Renault has teased the upcoming electric Twingo E-Tech, and it looks as though it won’t deviate too much to the concept unveiled at the end of 2023.
Set to be unveiled in full on November 6, European time, order books are now being opened to European buyers. Pricing will start from under €20,000 (A$35,000), meaning it will be one of the cheapest EV available on the Continent.
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The front end of the production Twingo is almost identical to the 2023 concept. Unlike the concept, though, the production car actually features working headlights inside the semi-circular driving light graphic.
While the concept had three display pods showing the battery charge level mounted near the trailing edge of the bonnet, the production car has three vestigial bumps as a nod to the original Twingo’s trio of vents.
In defiance of modern convention, the Renault badge on the bonnet is rather small, while the Renault script at the bottom of the rear windscreen is practically invisible.
Around the side, the showroom Twingo has slimmer wheel arch flares and a less pronounced coke bottle shape. There are also simpler wing mirrors, as well as traditional horizontal pull out door handles.
Both the concept and the first-generation Twingo had vertical handles on the door’s trailing edge. This was fine in the original Twingo as it had a three-door body, but the upcoming model has a more practical five-door body.
Again, the rear is almost a dead-ringer for the concept. The tail-light graphics have been tweaked slightly, with the red outer ring extending to the lower section of the semi-circle, and the indicators and reversing lights now clearly housed in a three-element display.
While the third-generation Twingo had a rear-engine, rear-wheel drive platform shared with the Smart ForFour, the fourth-generation Twingo rides on the AmpR Small platform that serves as the basis for the 4 E-Tech, 5 E-Tech, and Nissan Micra — all of which are retro designs.
Details about the Twingo’s drivetrain and battery sizes have yet to be revealed, but the new model will be an electric-only proposition.
Renault will produce a version of the Twingo for Nissan, although it’s unclear how far Nissan will go in restyling the car. To turn the 5 E-Tech into the Micra, Nissan penned its own unique body, modelled largely on the third-generation ‘K12’.
