Renault Wind Review 2011

For – head-turning looks, good interior
Against – too much

The Renault Wind is a hard car to rate when it is clearly designed for someone about 40 years younger than me, and about 50 per cent lighter.

But believe me I tried. I introduced it to younger females in the village, expecting them to be taken with its cuteness and in-yer-face, look-at-me attitude, but supporters were thin on the ground. Not surprisingly, the golf-club car park produced raised eyebrows and quizzical looks, and a Judas-like remonstration from me that of course it wasn’t mine and I was driving it as a road test.

There are many things to like about the Wind though. It drives nicely, with terrific steering, although the ride is harsh and bouncy. Its performance is pretty good, although you really have to rev the thing to make it go. The engine sounds the business under pressure, but until the revs climb quite high, the car doesn’t seem to have much poke. I drove the 1.6 litre VVT, 133 hp version. There’s also a 1.2 TCe with 100 hp. The five-speed manual gearbox wasn’t up to much. Fuel economy isn’t bad. Renault claims 40.9 mpg. I managed 36.3 mpg. This is small car. Renault says it fits into its range between the Twingo and Clio.

With the roof in place the car is quiet enough, but when it’s off, not surprisingly, things get noisier, and fun. But it’s certainly snug and cosy with the windows up and roof off. On the negative side, I found it difficult to use the clutch because my left foot became wedged in the foot well. It took me ages to undo the fuel filler cap, which has some neat new way of making sure you don’t spill the fuel. At the Geneva Car Show, Renault unveiled a hot, Gordini version of the Wind. This has bigger wheels and the traditional Gordini paint work including twin white stripes. So far Renault has been very cagey about this, except to say it has many interior baubles which make it look trendy; nothing at all about its price, performance or engine size.

Nifty
The nifty removable roof came in handy during the recent dry spell. It comes off and folds away automatically with the minimum of fuss. The fact that the system was designed for left hand drive is obvious when you reach up and twist the mechanism which is the first and last stage of moving the roof. It takes a lot of effort to pull and twist, and feels much easier when you do this from the passenger seat. As part of the automatic process, the side windows open, but when you close it, you have to raise the windows separately, which is a chore. The car’s high rear design makes sure the roof doesn’t take up any of the boot space, which is reasonable, although it didn’t stretch to my golf clubs. You can’t see much out of the back window.

It certainly has noticeable and modern looks. You won’t forget having seen one. Surprisingly, an unscientific survey of the target audience in the village failed to spark much interest, although enthusiasm may have been dampened by the price. This is a very small car, after all.

The cabin is probably the best thing about the Wind – very cosy and cockpit like. The version I drove had heated sports seats with leather upholstery. The deep seated dials are housed in a handsome cowling, but here design gets ahead of practicality, as the numbers on the speedo disappear into the gloom and become unreadable with the sun at a certain angle. The sound system had small, fiddly buttons and when you went to adjust the volume, a bump from the suspension could switch it off.

The 1.6 version retails at £16,800, and that includes sports seats, tinted windows and electrically adjusted and heated door mirrors, remote central locking and front fog lights. My car cost £17,700 because it had metallic paint, heated seats, gloss back roof and leather. When you realise the Mazda MX-5 starts at about the same amount, it’s really case closed against the Renault. The version with the smaller engine starts at £15,000, but as soon as you consider the 1.6 version, the MX-5 looms large and invincible.

Designed for those who can’t afford it
This is one of those cars which is designed for drivers who can’t afford it, rather like the Citroen DS. Presumably, the Wind is for young women of the hairdresser variety who are unlikely to have the resources to pay for a new one. If only it was possible to make a car which automatically became two years old as soon as it went on sale, then this car would be a big success.

Neil Winton – April 3, 2011