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Renault Twingo 133 road test report

133

The standard Twingo hasn’t been as successful as Renault had first hoped – flimsy build quality and a soft drive don’t do it any favours. But hot hatches have always been what the French do best, and Renault has come up trumps with the Twingo 133. Usable performance, a firm and communicative chassis and generous spec for not much money make for a real winner.

Road Test Reports Says 4 star rating
A front-facing image of the Renault Twingo 133

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JACK SAYS

Performance Performance - 4 stars

A naturally-aspirated 1.6-litre engine might not sound like much, but drop one into a car that weighs just 1049kg and you’re in for a good time. A pair of overhead camshafts and 133bhp add to the fun and make for a zippy 0-62mph time of 8.7 seconds with a terminal speed of 125mph. The engine is exceptionally willing and the short-throw five-speed manual ‘box means that the rev counter will be flashing its green change-up light sooner than you think. Plenty of cars will leave the Twingo for dust, but few can deliver the same kind of accessible performance at any speed.

Ride & Handling Ride & Handling - 5 stars

The Twingo is incredibly faithful to its roots. It offers the same kind of tight, chuckable handling as the Clio Williams and 5 GT Turbo, but it’s also more refined. Plump for the £650 Cup chassis option and you get all the perks of the standard Twingo 133 along with a wider track, 4mm lower ride height, 10 per-cent stiffer springs and dampers and 17-inch anthracite alloy wheels with painted-on 195/40 rubber – not to mention a range of cosmetic extras. This turns the Renault into a serious corner-eater with incredibly neutral handling. Body-roll is virtually non-existent and even the most vicious of drivers will struggle to upset it in a tight bend. Just don’t expect a comfortable ride over bumps.

Build Quality & Reliability Build Quality & Reliability - 2 stars

This is where the Twingo falls foul. The interior layout is pleasing to the eye – most notably the central rev counter and pause, stop and start logos on the pedals (Cup chassis only), but the Renault just can’t live up to its plusher rivals in terms of build quality. The dash plastics certainly don’t ooze quality and the handbrake lever feels as though it could come off at any time. Outside, the Twingo is let down by cheap-looking mock-grille plastic surrounds for the driving lamps, and the grey Renaultsport decals along the doors are a little too boy racer-like for some.

Safety & Security Safety & Security - 4 stars

Renault is intensely proud of its safety standards across the brand, so the Twingo 133 is no exception. It may be a raw hot-hatch but there’s still an abundance of safety features and driving aids – anti-lock brakes, electronic brake-force distribution and electronic brake-assist are all standard and make for a competent set of anchors. There are also airbags aplenty with front driver, passenger and lateral airbags as standard, though curtain airbags are optional. The usual array of remote central locking, immobiliser and deadlocking are all standard and the Twingo also boasts the RAID (Renault Anti Intruder Device) automatic door locking system.

Space & Practicality Space & Practicality - 3 stars

Roominess isn’t of the essence inside the Twingo. It’s comfortable enough for a small car and the racing seats are huggy and snug, but it would be wrong to expect hoards of room in the rear – especially in a car that measures just 3,607mm in length. Boot space isn’t anything to write home about either – 230 litres is enough for a few overnight bags but little more, though the back seats can be folded down to deliver 959 litres of loading area – but it’s hardly airport run material. However, Renault claims that the Twingo has the most spacious interior in its class, so it should be just cavernous enough to see off the likes of the Toyota Aygo and the Volkswagen Fox inside.

Ownership & Value Ownership & Value - 4 stars

The 133 blows the standard Twingo away. It’s immensely entertaining to drive and with a starting price of £11,550 for the standard car, a fuel economy figure of 40.4mpg and insurance group eight, it’s hardly a costly way into performance car ownership. Residuals aren’t likely to be too impressive, but it’s not as if the Twingo is an expensive car in the first place, so cheap new means cheap used. Specced-up Cup models will invariably hang onto their value much better than the standard Twingo 133, if, indeed, the standard car sells at all because the £650 upgrade to Cup spec is worth it for the alloys alone, never mind the raft of other extras. The Twingo is everything a hot hatchback should be – inexpensive, great behind the wheel and a real head-turner.

Submitted: 07/10/2008 15:19:20

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