Geneva LIVE: Alpine A110 coupe
The A110 is aimed squarely at the Porsche Cayman.
Paris-based Renault has officially introduced the Alpine A110 this week in Geneva. The long-awaited coupe stands out as the first Alpine-badged sports car in over 20 years.
As expected, the A110 is inspired by the stunning, retro-styled Vision concept that debuted a year ago. Its silhouette pays homage to the original A110 that dominated international rally events during the 1960s. The design isn't full-on retro like the Volkswagen Beetle's, but the A110 nonetheless boasts elongated headlights, a creased hood, round fog lights and a wrap-around rear window.
The resurrected A110 is engineered with an aluminum platform and body, welded and riveted together to maximize rigidity. The car weighs just 2,381 pounds before options are added, with a 44/56 front/rear split.
A new 1.8-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine was developed via collaboration between the Renault-Nissan Alliance and Alpine engineers, corroborating an earlier report claiming it is closely related to the 1.6-liter turbo four found under the hood of the Clio R.S. The mid-mounted unit makes 252 horsepower and 236 pound-feet of torque in its most basic state of tune. Rumors suggest a 300-horsepower variant is also under consideration.
Alpine has confirmed the coupe will hit 62 mph from a stop in 4.5 seconds. On paper, it can comfortably keep up with the Porsche 718 Cayman, one of its closest rivals.
Deliveries in Continental Europe will begin later this year. The UK and Japan are next on the list in 2018.
Live images by Ronan Glon.