Renault LeCar, page #16

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2014 Renault Twingo is a rear-engined cutie

At this point, we thought the formula for small, inexpensive hatchbacks was pretty much dialed in: transverse engine, front-wheel drive. Then along comes Renault with its cheeky new Twingo, just to throw a curveball into the mix. Sporting a rear-mounted engine and rear-wheel drive, the Twingo is something of a (very) poor man's Porsche 911, and it's got us excited.
Power is provided by either a naturally aspirated, 70-horsepower, 1.0-liter three-cylinder engine or a turbocharged 900cc triple with 90 horsepower and 100 lb-ft, the latter of which sounds like quite a lot of fun in a lightweight small car. We're eager to check out what sort of dynamic wins this layout yields - we know it's going to be nimble, with a turning circle of just 8.65 meters (28.4 feet), a full meter less than rivals. Of course, the rear-engined, rear-wheel drive thing hasn't always produced sterling drive experiences - the Smart ForFour speaks loudly to this. In fact it's no coincidence that the Twingo shares this driveline configuration with Smart - the chassis was codeveloped with Daimler alongside the next-generation ForTwo.
The Twingo's interior is best described as cheap and cheerful, with some neat features like a flat-bottomed wheel, contrasting trim and TomTom navigation. Despite being shorter overall than the last-generation model, this Twingo is actually roomier inside. We've had a chance to look at the cargo hold, and its load floor is modestly higher than you might find in a more conventional hatchback, but it's a pretty remarkable feat of packaging - if someone didn't tell you there was an engine back there, you wouldn't suspect it. In fact, Renault boasts, "It is the only city car capable of carrying a boxed Swedish bookshelf."

Renault's rear-engined Twingo knocks our little socks off [w/video]

There was a time when the smallest, nimblest hatchbacks (like the original VW Beetle and Fiat Cinquecento) put their engines in the back. But those days are long behind us... right? Well nobody seems to have told Renault, which has a proud history of putting its engines behind the seats with vehicles like the Renault 5 Turbo and Clio RS V6. Those were decidedly performance-oriented hot hatches, but now Renault is taking the formula to the masses with the introduction of the new Twingo.
Developed in parallel to Daimler's next-generation Smart, the third-generation Twingo takes its cues from the Twin'Z and Twin'Run concepts. Although Renault isn't saying what the engine is, it's mounted in the rear of a tiny five-door hatchback driving the rear wheels to make it nimble, fun to drive and free up interior space. The layout is in stark contrast to the previous two versions of the Twingo that mounted the engine up front in a three-door bodystyle, and ought to make for one heck of an entertaining RS hot hatch version.
The new Twingo will officially launch at the Geneva Motor Show next month, after which it will be available in four color schemes. By then, we hope, Renault will give us a bit more in the way of technical details to chew on. In the meantime you can scope out the high-res images in the gallery above and the video clip and press release below.

Alpine delayed over 'creative tensions' between Renault and Caterham

The rebirth of the Alpine brand is going to have to stay in the womb a little longer, it appears. Autocar learned that Renault's styling mockup was secretly shown to possible clients recently, and the feedback was tepid enough for the French company to send the design back to the drawing board. The delay will likely push the sports car back to a 2016 launch.
The setback is partly due to the car being a joint venture between Caterham and Renault. When Alpine was reformed last year, the two companies agreed that each would build their own version of the sports coupe from shared mechanical parts, including a Renault engine, but two different exterior designs.
While the two designs are independent, if Renault changes any of the body mounting points, then Caterham's body also needs a redesign. Also, the deal stipulates that both cars have to be ready before they can go on sale. The Alpine is rumored to have about 250 horsepower, while the Caterham may have power closer to 300 hp, according to Autocar. We spotted a test mule under the skin of a Lotus Exige with a turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine last summer.

Next Renault Twingo ready for its Swiss debut

Renault's diminutive city car, the Twingo, is set for a debut in a few weeks at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show. So naturally, the little hatchback has leaked out early. Carscoops came up with the original batch of images before Renault posted the official family photo you see above.
We'll need to wait until we get to Geneva to get all the details on the Twingo, but here's what we know so far. It's a relative of the upcoming Smart ForFour, but where that car uses a conventional front-engine, front-drive layout, the Twingo is backwards. That's right, this is a rear-engine, rear-wheel-drive city car. That concept on its own sounds spectacular.
Rumors, according to Carscoops, point to a three-cylinder engine for the Twingo. Owners should get to choose from both a do-it-yourself manual transmission and a dual-clutch gearbox. The little five-door should include a sportier trim, too, hopefully along the lines of the well-regarded Renaultsport Twingo 133. Whether that car is shown in the family portrait or if it will arrive at a later date remains unclear.

Vintage Renault R8 Gordini footage shows how fun rear-engined cars can be

Admit it - you occasionally spend hours on YouTube, watching footage from vintage rallies and pining for days gone by, don't you? That's okay, we're guilty of occasionally overindulging in classic motorsports footage ourselves. Case in point: this swinging little number featuring the Renault 8 Gordini, circa 1964.
The Gordini-tuned version of the homely (yet unforgettable) Renault 8 developed some 89 horsepower from its rear-mounted, 1.1-liter four-cylinder engine, which was operable via a four-speed manual gearbox and had underpinnings befitting the sort of racy action you'll find in the video below.
The tiny French sedan obviously made up for its lack of outright grunt with a double helping of handling panache, and it seems as though '60s racers had no trouble getting the thing to drift on a dime. Enjoy yourself while watching this one guys, the drivers of the Gordini sure did.

Renault Kwid concept eyes India's youth market [w/videos]

The 2014 New Dehli Auto Expo is turning into a big show for tiny crossovers. Chevrolet showed off its Adra Concept, and here is Renault's quirky little Kwid Concept. In a great example of how important the Indian market is becoming, this is the first concept the French company has ever debuted outside of Europe.
Despite its awkward name, the Kwid is aimed at young, Indian buyers who want to a cheap, fun car tailored for India's roads. It has a chunky, compact design with short overhangs to make it look ready to go off-road. However, you would not want to go too far off road - for this concept, Renault installed a front-wheel drive, 1.2-liter turbocharged engine with a dual-clutch transmission and a plug-in charging port behind the Renault logo in the front.
The interior is inspired by a bird's nest with overlapping straps to form the bench seat in the front. The driver sits in the center with a passenger on either side, and two can sit in the rear. The gauges are replaced by a TFT touchscreen.

Red Bull Racing unveils RB10 as pre-season testing kicks off

Ladies and gentlemen, here's the car that will win the 2014 Formula One World Championship... probably. Maybe. The success of Red Bull Racing over the past several years means that the debut of its 2014 challenger is one of the more note-worthy events of the preseason, showing off the latest piece of aerodynamic mastery from Adrian Newey.
Like the Ferrari F14 T, the Red Bull RB10 features a more conventional nose, which still plunges rather dramatically ahead of the front wheels. We're seeing a very interesting split early in the season between the top teams like Red Bull and Ferrari, who are opting for a more traditional design, and the mid-pack challengers, which are being more aggressive with their aerodynamics. Seeing how this plays out during the season will be very interesting. As for RBR's design, it's attractive, but wasn't easy to pen, according to Newey, who found the turbocharged V6s a difficult piece in the new F1 puzzle.
"Whereas the V8s were a very well-known package, with these power units, the engine itself is easy enough to install, but then of course you've got the turbocharger, the intercoolers, and the electrical side in terms of the motor generator units and much bigger batteries," Newey told the official Formula One website.

Renault showcases new F1-spec hybrid turbo V6 power unit for 2014

Engine development is typically frozen in Formula One. So the Renault R27 engine that propelled Sebastian Vettel to the championship last season, for example, was by and large the same one that drove him to his previous three titles, and the same design that has motivated countless other Red Bull, Lotus, Caterham, Williams and Renault challengers since 2007. But for 2014 the FIA has completely changed the rulebook, ditching the 2.4-liter V8 engines and their Kinetic Energy Recovery System for an entirely new design. What you see here is Renault's new grand prix propulsion system that's set to power over a third of the grid this season.
The Renault Energy F1-2014 Power Unit is comprised of a 1.6-liter turbocharged V6 engine with direct injection and a 15,000 rpm redline mated to a new Energy Recovery System with two electric motors - one recovering energy from the brakes and the other from the exhaust - storing the energy in an onboard battery (as opposed to the mechanical flywheel other constructors had toyed with earlier). Together they're capable of producing 760 horsepower - around 600 horses comes from the internal-combustion engine and the rest from the hybrid assist.
That's about the same output as the previous V8 engines were producing, but the new power units have to be more economical and last longer: While the V8s could consume fuel as fast as the team wanted (at least until the elimination of mid-race refueling), the new turbo V6 can only use 100 kg of fuel per hour. What's more is that 100 kg of fuel has to last the entire race distance, representing a 35-percent decrease over last year, and each driver only gets five engines for the entire season.

Gran Turismo vs reality as Red Bull pro-gamer takes on Nismo pro racer

The last time we saw a real racing driver pitted against a professional gamer, Viagame threw one of each in a Renault Megane RS and the contest was staged as the pro driver navigated the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona. That could be seen as a handicap for the gamer, since he's got to get his drive on while dealing with all sorts of unfamiliar G-force sensations that are out of time with what he's doing. Even so, the gamer won.
Nismo has taken its turn, running almost the same contest at Silverstone in the UK. This time, though, it has put its GTAcademy Driver and pro driver Wolfgang Reip in a car by himself, while Red Bull pro gamer Erik Leštach gets to play Gran Turismo 6 safely locked down in the pits. With each driver in his chosen milieu, the game is afoot.
You can find out who won by watching the video below, and for a chance to win something yourself, Nismo will send a box of goodies to whomever guesses the winning time in the video's comments on YouTube.

Gamer faces racer at the track to find out who's faster

The Nissan GT Academy has than proven that hardcore gamers can become real-life racers, but Viagame wanted to see what would happen if a gamer raced head-to-head against a racer... in real time. To accomplish this, Viagame recruited a top gamer from Sweden and put him up against a racer for a one-lap sprint around Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona.
To make the head-to-head race as close as possible, a full racing simulator was installed in the passenger seat of a Renault Megane RS, and both drivers "raced" the same car on the same track at the same time. We don't want to give away the winner, but both men had unique challenges.
From the gamer's perspective, it must have been interesting to race virtually but deal with real g-forces that may not have matched up where he was on the track. On the other hand, the racer actually had to drive the car in real life instead of the gamer's virtual world - note the hand-over-hand steering wheel action by the gamer at about the two minute mark. Scroll down to watch the two race, and let us know what you think of the results in the Comments.