Electric cars are becoming more and more numerous, better and cheaper, but the call for really affordable models is still great. The new Renault Twingo Electric can currently call itself the cheapest EV on the Dutch market, pushing the Seat Mii Electric off the throne. Does he do that in other areas too?
We immediately cover ourselves: these cars are not real bargains. Where EVs in higher segments slowly but surely manage to approach the price of their conventional motorized equivalents, the additional cost of the battery pack in the smallest class still has a major impact on the consumer price. The Renault Twingo Electric starts at € 20,690, while the Seat Mii Electric starts at € 23,400. Those rates are roughly double the original purchase prices of these models, which with petrol engines have been among us for years. The current, third generation of the Twingo has been around since 2014, the Seat Mii even since 2011. Moreover, hardly anything has changed in the Seat in all those years. Your neighbors will therefore not easily see that you have bought a new one, unless they notice the electric on the tailgate or the doors in decorative letters. That is the only indication that this is the electric version of the Mii, which completely replaces the petrol variants.
Renault does it differently, placing the Twingo Electric next to its traditionally motorized brothers on the price list. However, that qualification may not be appropriate; after all, there is little traditional about the current Twingo. With its rear engine and rear-wheel drive, this car is completely different from any other compact hatchback – with the exception of Smart’s technically related cousins. Also at Renault, the electric version on the outside is hardly distinguishable from the petrol versions. Even the scoop above the left rear wheel was allowed to remain. It made its appearance in 2019, when Renault subjected its smallest to a fairly extensive facelift. Headlights and taillights with LED accents, tighter bumpers and other colors and wheels make the Twingo a lot more modern than before. A similar treatment would have benefited the Mii in our opinion, but he was not allowed.