Item: Renault Twizy
Rating: 2
Author: What Car? Team

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Renault Twizy

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Volkswagen ID.3

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Introduction

Performance & drive

Interior

Passenger & boot space

Costs & verdict

<p>The Twizy is much cheaper than ‘proper’ electric cars, such as the <a href="http://www.whatcar.com/renault/zoe/hatchback/review/?aq=renault%20%20zoe&amp;amp;type=review&amp;amp;src=searchdropdown&amp;amp;oq=renault%2520zoe">Renault Zoe</a> and <a href="http://www.whatcar.com/nissan/leaf/hatchback/review/?aq=nissan%20%20leaf&amp;amp;type=review&amp;amp;src=searchdropdown&amp;amp;oq=nissan%2520leaf">Nissan Leaf</a>. The asking price is particularly tempting, although you do need to factor in an extra monthly fee to lease the battery pack from Renault – there’s no option to buy it outright.</p>

<p>Running costs will also be tiny, because you won’t pay a penny in road tax and the impact on your electricity bills will be far smaller than what you'd pay to fuel a conventional petrol or diesel car. Insurance costs aren’t as cheap as you might imagine though, no doubt in part due to the Twizy’s woeful two-star Euro NCAP safety rating.</p>

<p><img alt="" src="http://whatcar.media/jpg/0/0/0/640/480/0/0/0/0/aspectfill/center/0/0/0/0/0/images/uploads/reviews_4/2002f8d05fc14a3802b0769ddddc780ac8348b40.jpg" /></p>

<p>Standard equipment is very basic. Forget air conditioning – you don’t even get doors. However, you do get a driver’s airbag and, if you go for range-topping Dynamique trim, alloy wheels. There are plenty of funky colour combinations to choose from and Renault will even wrap your Twizy in a Union Jack or leopard print if you fork out a sizeable fee.</p>

<p>Options include scissor doors, a basic Bluetooth system, an anti-lift alarm and a clear roof, while plastic windows are available as a dealer-fit accessory.</p>

<p>Annoyingly, you can only plug the Twizy in using a three-pin domestic plug, which means you can’t charge it at many electric car charging stations. However, <a href="http://www.symphonyev.co.uk/">Symphony EV</a> sells a clever adapter to get round this problem.</p>

<h3>&nbsp;</h3>


<p>The Twizy is a doddle to drive. There’s a conventional steering wheel, two pedals (an accelerator and a brake) and just three buttons on the dashboard. Hit the one labelled D, release the handbrake and you’re off.</p>

<p>While the Twizy moves away in near silence, you’ll soon hear the distinctive whine of the electric motor as you gain speed. This begins to grate after a while, and because there are no doors or windows as standard, you’re exposed to the elements and the general hubbub of other traffic. Expect to have to shout to communicate with your passenger behind you.</p>

<p>The steering is direct and surprisingly well weighted, the brakes are progressive and the turning circle is an astonishing 6.8 metres; that’s smaller than a Smart Fortwo, itself a king of urban manoeuvrability. Outright stopping power isn’t very impressive though, mainly due to the Twizy’s narrow tyres, and there are no anti-lock brakes to prevent you locking up. That's a serious safety shortcoming.</p>

<p><img alt="" src="http://whatcar.media/jpg/0/0/0/640/480/0/0/0/0/aspectfill/center/0/0/0/0/0/images/uploads/reviews_4/17c7cf043e7ee933f99be3598f29d65fdffe52ef.jpg" /></p>

<p>The Twizy weighs less than half as much as a <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/ford/fiesta/hatchback/review/n106">Ford Fiesta</a>, so performance isn’t as shabby as you might imagine. Sure, top speed is only 50mph and it takes a while to get there, but acceleration away from the lights is reasonable and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/make/renault">Renault</a> quotes a 0-28mph time of 6.1 seconds. Put simply, performance is adequate for nipping around towns and cities, and even short A-road stints aren’t out of the question. We wouldn’t advise venturing onto the motorway, even though some Twizy owners do.</p>

<p>Altogether less impressive is the ride; it’s far too firm at any speed, and particularly painful over urban potholes and speed bumps. For reference, the Twizy is less comfortable than any normal road car you’ll ever have driven.</p>

<h3>&nbsp;</h3>


<p>The Renault Twizy is an electric quadricycle that’s something of a halfway house between a car and a motorbike. It has four wheels, but is only 2.3 metres long and, perhaps more importantly, just 1.4 metres wide.</p>

<p><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GrDXIj0Mj00" width="560"></iframe></p>

<p>The driver and passenger sit in line, instead of next to each other, and there’s a tiny 17bhp electric motor that drives the rear wheels propelling the Twizy along. Unsurprisingly, performance isn’t spectacular, so the Twizy is very much designed as an urban runaround. However, you should get around 45 miles between charges (fewer in cold weather) and topping up the battery from empty takes three and a half hours from a domestic three-pin socket.</p>

<p>Does the Twizy make sense compared with larger, more sophisticated <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/category/electric">electric cars</a>? Read on over the next few pages to find out.</p>

<h3>&nbsp;</h3>


<p>The Twizy doesn’t really have an inside. Even with the optional doors fitted – which open in a supercar-esque scissor fashion – you’re far more exposed to the elements than in a normal car with all the windows open. Windows are available as a dealer-fit option but these are similar to the windows in a tent, so aren’t much of a noise barrier, although they do keep out the worst of the wind and rain.</p>

<p>The instrument display behind the steering wheel shows you speed, remaining range and how hard the motor is being worked. That aside, the interior is pretty bare, which is a good thing given that the Twizy is very much exposed to the elements. Hard plastics and rubberised water-resistant materials are the order of the day throughout.</p>

<p><img alt="" src="http://whatcar.media/jpg/0/0/0/640/480/0/0/0/0/aspectfill/center/0/0/0/0/0/images/uploads/reviews_4/3bdfd7758e1eef16ff200357c396eeab20eac94d.jpg" /></p>

<p>The driver's seat moves back and forth, but that’s it; there’s no height adjustment, and the backrest angle is fixed. The steering wheel doesn’t move, either, although surprisingly it isn’t that hard to get comfortable.</p>

<p>There’s no option of a radio, although there is a fairly basic Bluetooth system that allows you to make and receive calls on the move and even stream music from your phone. However, the combination of poor quality speakers and all that background noise makes chatting on the phone decidedly tricky.</p>

<h3>&nbsp;</h3>


City-Car

<p dir="ltr">Hatchbacks, SUVs, fast cars, electric cars: Renault makes them all, in a variety of shapes and sizes, so it has a line-up designed to tempt pretty much everyone.</p>

<p dir="ltr">From the roadside, the standout feature of them all is the design, with its cars now having a distinctive look that has won the firm a legion of fans for its flair and charm.</p>

<p dir="ltr">To drive and to own, the line-up is typically decent rather than outstanding. Best of the cars when they are rated against rivals are the Kadjar SUV, the fast RS models and the electric Zoe.</p>

<p>With new and used pricing also keen – and Target Price discounts through our New Car Buying marketplace usually more generous than most – there is the opportunity to negotiate an appealing price.</p>


RENAULT

TWIZY

<p>Electric quadricycle is great fun, but the ride is bumpy and safety poor</p>


<p>Front space is actually pretty decent, so even if you’re tall you’re unlikely to struggle for head, leg or elbow room. You’ll probably find the pedal area a bit cramped if you’re shod with anything bigger than size eights, though.</p>

<p>How much space there is in the back depends how tall the driver is, but an average-sized adult should fit by splaying his or her legs either side of the front seat. Alternatively, the Twizy Cargo replaces the rear seat with a 180-litre boot for extra luggage-lugging ability. The maximum payload is a reasonable 75kg.</p>

<p><img alt="" src="http://whatcar.media/jpg/0/0/0/640/480/0/0/0/0/aspectfill/center/0/0/0/0/0/images/uploads/reviews_4/39d05f03bcdbc96264509b888d8bf0fb01afbbf3.jpg" /></p>

<p>The standard Twizy has a meagre 31 litres of luggage space (under the rear seat), plus a pair of modest gloveboxes. Renault would argue, of course, that this is much better than the storage space in most mopeds.</p>

<p>The gloveboxes and under-seat compartments are lockable, but the lids are rather flimsy, so we wouldn’t leave anything valuable inside.</p>

<h3>&nbsp;</h3>


Electric quadricycle is great fun, but the ride is bumpy and safety poor

<h2>What we're looking for </h2><ul><li>Generous enough real-world range to fit most lifestyles</li> <li>Plenty of charging options and quick top-up times </li> <li>Usable space and strong practicality</li> <li>Comfortable ride that isn’t hindered by a heavy battery</li></ul>

<p>With so many electric cars now on offer, we've split the smaller models from the larger ones to ensure that we're able to compare direct rivals.</p>

<p>As well as being adept at coping with city life, small electric cars need to be roomy enough for a couple of adults and able to drive a decent amount of miles between charges.&nbsp;</p>

<p>There are some great small electric cars to choose from. The affordable Seat Mii Electric proves you don't have to have break the bank to go green, the Renault Zoe has been improved in every area, making it a great small EV prospect, and the Kia e-Niro was named our overall 2019 Car of the Year.</p>

Small Electric

<h2>What we're looking for:</h2><ul><li>Clever interior space </li> <li>Quiet and comfortable ride </li> <li>Good visibility </li> <li>Plenty of safety tech </li> <li>Low running costs </li> <li>Outstanding value for money</li></ul>

<p>City cars are all about diminutive size and manoeuvrability because they invariably spend most of their time on our increasingly crowded urban streets.</p>

<p>They do need to be big enough for a couple of adults, with back seats that’ll suffice for occasional use by people – or as a dumping ground for a couple of large shopping bags – but they must also be small enough to nip in and out of traffic, and squeeze into tight parking spaces.</p>

<p>Out-and-out acceleration isn’t crucial, but there must be enough oomph in the lower gears to scoot into gaps that appear in the traffic. Running costs should be low, too.</p>

<p>Fortunately there’s never been a better line-up of city cars on offer. Kia's Picanto mixes a neat, functional interior with tidy handling and a surprisingly big boot, while the Skoda Citigo and Suzuki Celerio are cheaper and even more frugal.</p>

City

<h2>What we're looking for:</h2><ul><li>Sufficient range between charges to fit in with most people’s lifestyles – and in the real world, not on some far-fetched official test </li> <li>Quick charging times and compatibility with the most ubiquitous types of public charging points </li> <li>Priced to be within the grasp of more than just the privileged few </li> <li>As with any car, ride comfort, practicality and ownership costs can’t be ignored</li></ul>

<p>We define an electric car as one that runs purely on battery power and has no tailpipe to puff out nasty chemicals. These cars qualify for the maximum plug-in car grant (PICG) of £3500.</p>

<p>The Renault Zoe is one of the most affordable options and has a surprisingly long range of between 120 and 180 miles (depending on the weather and the road type). However, the Nissan Leaf and Volkswagen e-Golf are more practical and more accomplished to drive, even if the latter doesn't have a particularly long range between charges.</p>

<p>At the other end of the scale, Tesla’s ground-up EV philosophy – and the American brand’s own network of super-fast chargers – makes the Model S a tempting choice. It has seating for up to seven, an classy interior and a long enough real-world range to make inter-city travel a real possibility.</p>

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