New Twingo harks back to 1970s car design, with rear-wheel drive and rear-engine setup. It also promises more fun and a spacious cabin Renault has unveiled the new Twingo at the Geneva Motor Show, introducing what could promise to be much more than just a cute new five-seater city car. The new Twingo, which switches from front engine, front-wheel-drive to rear-engine, rear-wheel drive, daringly revisits a configuration that was abandoned by manufacturers of mainstream cars decades ago. There’s a choice of two three-cylinder petrol engines, both freshly developed for the new car. The first is a modified version of the existing TCe 90, inclined at 49 degrees to provide luggage space above. The 898cc engine is equipped with a small, low inertia turbocharger for good response, combined with a water-cooled intercooler. The TCe 90 produces 89bhp and 100lb ft torque and is equipped with stop-start as standard. Producing 69bhp and 67lb ft, the naturally aspirated, 998cc SCe 70 is all new and available with and without stop-start. Both engines will be equipped only with five-speed manual gearboxes at launch. Front engine, front-wheel drive has become a standard in the smaller segments for two reasons. First, mounting the engine transversely in the front frees up cabin space. Second, with electronic aids stripped away, front engine, front-wheel drive is inherently more stable than rear-wheel drive and safer for the majority of drivers. Manufacturers gave up on rear-mounted engines for mainstream cars in the 1970s because too much weight in the rear can act like an unwieldy pendulum during cornering and lane changing. Producing the new Twingo will have posed a number of significant technical and design challenges to its maker. Renault says the rear-mounted engine frees up space in a cleverly designed cabin, but the design still has to accommodate the essential crash structures at the front which all modern cars must have. On the plus side, the turning circle is also much tighter than that of a front-wheel-drive design as there’s no front driveline to restrict steering lock. The layout should also deliver responsive, positive steering and agile handling. The company says the exterior design was inspired by the Renault 5, right down to the raked rear screen. The chunky rear shoulders and rear light clusters bear a marked resemblance to those of the mid-engine Renault 5 Turbo, a homologation special built specifically for rallying in the 1980s. The new architecture also brings five doors to the Twingo for the first time and shares features with the new Clio including concealed rear door handles, and broad scope for personalisation. So if the Twingo’s configuration re-writes a well-established rule book, why choose it? Renault is taking a risk with the new layout and its quirky design will thoroughly test the market’s appetite for something truly original against a background of samey alternatives. No doubt a good deal of risk assessment went on in the Renault boardroom before signing the idea off and if it fails, both Renault and Daimler, which is sharing the platform for the new Smart, will be left counting the cost. If it succeeds, though, and customers flock to the showrooms, then competitors will be forced to up their game, potentially giving birth to a new generation of equally daring and innovative small cars.
Posted on: Tue, 04 Mar 2014 08:04:14 +0000
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