Renault is hoping to revive the city car class with the new Twingo EV, which has been unveiled in production-ready form.
Twingo programme director Olivier Laik said: “Over the past 10 years, sales of A-segment cars have decreased significantly, from more than 1.0 million units per year to less than 600,0000.
“With the increasing number of regulations, the price of these vehicles kept increasing significantly – so as a household’s second vehicle, there are fewer sales, and some customers just upgraded to B-segment vehicles for a little more space while paying little more. Those customers are still here, but the offer today is not appropriate.”
To that end, the Twingo’s key directive was to not just to be cheaper than the Renault 5 EV (which currently starts at £21,495) but also compete with the handful of combustion-engined city cars that remain on sale, such as the Kia Picanto, to convince buyers to switch to an electric car.
Renault said the Twingo will land in UK showrooms at a price point below £20,000, making it one of the UK’s cheapest EVs.
It will face an array of competitors, including the BYD Dolphin Surf and the Volkswagen ID 1, which is due in 2027.
It is based on a shortened version of the Renault 5's Ampr Small platform, which trades that car's multi-link rear axle for a beam adapted from that in the Renault Captur.
The bulk of the Twingo’s cost savings are thanks to its battery, which is supplied by Chinese firm CATL.
In a first for Renault, the Twingo’s battery uses the lithium-iron-phosphate chemistry that is significantly cheaper to produce than the nickel-manganese-cobalt used in the brand’s existing EVs.
It totals 27.5kWh in capacity and yields a range of 163 miles, making the Twingo one of the most energy-efficient cars on sale with a claimed figure of 5.9mpkWh.This is thanks in part to its low kerb weight, which ranges from 1200kg to 1245kg depending on trim.
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This is why it, and other city cars, might fall short. Pitching the car at 19.99k means for a couple of grand more or £30 a month more you could have the R5 which will be faster, go further on a charge, better equipped, more room etc. The only reason to get a Twingo is if you want a car just that little bit smaller otherwise a R5 will be a far better long term purchase.
The Mk1 Twingo was a great piece of design, whereas the next 2 generations were pretty dull looking, so very sensible to go back to it for inspiration.
Renault has a great range of small electric cars, all bases covered.
No they were not dull. The mk 2 was a funky little 3 door sporty and fun with plenty of character and the mk 3 was a brilliant design. It was smaller than a Clio but still had the same space as a Clio inside and had an amazing turning cycle.
This is a perfectly modern design. Why would it wrongly be described as "retro". Is evolved design, as in, e.g. the Porsche 911 properly described as retro?