2017 Geneva Motor Show: Alpine A110 revealed

ALPINE, the boutique French sportscar brand, is just a week away from the Geneva Motor show debut of its first production car since the 1990s.

However, rather than wait, the now Renault-owned company has elected to whip the covers off early. Ladies and gents, say hello to the shapely Alpine A110.

Alpine has risen from the dead in a big way with the Alpine A110 – largely a facsimile of the Alpine Vision Concept that wowed crowds at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show (itself based on the Alpine Celebration concept revealed at Le Mans). Sheetmetal surfacing and bumper plastics are near-identical – it’s only the details such as doorhandles and mirrors that differ.

And it’s a fairly faithful homage to the original A110, a fibreglass-bodied two-door that was sold across the 1960s and ‘70s and achieved plenty of success on the rally car stage. Scope the scalloping on the side sheetmetal and you’ll see the resemblance – in case the silhouette and quad-headlamp arrangement didn’t first tip you off.

It looks great, especially when clothed in a Gordini-style blue paintjob. Similar to the original, the 2018 Alpine A110 will feature a mid-mounted engine powering the rear wheels, but precise tech specs are being saved for Geneva.

We do know that there’s an all-aluminium platform and bodyshell beneath that blue paint, and a sizable brake package with fixed four-piston calipers up front is obvious. Lightweight engineering will be a key part of the A110’s performance equation (with fixed-back seats weighing just 13kg apiece), but the all-important power and weight figures won’t be announced until next week.

Sports car aficionados who never warmed to the Lotus Elise or Alfa Romeo 4C may want to take note.