Two new city cars, two distinct methodologies. The Peugeot 108 is borderline feminine with its frilly themes and funny colors, while the Twingo tries its best to masquerade as a Porsche with its engine sticking out the back. The question, how do the two compare?
Interior:
We'll start with the interior. As both city cars are aiming to attract a young and hip audience they both come across as relatively modern. The 108 is quite a bit campy with its over the top themes, but once Peugeot releases more interior pictures and actual configurations we'll have a better idea of if males will actually be shopping for one.
The Renault is more minimalist, I do suppose the Twingo is more about driving dynamics than interior flair.
Engines and Motivation:
Both have a selection of three cylinder petrol engines, no surprises there. However the Twingo offers up this little quirk, rear engine, rear drive. Now for a good chunk of the buying population not only will that not register but they likely won;t even know the difference. As much as an advantage the Twingo may have in terms of driving fun I think at the end of the day it will turn out to be irrelevant. The 108 does things in the more traditional front engine/front drive. Both come with 5 speed manuals.
108: 1.0L I3 (68 hp) or 1.2L I3 (82 hp)
Twingo: 1.0L I3 (70 hp) or 0.9L Turbo I3 (90 hp)
Cargo Volume:
Because the Renault is now riding on a smart for four platform and the engine is sticking out the back it allowed the Renault designers to push the cab forward and position the wheels way out at the corners. Because of this they gained additional cargo volume in the interior as well as a comfortable rear seat. The 108 is not particularly bad, its quite in line with other cars in segment, its just the Twingo is the exception.
108: 180 liters
Twingo: 219 liters
Pricing:
Pricing has not been announced for either the 108 or the Twingo, however the 108's twin sister the Citroen C1 was priced just this week at a very competitive £8245. I'm fully expecting the 108 to match that. As for the Twingo its pricier driveline setup and its daimler sourced platform make it marginally more expensive, expect something just below 10,000 quid.
The Twingo will clearly be the more fun drivers car, but do you care?


Interior:
We'll start with the interior. As both city cars are aiming to attract a young and hip audience they both come across as relatively modern. The 108 is quite a bit campy with its over the top themes, but once Peugeot releases more interior pictures and actual configurations we'll have a better idea of if males will actually be shopping for one.
The Renault is more minimalist, I do suppose the Twingo is more about driving dynamics than interior flair.


Engines and Motivation:
Both have a selection of three cylinder petrol engines, no surprises there. However the Twingo offers up this little quirk, rear engine, rear drive. Now for a good chunk of the buying population not only will that not register but they likely won;t even know the difference. As much as an advantage the Twingo may have in terms of driving fun I think at the end of the day it will turn out to be irrelevant. The 108 does things in the more traditional front engine/front drive. Both come with 5 speed manuals.
108: 1.0L I3 (68 hp) or 1.2L I3 (82 hp)
Twingo: 1.0L I3 (70 hp) or 0.9L Turbo I3 (90 hp)
Cargo Volume:
Because the Renault is now riding on a smart for four platform and the engine is sticking out the back it allowed the Renault designers to push the cab forward and position the wheels way out at the corners. Because of this they gained additional cargo volume in the interior as well as a comfortable rear seat. The 108 is not particularly bad, its quite in line with other cars in segment, its just the Twingo is the exception.
108: 180 liters
Twingo: 219 liters
Pricing:
Pricing has not been announced for either the 108 or the Twingo, however the 108's twin sister the Citroen C1 was priced just this week at a very competitive £8245. I'm fully expecting the 108 to match that. As for the Twingo its pricier driveline setup and its daimler sourced platform make it marginally more expensive, expect something just below 10,000 quid.
The Twingo will clearly be the more fun drivers car, but do you care?