Australians love to Tweet, some like to Twerk and soon, maybe, they will be able to Twizy.
The most innovative four-wheeled Zero Emission electric vehicle yet put into series production by a mainstream carmaker, the Renault Twizy, has made landfall in Australia, its first step on what could be a long road to create a new category of environmentally friendly personal mobility device.
Twizy is classed as a quadricycle in Europe, but because there is no suitable categorisation in Australia, Twizy is currently required to conform to passenger vehicle standards, and so has to meet the same criteria as a Renault Koleos, despite doing the same job as an electric scooter; carrying two people around the city.
Renault Australia has imported its first Twizy in order to demonstrate its vast capability and endearing attributes to a very wide audience.
Twizy is the third Renault Zero Emission vehicle to turn a wheel in Australia after the Fluence Z.E. sedan, and the Kangoo Z.E. light van (examples of which are currently on test with Australia Post). In fact, the Renault ZOE Zero Emission light car also visited Australia for hot climate testing during its final development and toured Down Under wearing a snazzy disguise (probably why you may have missed it).
“Twizy has to be seen to be believed and driven to be understood, which is why we have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of the first example,” says Justin Hocevar, Managing Director of Renault Australia.
“Renault is a global leader in Zero Emission vehicles. Twizy offers a unique, imaginative and exciting view of future personal mobility, one that would fit very well into our increasingly congested cityscapes. It is possible to fit three Twizys into a standard car park and in addition Twizy can be charged overnight from a standard household socket.
For commuters travelling only short distances each day, Twizy could be the ideal solution, and arguably far safer than two-wheeled travel,” Hocevar says.
“Twizy has been an incredible success in Europe, where it has been on sale for around two years. We are hoping that by exposing some opinion formers, lawmakers, and relevant road authorities to Twizy, we will gain a greater understanding of the concept and what it could deliver for Australia drivers.
“We don’t think that just because Twizy has a steering wheel instead of a handlebar it should be automatically disqualified from consideration as a legitimate form of personal transport in Australia,” he says.
“To drive Twizy is to love Twizy, we say, and we hope that Australians who have the opportunity to try Twizy will agree.”
The regulations that govern quadricycles are not the same as those for a car, but that didn’t stop Twizy from drawing on Renault’s exceptional expertise in the field of vehicle safety.
To begin with, four wheels are obviously more stable than two or three, while Twizy is equipped with disc brakes all-round and hugs the road thanks to exclusive development input from Renault Sport Technologies.
Its friendly features and unusual proportions form a protective cell around two genuine seats, while the driver benefits from a front airbag and a four-point harness, plus a three-point seat belt for the passenger.
Twizy’s optional scissor doors provide additional protection from both the elements and draughts.
Meanwhile, its two dash-mounted glove boxes (3.5 and 5 litres, the latter lockable) are equipped with a 12V power supply, and a further 31-litre stowage area is concealed behind the passenger seat.
From the initial briefs for the chassis and performance characteristics, which were drawn up by Renault Sport Technologies, to the tuning of its motor and reliability running on the same dynos as the F1 team engines, Twizy’s development was in expert hands.
In addition to the strengths concealed by the model’s unusual forms, this distillation of technology features active and passive safety systems worthy of the newcomer’s Renault heritage. Thanks to its feather weight (450kg, including batteries), to the surprising acceleration of its electric motor (13kW, 57Nm) and the opportunity it offers to drive in the open air without a helmet, Twizy is a unique concept that you can’t help but like – and which is poised to make its natural element – built-up areas – an even cleaner and safer place…
Twizy provides an urban cycle range of 100km thanks to its 6.1kWh lithium-ion battery and braking/deceleration energy recovery system. In real-world use, customers can expect a range of 80km by applying eco-driving principles (55km in severe conditions with repeated hard acceleration).
Twizy can be fully recharged from a regular power socket in around 3.5 hours.
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