Renault Twingo E-Tech prototype revealed: The small car that wants to save European electrics
At the Paris Salon there is the Renault Twingo E-Tech Electric prototype, the battery-powered city car arriving in 2026 at less than £17,000
After marketing the Renault 5 E-Tech Electric and showing the first details of the Renault 4 E-Tech Electric, Renault is now unveiling the concept version of the Renault Twingo E-Tech Electric to the general public at the Paris Motor Show 2024.
The new production Twingo, the one that is exclusively electric and with a confirmed price below €20,000 (£17,000), will be seen in 2026. For now, we must be content with taking a closer look at the Renault Twingo E-Tech Electric Prototype, already knowing that it will be very similar to the definitive model and that its task is also to 'save' European electric cars from the advance of low-cost Chinese EVs.
It is an epochal challenge that Renault faces with its Ampere electric division and increasingly refined industrial and engineering processes that will significantly lower the production costs of the new Twingo.
The challenge to Chinese electrics
Behind the rounded shapes inspired by those of the first Renault Twingo in 1992, already anticipated by CEO Luca de Meo during Capital Market Day in November 2023, lies Renault's desire to make a new leap forward in terms of research and development.
Renault Twingo E-Tech Electric Prototype, the front view
The aim is to make the way electric cars are produced in Europe more competitive, with the ambitious goal of offering a battery-powered city car built in the Old Continent that has a list price of less than €20,000.
Renault Twingo E-Tech Electric Prototype
Dacia Spring
Leapmotor T03
At the moment, in fact, the only electric cars sold under €20,000 are the Dacia Spring and the Leapmotor T03, both built in China. Above this price threshold, on the other hand, are the representatives of the European 'electric new wave' such as the electric Fiat Grande Panda and Citroën e-C3, which sell for €24,900 and €23,900, respectively.
Fiat Grande Panda
Citroen C3
| Renault Twingo E-Tech Electric | |
| Length | 3.75 m |
| Width | 1.73 m |
| Height | 1.47 m |
| Wheelbase | 2.49 m |
| Battery | Approx. 40 kWh |
| Price | <20,000 euro |
| Year of marketing | 2026 |
Recipe for lower production costs and final price
Behind this ambitious goal of making the Renault Twingo the most economical of European electric cars is a great deal of planning and industrial strategy aimed at cutting production time and costs on the assembly line.
Renault Twingo E-Tech Electric Prototype, rear three-quarter view
In practice, unable to compete with China on labour, raw material and energy costs, Renault is focusing on refining, simplifying and speeding up production processes with a recipe composed of various ingredients.
Less than ten hours to produce
The main ingredient of this recipe is to reduce the production time of the new Twingo, which will translate into lower costs for the company. If today a Renault Clio is assembled in around 14 hours and the new Renault 5 needs just under 10 hours, the electric Renault Twingo will need 'much less than 10 hours', as CTO Gilles Le Borgne told Automotive News Europe.
Renault Twingo E-Tech Electric Prototype, the detail of the fixed panoramic roof
No one in Europe is currently able to produce a small electric car in the same time frame, which makes Renault extremely competitive on the industrial and commercial front.
Common platforms and components
For the new Twingo, Renault decided to use an adapted version of the AmpR Small platform that already forms the basis of the Renault 5 E-Tech Electric and Renault 4 E-Tech Electric. Therefore, the Twingo will utilise a steel body that is moulded using traditional methods and not with a Tesla-style Gigapress.
Renault Twingo E-Tech Electric Prototype
Renault 5 E-Tech Electric
The proportion of components and parts in common between the Renault 5 and the Twingo will be 70 per cent, which will contribute significantly to reducing production time and costs. The architecture of the Twingo will be basically the same as that of the R5, says Le Borgne, including the entire front end with reduced track, but with a rigid axle at the rear instead of a multilink.
Collaborating with the Chinese
A famous phrase attributed to Julius Caesar goes: 'If you cannot defeat your enemy, make him your friend'. This is more or less what Renault has done by deciding to rely on a Chinese partner for the design of the new Twingo. The whole project phase will take just two years, a time described as a 'record' by De Meo himself. Production will instead be European.
Renault Twingo E-Tech Electric Prototype, front headlight detail
At the moment it is not known which Chinese company will help Renault to speed up and reduce the development costs of the new Twingo. The decision comes after Volkswagen chose not to join Renault in the development of a joint small electric car based on the Twingo.
Production in Slovenia
For the production of the Renault Twingo from 2026 there is already an agreement with the Slovenian government to use Renault's plant in Novo Mesto, the factory where the previous Twingo and the smart forfour came from and where the Clio is now assembled.
The planned production capacity of the Revoz plant in Novo Mesto, Slovenia, is 150,000 cars per year.
More news from Renault:
Gallery: Renault Twingo E-Tech Electric Prototype
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
Twingo E-Tech Electric: Renault shows the interior for the first time
'They're Looking At Credit Karma': Woman Tells Car Salesman Her Credit Score Is 732. Then He Looks Up Her FICO Score
Nissan to create an electric city car based on the Twingo
Sorry, Internet—The 2027 Mercedes S-Class Is Still A Proper S-Class: Review
Renault Twingo E-Tech: The French electric city car X-rayed
Saab Is Selling Some Of The Last Cars It Ever Made
Renault Twingo EV (2026): This is what it could look like