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By Jonathan Crouch

Everyone seems to love Renault's little EV-era Twingo. Jonathan Crouch takes a look.

Ten Second Reviewword count: 40

Renault's new-era electric Twingo citycar offers nostalgia for a new age. Pretty but practical, light but large inside, funky and fun, it offers something altogether more desirable to those rather bored by the current selection of budget-priced small EV hatches.

Backgroundword count: 178

The European motor industry, battered and bruised by the Chinese invasion, is fighting back. For proof, check out this car, Renault's achingly cute little Twingo. The first really small, really cheap European electric car with genuine desirability built-in. This is almost the first time a European car maker has delivered a completely new model to a super-tight Chinese brand-style timetable - just 100 weeks in this case from concept to production. Obviously, 'completely new' doesn't mean that every component has been developed from scratch - that would be pointless and expensive - but the Twingo is new in every sense that really matters. Yet, like its larger Renault 5 and 4 showroom stablemates, draws on its brand's back catalogue of combustion models for its design inspiration. In this case the original Twingo of 1992 styled memorably by Patrick Le Quement. His successor, Lawrence van den Acker, has reinterpreted that car's unusual look for the electric era but the charming shared visual heritage has been transferred intact. But is it all style over substance? Let's take a closer look.

Engines and Tech Specword count: 413

If you've been charmed by the Twingo up to this point, you might want to get the issue of range considered and out of the way before you get too besotted. Weighing in at just 1,200kg, this Renault is one of the lightest EVs on the market, but that's only because it has such a small battery just 27.5kWh in size (almost half the size of the biggest pack in a Renault 5). Which in turn of course means a small range figure. Rated at 163 miles, it's better than a rival BYD Dolphin Surf, but a little way off the benchmark figure of a competing Leapmotor T03 (175 miles) or, perhaps more relevantly, the 199 mile figure of the far pricier but similarly style-orientated Fiat 500e. The light weight means that not much of a motor is required to propel the Twingo along; this car's front-mounted unit develops 82hp, which gets it to 62mph in 12.1s en route to a very modest 81mph maximum. The multi-link rear suspension set-up of the Renault 5 has been ditched in favour of a cheaper torsion beam arrangement borrowed from the brand's Captur small SUV (which has saved 7kg of weight). But even so, you can expect ride quality to be excellent thanks to the soft springs and dampers that the light weight allowed Renault to fit. You might worry that this softness could make the Twingo feel wobbly at speed through the turns, but that shouldn't be an issue. The weight is sited low in the body, so there's no need for stiff suspension or thick anti-roll bars to reduce pitch and roll. And there's a reasonable amount of grip from the eco-centric tyres. Almost everyone agrees that this Renault is great fun to drive, light-footed and agile. Most small EVs are forgettable dynamically; this one manages not to be. The most common complaint amongst more enthusiastic owners will probably relate to the lightness of the steering, but of course you'll appreciate that in town, where it makes the car simple to manoeuvre into confined spaces and facilitates a tight 9.87-metre turning circle. This car has also attracted praise for the seamless, linear way that Renault has combined friction and regen braking, the latter adjustable via steering wheel paddles. Stretch to top spec and there's also a 'one-pedal' mode that arrests the car more fiercely off-throttle. Drive modes are absent, except for an 'Eco' setting you'll need to get anywhere near the quoted range figure.

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