The Renault Twingo is a joyful little French car that looks like a happy character in a Miyazaki film. It has those expressive little eye/headlights, rounded corners everywhere, and a size that just begs you to hug it. Clearly, the people who did the promotional photos in the 1990s for the first generation Twingo understood this, which is why seemingly every image of this car features people who look like they are having the best time, anyone, anywhere, has ever head.
What is even happening here? It’s a family. They’ve run off the road somewhere. The daughter/wife is wearing a very Sydney Sweeney-ish crop top. Everyone is so damn happy.
This woman took two hits of E, went to an all-night rave in the 13th, and has come down from her high only to realize she’s purchased a very affordable and nicely packaged Twingo.
This guy is shocked, the Twingo, with its centrally-mounted instrument panel, is apparently a great place to make out. This guy can’t believe it. There’s so much space in such a tiny footprint! He can’t even pay attention to his girlfriend/mistress!
These two people don’t even know each other. They just saw another person driving a Twingo and fell in love!
Ok, so the kid has met the grandparents, who also have a Twingo. Apparently the blonde is the daughter and the brunette is the mom? I hope. It’s France so…
What’s happening over there? These people seem curious.
These people are also curious, but they also know that whatever it is, it’s good.
Ah, of course, it’s a family ready for the beach! This seems to clearly be central France and nowhere near a place you could use a surfboard. Is that strange? Not if you own a Twingo. Owning a Twingo is like doing a rail of joy right off of Paddington Bear’s cute little hat.
Is it always daytime in Twingo world? Not at all. Sometimes it’s twilight and… stuff like this happens. Whatever this is.
Oh good, it’s day again, and we’re going to go play tennis in tennis shoes that are also pumps somehow.
Do you have globes? Are we a multi-ethnic grouping of friends? The Twingo accepts all.
Hey ladies! I’ve got a Twingo 2. Let’s make out in a field!
No idea, but it’s fun!
Thank you for this brief moment of happiness, Twingo. Would that I could evaporate into your world. Also thank you for Daniel Golson for pointing out the crazy site where I found all these.
Photos: Renault via Wheelsage
Well here I am
Happier than the happiest french hippie
I got my first twingo and I LOVE it
A 2015 898cc turbo
Amazing
Love burning up the Chelsey tractors and BMW s ❤️
You are right, I bought a lovely Twingo Mk1 two years ago, and I was very happy, but not like 125% over-happy like these people in the pictures.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CF1PmqJF1oO/
Quick car also, took it 99 mph once. And found out it had some kind of rev limiter also, when I was flooring it to keep up with one of my old car friends in his 80ies 911.
“… like doing a rail of joy right off of Paddington Bear’s cute little hat.”
I swear to God I am totally going to steal that at some point.
I’m overwhelmed by the amount of inappropriate comments I can make here that I simply can’t make up my mind.
I don’t know about “you will never be as happy as the two people in this photo..etc”.
That scene and expression seemed pretty common and familiar to me:
” Not Pregnant!
“Apparently the blonde is the daughter and the brunette is the mom? I hope. It’s France so…”
…so obviously the blonde is the wife and the brunette is the mistress. Not sure which one is the kid’s mom. Neither is the dad.
The guy in the yellow cover picture is obviously about the get a BJ. The woman in tennis gear with the heals on, clearly a porn shoot. Reasons to be happy!
It’s France. Every one of these turned into a port shoot.
port=porn.
Damn you lack of edit button!!! [/angry fist shake]
Of course they came with free E…
Okay but i played on this modded gtav server that had semi realistic handling and they had a twingo and it just opened me up to how lovely it is lmao. But being from the United States other than them now being imported now its not easy to go and drive one myself but i feel like I’d buy one tbh for the memes
We had several Twingos over the years. First one was bought new in 1998. There was a time when we had three twingos running in the family. Right now just one is left
Re the surfing Twingo: I’m not sure how you can tell they are in central France, but nowhere is France is more than a days drive from the coast.
It’d be a noisy trip in a Twingo with the roof open, but less noisy than in a 2CV with the roof open.
You mean less noisy than a 2CV with the roof closed.
I love me some Twingo, and have expressed often (on this site even) my desire to import one. I’m pretty sure my wife would kick me to the curb if I did, but man that Twingo life…
The downside would be you’d almost never see another one, thus missing out on spontaneous Twingo-owner kissing. But if you did, it would be a match made in heaven.
I like to think these are single frames of dynamic maneuvers and not staged photos
I’m surprised no one has developed an app based business that connects multi racial / gay families and couples with people having garden parties that don’t have multi racial friends. The possibilities are endless.
I really gotta get me a Twingo!
The Twingo is awesome! Too bad they never sold it over here. Cool colors, cool interiors, and a giant canvas sunroof 😀
The Twingos I see for sale on Autoscout 24 never have the colorful interiors you see in those press photos :/
Agreed! If I could find one nearby and reasonably priced, I would so totally drive it all the time. I miss the days when cars came in such a vivid array of colors. Plus, I’ve never wanted to play tennis as badly as I do now. Such exquisite muscle tone!
Count me as a huge fan of those early Twingos (note on the pluralization – I know it would be “standard” to add in the “e” but honestly that spelling just looks right)
When I visited a friend during 2002 for a couple weeks in France she was driving a Twingo. We covered a fair number of miles in that car, and I loved the small size for city work while it was still not bad at all on higher speed roads, at least up to 110km/h class highways. For the small package size it has a surprisingly large amount of room in it, and I am not a small guy.
If I lived in Europe I’d happily rock one of these as a daily driver.
Nah, I’m going with “Twinsgo”
I mean I’m pretty happy because I’m in LoOoOoOoOove but neither of us owns a Twingo so maybe we could be happier?
I think I’ve had dreams about that teal one and the silver lady.
Someone spontaneously fist bumped me window to window once which is cool, but not as good as a kiss!
I guess Honda = dap, Twingo = smooch.
Back in 1997 my wife – then girlfriend – and I did our first big trip together. We had a month in Europe, starting in the Netherlands, looping down through France to Spain, over to Italy, up through Switzerland and Austria (for summertime snowboarding on a glacier) over through Germany to Czech Republic and back to NL. The only affordable option was to do a short term purchase/sale agreement of a Twingo from Renault. The deal was really slick. The same document was a contract for us to buy, and then sell back the Twingo a month later. Super affordable, and Renault was not on the hook for liability the way they would have been for a rental.
Anyway, I am sure we had some tense moments, but in my memories we were pretty much this happy all the time. Being from the US, it was a revelation to drive a small, efficent car that did not treat you like an asshole for driving a small car. Clever packaging, fun materials, enough power to get around, and small enough to park and navigate easily. We both loved it. And as a bonus we would often camp in the countryside (thank you Spain!) in a tiny two person tent that was basically the same size and shape as the Twingo. Next to each other they were as cute as two bugs in a rug. So yes, pretty much a month-long “rail of joy right off of Paddington Bear’s cute little hat.” Thanks for the memories Autopian and Twingo!!!!
“Being from the US, it was a revelation to drive a small, efficent car that did not treat you like an asshole for driving a small car.”
??? What small, efficient car mistreated you?
Start with the Vega, then move forward through Pinto, Monza, Chevette, Cavalier, various Daewoos sold as Chevies or Suzukis…
American small cars have always been abusive assholes.
That is an interesting statement and it depends on your definition of small. As I think about it, you are mostly right, American compact cars usually had some fatal flaw in reliability, safety, or efficiency. I am not sure it this was due to lack of design expertise, imagination, effort, or building to a price point. I suspect all of the above. American manufacturers just couldn’t imagine building a quality small car like a Toyota Corolla.
The Dodge Neon and Nash Ramblers were pretty good out of the box. The British Ford Escort was good but we got a POS.
I had a friend who came to really love Geo Metros. He drove jeeps and trucks, got one semi-jokingly for gas $$$ relief in 2008. He became a Metro guru thereafter, always had a couple. It was basically an OK, pretty usable car that got crazy fuel economy and was mostly bulletproof.
Back in the 80’s, my first job was as the “lot boy” for a used car lot. I got to drive a massive cross section of cars and the Chevette and Tempo stick out as some of the worst cars I had ever driven. I remember thinking “if this is how Detroit is going to compete with the Rabbit and the Corolla, the US car industry is in big trouble…”
That’s a lovely story!
” in my memories we were pretty much this happy all the time. Being from the US, it was a revelation to drive a small, efficient car that did not treat you like an asshole for driving a small car. Clever packaging, fun materials, enough power to get around, and small enough to park and navigate easily. We both loved it. ”
+1, came here to say this.. had a Twingo for 3 weeks once as a rental in Greece, smiled every time I got into it, while driving it, and while locking it (in anticipation of the next drive). The ads aren’t wrong..
Twingo! More fun to say than it is to drive!
Who are all these happy people and why aren’t they my friends? Regarding the picture of the lady in the silver boots: I think this is the costume Marta Kristen was supposed wear in Lost in Space. Oh, the pain.
They *would* your friends if you had a Twingo.