Renault Wind: Open Woman Charmer

2023 Author: Eric Donovan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-08-25 09:36

With its folding roof convertible Wind, Renault has given its compact convertible Megane CC a little brother, which is supposed to break the hearts of car-loving women. With a fresh design and a price of 16,900 euros, this is not an impossible mission.

By Markus Henrichs

It should be as fresh as its namesake, Renault's new two-seater convertible "Wind", which has started to shake up the market segment of small convertible roofs. This has become manageable anyway after competitors such as the Nissan Micra C + C or the Opel Tigra TwinTop withdrew from the German market due to a lack of customer acceptance.

Open in ten seconds

And the wind, which is only 3.83 meters short, looks fresh too, with its stern cropped as if with an ax, the wide shoulder area and its wedge-shaped stature. From a purely visual point of view, the small convertible coupé based on Twingo looks like a concept study turned into an automobile, which regularly causes curious sideways glances at the red traffic light. Speaking of causing a stir at the traffic lights: A red phase is theoretically sufficient to open or close the folding steel roof fully automatically in around ten seconds at the push of a button.

The highlight of the French folding roof Filou: Thanks to the ingenious folding technology and a double floor, "open" driving is not at the expense of the cargo space. This remains unchanged at 270 liters even when the top is folded back, which is sufficient for the transport of four beverage crates in everyday life and corresponds to the minimum load volume of a VW Polo.

Hardly any rear view

The transparent blue cylinder frames for the high and low beam give the wind a very sexy silver look and provide futuristic accents. But is the little pop-top flea as future-oriented as it looks? Finding that out is harder than expected.

Because when the hood is closed, there is unfortunately only a 20 centimeter wide viewing slit available to look backwards. In theory, this corresponds to the format of the rear-view mirror. In practice, it is the massive rear spoiler that catches the eye, but not the traffic at the rear. And since the plastic cladding of the rear window surround also severely restricts the lateral rear view, reversing from a parking space arranged at right angles to the roadway quickly becomes a parking adventure with an uncertain outcome. A shape that follows function a little more would certainly be desirable for a new edition.

Extremely agile in town and in the country

Once in motion, the wind makes an extremely agile impression in city traffic and also on cross-country trips. The chassis is crisp, firm and precise enough to nimbly get around the tightest corners of big cities, not least thanks to the short wheelbase of 2.37 meters. Unfortunately, the 74 kW / 100 hp 1.2-liter turbo gasoline engine used in the test car, which brings the wind from zero to 100 km / h in 10.5 seconds, cannot quite keep up with so much agility. It is true that the gears that can be selected using the five-speed gearshift without long shifting travel are designed to be very elastic. But the four-cylinder engine needs a lot of speed to get the car, which weighs just under 1250 kilograms, not only up to speed, but also to bring the driver up to operating temperature.

Or better: his driver. Because "young women who enjoy driving" (quote from the press kit) are, according to the manufacturer, the main target group of the "windy" travel companion. This is also noticeable in the seats used, which generally offer more than adequate support even when cornering dynamically. However, the exhibited seat cheeks are extremely unsuitable for tall male contemporaries with "design-related" somewhat wider pelvis and cross. Because then the well-contoured driver's seat feels like a hip corset that was accidentally washed too hot.

Manageable surcharge list

A driving-fun-oriented driving style quickly comes at the expense of fuel consumption, which means that the specified standard consumption of 6.3 liters per 100 kilometers quickly increases to up to ten liters. On the pleasantly manageable surcharge list, the seat heating, which is estimated at 350 euros, stands out in particular. Those who want more are well served with the 2220 Euro "Night and Day" equipment package, which, in addition to seat heating, includes automatic air conditioning, leather upholstery, light and rain sensors.

The bottom line is that Renault's wind is not a windy breeze, but a solid and, with the deduction of its parking weakness, thoroughly everyday fun mobile for the city - not only for young women who enjoy "topless" driving.