► Twingo GT to cost £13,755
► Power hike to 109bhp
► On sale 1 Dec 2016
Renault has confirmed UK specs and prices for the warmed-up GT version of its Twingo city car.
The Twingo GT, which is set to go on sale in the UK on 1 December 2016, will start at £13,755.
What’s Renault done to make the Twingo faster?
Its 0.9-litre turbocharged three-cylinder engine now packs an additional 20bhp and 25lb ft, resulting in a total of 109bhp and 125lb ft.
The extra poke is courtesy of a modified turbocharger, an uprated fuel pump, ECU, ESC and throttle remaps, and a freer-flowing twin-exit exhaust.
A new air intake cut-out above the left rear wheelarch (the bit that looks slightly like someone’s left the fuel cap open) helps feed the turbo more cold air.
The gearbox is still a five-speed manual but it features new, shorter ratios.
Suspension changes include stiffer dampers, a bigger anti-roll bar and a 20mm drop in ride height. Diamond-cut 17in alloys are standard.
How fast is the new Twingo GT?
Now-confirmed stats include 0-62mph in 9.6sec, 50-75mph in under 9.0sec, 113mph flat-out and a power-to-weight ratio of 109bhp per tonne.
Renault says the rear-engined layout presented its engineers ‘with a challenge… It has become accustomed to front-wheel drive models over the last 20 years, but Renault Sport’s extensive development has resulted in the GT being perfectly balanced with a fun drive and levels of performance that are close to the previous generation Twingo Renault Sport 133.’
Heady claims…
How does £13,755 compare with its rivals?
The warmed-over Twingo isn’t exactly inundated with natural rivals. There’s the platform-sharing Smart ForFour Brabus, which starts from £14,305 – and Volkswagen’s Up, with a new 89bhp 1.0 TSI engine, from £12,055.
Further up the performance scale, Vauxhall’s surprisingly stirring Adam S costs a not-inconsequential £17,000-plus.
Read more about the Renault Twingo GT in our original news story here
Standard kit?
A go-slightly-faster bodykit that includes side skirts, a diffuser-style insert in the rear bumper and tinted rear windows, and a lot of orange interior trim. You’ll also get climate control, auto lights and wipers, cornering fog lights and rear parking sensors.
Could the GT be the car to unlock the Twingo’s potential? We’ll find out when we drive the car very soon. Watch this space for a full review.
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