BOLD RIDE
Back before me or any of my fellow writers were born, the Alpine A110 sports car was tearing up race tracks and dirt tracks throughout Europe, showing pretty much every other manufacturer how it was done. Production of that car lasted until 1977.
But Renault has a soft spot for nostalgia, and decided to revive the defunct marque (which it previously owned) for a new era of lightweight, precision-oriented sports cars. This is that car; or at least, “80 percent” of it. It’s the final version of the Alpine Vision Concept before it goes on sale next year.
The body is painfully attractive. It heralds back to the iconic A110, with the headlight/foglight combo, the unique lines, and most importantly, the lightweight construction. Early reports say this new Alpine will weigh just 2,300 pounds.
To compliment the featherweight construction, a turbocharged 4-cylinder engine and likely near 300 horsepower will be found under the hood—or should we say, in the back. The mid-mounted engine puts it closely in competition with cars like the Alfa Romeo 4C and Porsche Cayman, as does its not-yet-confirmed dual-clutch transmission off the Renaultsport Clio.
With 20 percent of the car still needing to be finished, it won’t go on sale until mid-2017. But surprisingly enough, the new Alpine will be sold “in five continents.” If our math is correct, that means the U.S. could be one of them.
The concept will make its debut at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show next month.
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