Is the Renault Twingo reliable?

On MOT evidence the Renault Twingo is well below average. It passes 58.5% of tests once age and mileage are accounted for, against a national average of 72.3%. That figure covers 78% of the national age and mileage range, which is enough to quote but not to rank. This measures how often the car meets the MOT standard, not how often it breaks down or what a repair costs.

What is the most common MOT failure on a Renault Twingo?

The item recorded most often is "A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened", which appears in 23.4% of failed Renault Twingo tests. Because one failed test can list several items, these shares do not add up to 100%.

What do testers most often warn about on a Renault Twingo?

The most common advisory is "Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements", noted on 25.4% of all Renault Twingo tests. An advisory is not a failure: it flags something that will likely need attention before the next test.

What mileage does a Renault Twingo usually have at its MOT?

The average odometer reading recorded at test is 62,196 miles. This is the mileage across all tested examples of every age, not an annual figure, so treat it as a description of the fleet rather than a target for one car.

Which Renault Twingo years are the most reliable?

Going by MOT pass rate, Renault Twingo cars first registered 2017–2019 do best at 77.9%, and those registered 2010 and earlier do worst at 54.4%. But that ordering is mostly age, not build year: almost every model passes less often as it wears, so the newest cars top this list whatever they are. A specific year looking strong here means little on its own; the failure items above, and the individual car's own MOT history, tell you far more.

Does a Renault Twingo get harder to pass as it ages?

Yes. At 6 to 8 years old, 77.9% of Renault Twingo tests pass. By fifteen years or more, that falls to 54.4%. Nearly every model follows this pattern, which is why comparing raw pass rates between models is misleading unless age is accounted for.

Model reliability file

Renault Twingo MOT pass rate & common failures

From 23,744 recorded MOT tests of the Renault Twingo, published by DVSA.

Data updated 29 July 2026

Quick answer

The Renault Twingo passes 58.5% of MOT tests once results are adjusted for the age and mileage of the cars tested, against a national average of 72.3%. That is well below average. Based on 23,744 tests. Its most commonly recorded failure is spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, which appears in 23.4% of failed tests. Cars of this model average 62,196 miles on the odometer when tested.

At a glance

Pass rate, adjusted for age and mileage

58.5%national average72.3%unadjusted61.4%range covered78%

The Twingo is 13.8 percentage points below the national pass rate once age and mileage are accounted for, which is well below average. The unadjusted figure is 61.4%; the difference is what the age and mileage of this model’s fleet was hiding.

DVSA recorded wording

Most common failure items

Share of failed Renault Twingo tests in which each item was recorded. One failed test often lists several items, so these do not sum to 100%.

1.A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened23.4%
1,879 occurrencesRoad spring broken or fractured explained
2.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn16.0%
1,285 occurrencesSuspension arm bush worn explained
3.A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play11.9%
956 occurrencesBall joint worn explained
4.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements11.9%
950 occurrencesTyre worn close to the legal limit explained
5.Lambda coefficient outside the default limits or the range specified by the manufacturer10.0%
805 occurrencesEmissions above the permitted limit explained
6.A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning8.0%
644 occurrencesLamp not working explained
7.Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded7.5%
600 occurrencesBrake pipe corroded explained
8.Exhaust system leaking or insecure6.2%
499 occurrencesExhaust leaking or insecure explained
9.Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen5.6%
452 occurrencesWiper or washer not working properly explained
10.Audible warning inoperative5.6%
450 occurrencesHorn not working, or of the wrong type explained

Warnings without a failure

Most common advisories

Share of all Renault Twingo tests carrying each advisory. The denominator differs from the failure list above because an advisory can be issued on a car that passed.

1.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements25.4%
6,042 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained
2.A tyre seriously damaged17.4%
4,142 testsTyre damaged or deteriorated explained
3.Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured13.8%
3,278 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained
4.Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded13.4%
3,179 testsBrake pipe corroded explained
5.Fluid leaking excessively and likely to harm the environment or to pose a safety risk to other road users8.9%
2,119 tests
6.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn7.2%
1,703 testsSuspension arm bush worn explained
7.A suspension component excessively damaged or corroded4.9%
1,159 testsSuspension mounting corroded or insecure explained
8.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm4.7%
1,127 testsBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained

The rest of the record

Everything else recorded on the Renault Twingo

The 14 other defects testers recorded on this model, beyond the most common listed above. Each links to what it means and what it takes to put right.

Known faults

Renault Twingo common problems, by part and by year

The same failure record read the way a buyer asks the question: which parts wear out on a Twingo, when they start, and how each registration year compares — including the steps that mark a generation change.

Twingo common problems and results by year

How wear changes the picture

Twingo pass rate by age and registration year

How often the Renault Twingo passes at each age, with the years those cars were first registered. Tests are from 2025, so a car aged 6 to 8 was first used in 2017–2019.

6–8 yrsreg. 2017–201978%

9–11 yrsreg. 2014–201667%

12–14 yrsreg. 2011–201354%

15+ yrsreg. 2010 and earlier54%

Read this as an age curve rather than a verdict on particular model years. Nearly every car passes less often as it gets older, so a newer Twingo outscoring an older one says more about wear than about how that year’s cars were built. Bands holding too few tests to be meaningful are omitted rather than shown as a rate.

What gets tested

The Twingo fleet

Average mileage recorded at test: 62,196
Fuel mix of tested cars: Petrol100.0%

Trim names grouped into this model (2)

Recorded exactly as DVSA holds them. Trim-level names are rolled up so one model is not split across a dozen thin pages.

TWINGO ENERGY
TWINGO TCE

Check a specific Renault Twingo

A model average tells you the pattern. Its own MOT record tells you the car.

Compare within the range

Other Renault models

Renault Clio — 59.1% adjusted
Renault Captur — 70.8% adjusted
Renault Trafic — 62.9% adjusted
Renault Megane — 63.3% adjusted
Renault Kadjar — 74.0% adjusted
Renault Kangoo — 59.0% adjusted
All Renault models

Similar test volumes

Compare against other makes

Fiat 500C — 64.8% adjusted, ranked 224
Suzuki Jimny — 73.0% adjusted, ranked 134
Mercedes-Benz Sprinter — 75.6% adjusted, ranked 99
Alfa Romeo Giulietta — 69.8% adjusted, ranked 172

Common questions

Is the Renault Twingo reliable?: On MOT evidence the Renault Twingo is well below average. It passes 58.5% of tests once age and mileage are accounted for, against a national average of 72.3%. That figure covers 78% of the national age and mileage range, which is enough to quote but not to rank. This measures how often the car meets the MOT standard, not how often it breaks down or what a repair costs.
What is the most common MOT failure on a Renault Twingo?: The item recorded most often is "A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened", which appears in 23.4% of failed Renault Twingo tests. Because one failed test can list several items, these shares do not add up to 100%.
What do testers most often warn about on a Renault Twingo?: The most common advisory is "Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements", noted on 25.4% of all Renault Twingo tests. An advisory is not a failure: it flags something that will likely need attention before the next test.
What mileage does a Renault Twingo usually have at its MOT?: The average odometer reading recorded at test is 62,196 miles. This is the mileage across all tested examples of every age, not an annual figure, so treat it as a description of the fleet rather than a target for one car.
Which Renault Twingo years are the most reliable?: Going by MOT pass rate, Renault Twingo cars first registered 2017–2019 do best at 77.9%, and those registered 2010 and earlier do worst at 54.4%. But that ordering is mostly age, not build year: almost every model passes less often as it wears, so the newest cars top this list whatever they are. A specific year looking strong here means little on its own; the failure items above, and the individual car's own MOT history, tell you far more.
Does a Renault Twingo get harder to pass as it ages?: Yes. At 6 to 8 years old, 77.9% of Renault Twingo tests pass. By fifteen years or more, that falls to 54.4%. Nearly every model follows this pattern, which is why comparing raw pass rates between models is misleading unless age is accounted for.

How this was worked out

Method and limits

Figures come from the DVSA anonymised MOT testing dataset, published under the Open Government Licence. Only class 4 initial tests are counted: retests are excluded so a car appears once, and abandoned tests are excluded entirely. The adjusted rate is directly standardised across twenty-five age and mileage bands and reweighted onto the national distribution, so this model is compared against cars that have lived a similar life rather than against a younger or lighter-used fleet.

An MOT measures whether a car met a legal standard on the day. It is not a breakdown record, a service history or a running-cost estimate, and a pass rate is a property of a fleet rather than a prediction about one car.