You know you’ve reached the bottom of the pit of boredom when you turn to your co-driver, ask him to conjugate the verb “twingo” in Latin and find yourself chortling at the pomposity of “twingamus” and the succinct snap of “twingant”.

We were in a snarl-up somewhere in Ljubljana, and I should say straight away it was the monotony of the traffic rather than the car that had reduced us to word games.

But it set me thinking about what Twingo means. To me it meant the best mainstream car of the late 20th century never to go on sale in the UK. When Renault launched the Twingo in 1993 as a fresh and funky monobox design it was considered such a niche product they didn’t bother to engineer it symmetrically, meaning it could never be built with right-hand drive.

Had they known it would stay in production for 14 years (most modern cars are lucky to survive half that time) and account for 2.4m sales, maybe they’d have thought again – the UK typically accounts for more than 10% of cars in that class, which means Renault’s short-sightedness probably lost it more than a quarter of a million sales. And that must hurt a bit.

They’re making no such mistake with this, the new Twingo, which goes on sale in the UK on September 7. There will be two models, the £8,375 75bhp Dynamique and this £9,995 GT version, which was the only one available to drive at its launch in Slovenia where it is also built.

But even Renault admits it is not a direct successor of the old Twingo. Indeed, if you’re expecting it to offer more interior space from limited exterior dimensions than anything this side of a Tardis, as did its predecessor, you’re going to be dreadfully disappointed. Neither is it a great-looking car, either on the page or in the flesh, and it definitely doesn’t boast the cheeky presence of the original.

The cabin is fluently executed and well made, but not even planting a rev counter directly in front of the steering wheel gives the GT any edge or attitude. And when you learn that underneath it all lies the platform of a Clio – and a previous generation Clio at that – cynicism comes easily.

You could, for example, argue quite credibly that Renault is trying to replace one of the most interesting, innovative small cars created with a conventional small hatch dressed up in fancy new clothes in an attempt to extend the life of an obsolete design built by cheap Balkan labour.

But before you do, you should drive it. It’s not often that a single attribute can rescue an entire car but such is the case with the Twingo GT. Its saviour is not its engine, despite the promise of the 100bhp packed by its turbocharged 1.2 litre unit.

In reality its performance figures are nothing startling and the one I drove felt like it would struggle even to go as fast as Renault claims. Unlike the rest of the car, the engine is a new design with enviable and impressive fuel consumption and emissions, but it’s also coarse when stretched, and unwilling to rev cleanly to its red line. Nor is the gearbox as smooth as it could be, though with short and well chosen ratios and a quick, snappy action it does the job asked.

What does lift the car from the mundane is its chassis, which brings a level of fun and driver interaction I feared had fled all small French hatchbacks for good. Instead of trying to achieve sporting feel through stiff suspension and fat tyres – a strategy that so often ends in failure for such cars – Renault has gone back to doing what it always used to do best: making a softly sprung and supple car that flows with the road rather than bouncing off it. And the results are borderline brilliant.

There’s not much grip even on dry smooth roads so it’s easy to nudge the nose wide of a tight corner by pressing your foot a little harder on the accelerator. And because it has a level of natural agility most modern sports cars would not recognise, as soon as you lift your foot a touch the front of the car bites back into the apex.

Talk to young enthusiasts about using the steering to set a basic trajectory through a corner but then fine tuning your line with the accelerator and likely as not you’ll get a blank face as a response: the manufacturers of most small modern hatches are so desperate to make their cars idiot-proof they have also deliberately made them unresponsive and dull.

The Twingo GT is a great car to drive and Renault is to be applauded for that. That’s not all the Twingo has to offer, either. Despite it’s shortcomings it boasts a number of decent features including a large boot, a rear seat that slides, reclines, folds and tumbles, reasonable refinement over long distances and all the connectivity for MP3-this, Bluetooth-that and hands-free everything else a young driver could wish. My only real complaint is that it just isn’t the next Twingo, regardless of what it says on the badge.

Renault will not be drawn on how many it plans to sell but the fact that just two models will be imported with no choice of trim level save some rather garish decals suggests the company remains nervous about the reception it will receive in the UK market. It’s not the car I’d hoped for and that disappointment outweighs everything, but it’s still an engaging and able new addition to the small tepid-hatch market.

Vital statistics

Model Renault Twingo GT

Engine type 1149cc, four cylinders

Power/Torque 100bhp @ 5500rpm/107 lb ft @ 3000rpm

Transmission Five-speed manual

Fuel/CO2 47.8mpg /140g/km

Price £9,995

Verdict Lacks inspiration, but fun nonetheless

Date of release September 7

The opposition

Model Ford Sportka £9,995

For Likeable character, strong engine

Against Ancient design, spartan interior

Model Fiat Panda 100bhp £10,060

For Fantastic appearance, good handling

Against Limited space, bouncy ride