ALPINE SPORT (some text hidden) --NONE--

By Jonathan Crouch

Alpine's A290 aims to redefine what a little EV hot hatch should be. Jonathan Crouch reports.

Ten Second Reviewword count: 48

The future of the Alpine brand rests with this car, the A290. It's an all-electric hot hatch based on the new-era Renault 5 but with very much its own distinctly Gallic performance character. If you like it, you'll find nothing else in the segment that's quite the same.

Backgroundword count: 192

So. The Alpine A290 - an EV hot hatch that's this French sporting brand's most crucial model yet. There's a temptation to dismiss this car is merely a hot hatch version of the new-era Renault 5 - and it is indeed fundamentally based on that model. But everything about that design has been re-imagined for the A290 - which in a way makes it more faithful to original brand values than the existing A110 sports car. Alpine founder Jean Redele established the marque by a fundamentally and uniquely re-engineering Renaults in a way that Renault never could. The A290 project leader Charlie Biardeau references the Seventies Alpine A106, which was originally a Renault 4CV, but with changes to the engine, the gearbox, the suspension - even the shape of the body; everything really. So it is with the A290. It is, in every way that really matters, a true performance car in its own right - as it needs to be to take on the new breed of EV hot hatches characterised by contenders like the MINI Cooper SE, the Abarth 500e and the Volkswagen ID.2 GTI. Let's take a closer look.

Engines and Tech Specword count: 273

Those who feared a Renault 5 carry-over here will be reassured by the sheer depth of changes made. Not that there aren't Renault references. The basic dimensions aren't much different from a '5', apart from 60mm of extra width, achieved via bespoke suspension knuckles and wider 19-inch wheels. Plus, as expected, the 52kWh battery has to be Renault-sourced (from the Megane E-Tech) which is good for up to 236 miles, if you drive the car in the way a typical owner never would. But wherever the dedicated Alpine development team could change the basic Renault formula, they did. There's an entirely different all-aluminium front subframe; and a unique suspension set-up with hydraulic bump stops using a design borrowed from the A110. The Brembo brakes are from that sports car too, with 320mm discs, a naturally-tuned brake-by-wire system and regenerative braking you can influence via a chunky blue steering wheel dial. There's a unique anti-roll bar, bespoke Michelin tyres and an OV button for overtaking boost. You'll need that to replicate the performance figures for the two variants on offer - both front-driven (the chassis will take a dual motor powertrain, but there's no sign of one yet). Choose between a 178bhp version (0-62mph in 7.4s en route to 99mph); or a 217bhp variant (0-62mph in 6.7s en route to 106mph - the same as a MINI Cooper SE). Sound of course - in this case the 'Alpine Driving Sound' - is equally as important as speed. There are two selectable choices here, one with combined 'whooshing' noises and the other more muted that builds with speed, reacting to throttle inputs and grip levels.

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