Renault Twizy 45 EV – now in the hands of 14 year olds

The Renault Twizy 45 EV – a lower-powered take on Renault’s ‘quadricycle’ EV – can now be driven by 14 year olds in Europe. Will the same happen in the UK?

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The Renault Twizy EV has not been an exactly resounding success, but then a four-wheeled electric scooter that costs as much as a Dacia has a pretty limited market. But that could change.

Thanks to EU harmonisation of driving licence regulations across Europe, the Twizy 45 can now be driven in France by 14 year olds (as long as they’ve passed their BSR road safety tests).

That’s because the lower-powered Twizy 45 gets classified as a ‘light motorised quadricycle’, leaving parents all over France to deal with recalcitrant 13 year olds demanding their own wheels for their 14th birthday.

But if the French children do start to take to the roads in droves with the Twizy, they probably can’t cause too much, damage thanks to the limited performance of the Twizy 45.

The normal Twizy is pretty lethargic, but the 45 is probably on a par with a teenager on a bike, with a top speed of just 28mph – and it’ll take 10 seconds to get there.

Sadly for UK 13 year olds, there’s no point pestering for a Twizy 45 for their 14th birthday as UK driving licences as they stand won’t permit them to drive until they’re 16.

Which is good. Or is it?