Renault T-Wing-O

Is this a very lucky German?

My initial thoughts are "No - he drives on old Twingo."

But he has just saved £93 by having most of his face obscured by a dove in the speed camera photo.

And he has managed to get an old Twingo up to 34mph.

The story is here with German Police citing Divine Intervention.  Apparently a number plate and an ear are not enough for a conviction over there.

I think it just means that God does not approve of 18.6mph speed zones.

Tripping

Three linked stories from America.

Although the first one is really from South Wales.

But it is reported by Fox News.  It is about a guy called Gary Egan who has to commute 187.5 miles each way every day between Porthcawl and Watford.  He uses a Renault Clio Diesel which Fox describe (quite accurately) as a "subcompact car" - don't know what they'd call a Twingo though.

Fox suspect this commute would be a World Record if such a category existed.

Which it doesn't.

A category has been invented though for the second story - also from Fox News.

The category is “the least non-driving time to cross the United States in an electric vehicle.”

Tesla are going to drive two Model S's from L.A. to New York to try to take this record and since this is a new category, if they get there they will take the record.  Speed records of this nature are not allowed, presumably for safety reasons, so this will be measuring the least time stood still - ie recharging.

The third story also involves a Model S going on a road-trip - up against a Model T - a Ford Model T from a hundred years ago.  It's basically a race from Detroit to New York and it is a brilliant article from Car & Driver.

Now I've always found C&D to be quite anti-electric cars so I did read it with some trepidation expecting the Model T to win (which it didn't) and C&D to be quite scathing (which they weren't despite the closeness of the result) - but, in the end it was just a very, very interesting piece.

Many of the readers' comments praised the article and several likened it to something Top Gear would do.

I concur.

And I really liked this picture:

Guess it's the new Twingo

I haven't been on the Auto Express site in quite a while.

They're still up to their old tricks though.

They have this picture...

...under the headline, "New Renaultsport Twingo" but then go on to say, "it is how it could look."  So, it's just a guess really - maybe an educated guess - but still a guess.

 

Others are at it too, French site ABCMoteur have this for the standard Twingo... 

 While our own Autocar have this today...

Autocar's story is headlined, "Renault Twingo 'reinvents small car'" because it is a small car with a rear engine and rear drive.  Only thing is, it has been done before...

 

...in Scotland: 

and, even more successfully, in Italy: 

 

The new Twingo, judging by these guesses (and Renault's own concepts), will be available as a five-door so that is a bit of a departure from the past and at least this does look a bit more funky like the original Twingo:

Although, maybe I thought it was quite funky then because it was never sold in Britain so it meant I was always on holiday when I saw one. 

 

The Mark II version, which is sold in Britain, is quite bland in comparison:

Guess they thought it was time for a re-think.