Renault Twingo History
A distinctive single-volume city car (1993–2024) — 2.6 million first-generation units made it one of Europe's most successful minicars.
Photo: “1993 Renault Twingo.jpg” by Calreyn88 / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped to 16:9.
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Debuting at the Paris Motor Show in October 1992 and reaching customers in April 1993, the first-generation Twingo was a genuinely novel city car: a compact monospace ('one-box') design by Jean-Pierre Ploué with a remarkably flexible interior for its size. It launched in a single trim level at a single price, an unusual marketing strategy that emphasized its 'take it or leave it' character.
The original Twingo ran with only minor updates for 14 years — a remarkable production run — accumulating 2.6 million sales. Its third generation (2014–2024) moved to a rear-engined, rear-wheel-drive layout developed in partnership with Smart (the Smart Forfour shares its platform), making it the first mass-market Renault with a rear-mounted engine since the Dauphine. Production of the Twingo ended in 2024.
Generations
First generation · Twingo I
Photo: “1993 Renault Twingo.jpg” by Calreyn88 / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped to 16:9.
Fourteen-year run with 2.6 million units — the iconic frog-face monospace city car.
1994 Photo: “1994 Renault Twingo.jpg” by Calreyn88 / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped to 16:9.
1997 Photo: “1997 Renault Twingo.jpg” by Calreyn88 / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped to 16:9.
1998 Photo: “Renault Twingo 1998.jpg” by Bene Riobó / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped to 16:9.
2000 Photo: “2000 Renault Twingo.jpg” by Calreyn88 / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped to 16:9.
Third generation · Twingo III
Photo: “Renault Twingo, TWB 2018, Friedrichshafen (OW1A0176).jpg” by Matti Blume / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped to 16:9.
Rear-engined, rear-wheel-drive; built on a Smart Forfour shared platform — a rare layout for a modern Renault.
2021 Photo: “Annecy°Seynod - 74600 - 2021.08.26 - Mobilité Gueudet - Renault Twingo III © Anthony Levrot.jpg” by Anthony Levrot / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Cropped to 16:9.
Body styles
- Hatchback
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