1996 Renault Twingo Convey a Trailer Public sale

• Here is a tiny, friendly-faced metropolis hatchback with an outsize character.

• A masterpiece of packaging, the Twingo is roomy and cozy, and the large canvas roof gives open-air motoring on demand.

• This automobile represents a spotlight of French motoring whimsy. It is at the moment up for public sale on Convey a Trailer.

For a rustic so given to Gallic shrugs and black-and-white films full of ennui, France actually does know tips on how to have enjoyable on the highway. English automobiles have a tweedy character, Italian exotics will be fierce, however the French do a form of wheeled quirkiness that is positively fizzing with zest. As they are saying, if it is not from the Champagne area, it is merely a glowing hatchback.

Up for public sale this week on Convey a Trailer—which, like Automotive and Driver, is a part of Hearst Autos—is a cheery inexperienced instance of the height of mid-’90s French design. It is a 1996 Twingo, Renault’s city-car alternative for the venerable Renault 4. Simply take a look at this automobile’s cherubic amphibian face, brimming with delight and able to go careening across the streets of Paris like a motorized pinball. Would not it look enjoyable?

In a world the place each new SUV grimaces like a murderous electrical shaver, the Twingo is a throwback to a extra lighthearted period of design. It would not be misplaced in considered one of Hayao Miyazaki’s films. Actually, Japan’s most beloved animator was and is a fan of French motoring, having owned a collection of Citroën 2CVs for many years.

Whereas the Twingo is a Renault slightly than a Citroën, it may be argued that it is the true everyman follow-up to France’s beloved tin snail. Conceived as a tiny van that maximized a stamp-sized parking footprint, the Twingo was stuffed with intelligent design concepts, together with flat-folding seats, a easy management format, and wheels pushed to absolutely the corners of the automobile. It embodies a number of the greatest parts of the unique Mini, the first-generation Honda Match, and a number of different small however charming metropolis automobiles.

This one is a 1996 mannequin with about 103,000 kilometers (64,000 miles) on the odometer. Energy comes from a thrifty 1.2-liter engine that places 75 horsepowe by means of a five-speed handbook transmission to the entrance wheels. On paper, the Twingo posts some leisurely acceleration occasions. Show just a little elbows-out French driving élan, and it is an absolute rocket.

Or a minimum of it’ll really feel like one from behind the wheel, what with that attribute tender suspension and light-weight steering. The Twingo is the form of automobile that responds like an keen pet if you pitch it right into a nook, sawing on the wheel like Marcel Marceau miming steering a sinking pirate ship.

Additional delight will be discovered within the massive retractable canvas roof, which is a bit just like the one you get in a 2CV. A reasonably tasteful aftermarket three-spoke wheel has been fitted, although the unique manufacturing facility two-spoke can also be included within the sale. We are saying maintain the three-spoke and faux to be a budget-restricted René Arnoux.

The one disadvantage to this Twingo is that it’s not street-legal in each state. For those who stay in California, désolé, however the Twingo just isn’t for you. The automobile is at the moment registered in Connecticut.

Ought to this pocket-size French import be authorized to park in your driveway, make all haste to bid. With seven days left, bidding stands at simply $2911. Miss out, and you will find yourself crying into your ratatouille whereas an accordion performs a mournful dirge.