government. The focus was on simplicity and budget pricing.

This is the third generation Twingo, but the first was never sold in the UK, as it was only produced as left-hand drive. Renault decided not to get involved with costly re-engineering to offer the car with right-hand drive.

The first generation was much prettier, cuter and more fashionable than the second generation which did come to our shores. The original Twingo was and still is an icon. So will the third iteration follow in the footsteps of the Mk1, or the Mk2?

The all new Twingo certainly is a cute looking little thing and it attracted attention on the roads in the Cotswolds, and in a supermarket car park where we stopped to buy a frozen pizza and Yorkshire puddings, but more about that later. It is unusual for a small hatch to get noticed and stared at with people wanting to look at it in more detail. This is normally reserved for more exotic cars, not a small French car.

There are three models available: Expression, Play and Dynamique all with a huge range of personalisation. There are two petrol engines available a 999cc 3 cylinder with 70hp and a 898cc 3 cylinder that despite it having a smaller capacity producers more power at 90hp, thanks to it being turbo charged. The CO2 emissions range from 95 to 105g/km, and the official combined fuel consumption figures range from 62.8mpg to 67.3mpg. But the two cars we drove around the Cotswolds achieved just over 45mpg according to the on-board computer.

The overall length of the Twingo is 3,595mm, but the Renault designers and engineers have managed make the most of the space available. It is only a four seater, but each seat is comfortable with plenty of room for four adults. There is enough leg and head room for the average person, a good all round interior package.

It is a real pleasure to drive, as it drives so well for a small car, it goes round corners as if it’s on rails; it really does stick to the road. There is very little wind or road noise and the cabin feels much larger than it actually is.

The Twingo has an unusual set up with the engine in the rear which means that it is also rear wheel drive. All of its competitors are front engine and front wheel drive, which is the normal layout and one which people are used to and most will stick to the tried and tested layout. But will anyone know? And how many will ask where the engine is situated? Having the engine at the rear improves the turning circle dramatically. The saying “it turns on a six-pence” is an understatement for this car (what is a six-pence, you ask!). When driving the Twingo you do not realise that the engine is behind you, as they say in pantomimes, or that the driving wheels are also behind you. Renault has done a fantastic job in disguising where the engine is, when it comes to driving it.

The engine is in the boot underneath the load area, where you would normally put luggage or shopping. On top of the engine is a metal cover, which is held in place by four locking screws which makes routine level checks a bit difficult. On top of the cover is a two inch deep insulated cover to keep the engine heat away from the boot.

This is where the frozen pizza and Yorkshire puddings come in. Just for a test of the insulation, we bought the said items and placed them in the boot to see just how much quicker they would defrost than if they were in a normal boot. The Yorkshire puddings lasted about 20 minutes and the pizza about 40 minutes, which is probably not much less time than leaving in ambient air.

If you take the insulted cover off, the heat from the metal cover is massive. It is amazing just how good the insulation really is. On the other hand, if you bought a hot take-away and wanted to keep it warm, simply take off the insulation, put your take-away on the hot cover and it will still be piping hot when you get home. Possibly hotter than when you got it from some take-aways. 

I’m sure it won’t be long before Renault are offering an aftermarket cool-bag to keep shopping cold, or even a metal biscuit box design that acts as an oven as you place it on top of the engine. Then you could actually cook the pizza in it. The instructions on the box might say something like “30 minutes at 4,000 Rpm”.

The new Twingo is a great car to drive, looks fantastic and has so much personalisation. It is compact, nimble, practical and more importantly it’s chic.

Prices range from £9,495.00 OTR to £11,695.00 OTR, but it is easy to add on over £1,000.00 with some worthwhile options.

Martin Ward, Manufacturer Relationship Manager