- Doors and Seats
2 doors, 2 seats
- Engine
1.8T, 4 cyl.
- Engine Power
185kW, 320Nm
- Fuel
Petrol 6.2L/100KM
- Manufacturer
RWD
- Transmission
Auto (DCT)
- Warranty
3 Yr, 100000 KMs
- Ancap Safety
NA
2019 Alpine A110 review
This could be the best mid-engine sports car you’ve never heard of.
Launching its revived brand for the first time (officially) in Australia, the Renault-owned Alpine is something of a mystery to many. Our debut drive of the new Alpine A110 on local soil was held in the whippet’s natural habitat of the Targa High Country - and was a surprise to many.
Despite an entry-list of veterans, enthusiasts and average punters all competing in a class of cars covering heritage to late-model Porsches and Lotuses, it was our lone Alpine Blue coupe that never ceased to attract a curious crowd.
“What’s an Alpine,” asks a local, who is far more thrown by its pronunciation, Al-peen, than the fact the brand hasn’t produced a car for two decades.
“Oh what a nice car!” exclaimed a Porsche Cayman driver. “I love that blue, I really like that car! How much is it?”
And without even a test drive it begins to encroach on enemy territory, luring owners of rivals like the 718 Cayman and Alfa Romeo 4C. Of course, the Lotus crowd is perhaps its biggest purse to dip into but curiosity is kept at a distance, clutched to conceit yet inquisitive of the new French competition.
But we’re not here to compete. We’re driving purely for the fun of it, in the Targa tour category with a closed public road to spear through at a limited top speed of 130km/h. Both of which allow us to explore this reborn sports car’s wonderful dynamics.
- Superb handling
- Lots of sporty kit
- Unique and unpretentious
- Not as versatile as some
- No manual transmission
- There are some odd elements
Is it right for me?
For those in the know, Alpine is no young brand, establishing itself in 1955 before being quickly snapped up by fellow French carmaker Renault. A110 is also an old nameplate, beginning life in 1961 as the A110 Berlinette two-seat coupe before adding a touring style two-plus-two later in the ‘70s – something the contemporary version will never be.
Strictly a two-seater, the new A110 has a wheelbase shorter than even the 718 Cayman, measuring 2419mm between the axles and constructed of lightweight aluminium. The diet continues elsewhere, with millimetres of space shrunk to constrain proportions and weight, producing a sports car much closer to its forebear than modern day machinery at just over 1000kg.
The sacrifice for purity is convenience, with the 13kg-each Sabelt seats lacking normal adjustment levers and instead requiring a spanner to alter their height. The tight packaging inside also means there’s no room to fit a manual transmission down the centre and for posers, there’s only one cup holder for a latte.
Can I afford it ?
But unlike the well-kitted Cayman the Alpine, which prioritises svelte proportions and ability over all else, is more affordable than almost all of its rivals (the 4C is cheaper).
The inaugural offering in Australia will be the A110 Australian Premiere edition, priced from $106,500 plus on-road costs, but it will be supplemented by the Pure ($97,000) and Legende ($103,500) in March 2019. And sales are already good, with 43 sold sight-unseen. As one Ferrari GTC4Lusso driver over the weekend told us, his neighbour was one of the lucky few to take delivery this year, forcing his own hand to buy one. So, the allure of this esoteric brand is already strong.
What do you get for your money?
For its intended purpose and bragging rights on the weighbridge the A110 is not plush with mod-cons, and it’s the architecture underneath that really shines. However, the Australian Premiere Edition has some tasty extras, with all 60 examples only available in Alpine Blue metallic paint and receiving Brembo bi-material brakes, blue Alpine brake callipers, active-valve sports exhaust, 18-inch Fuchs forged alloy wheels, lightweight Sabelt one-piece buckets seats finished in diamond-stitch leather and microfibre cloth, carbon fibre trim, aluminium pedals, full digital driver’s display, infotainment with navigation (no reversing camera), LED headlights, rear parking sensors and a Focal sound system. There’s also a numbered plaque mounted inside the cabin.
The Pure edition strips away some feature like the Brembo brakes, alloy wheels and active exhaust while the Legende is a half-way house that brings ‘plush’ elements such as electric adjustable seats.
How much does it cost to maintain?
Servicing intervals are every 10,000km/12 months, whichever occurs first, and fixed-price servicing for the first three years is $530 for the first two years and $1260 on the third-year interval. Unlike Renault’s five-year guarantee, the Alpine is covered by a three-year, 100,000km warranty period.
Is it well built?
The A110 sits on an all-aluminium platform that began life as a joint venture with British car maker Caterham. It didn’t work out for them, so Alpine is the beneficiary of a highly technical architecture with bonded riveted extrusions and castings on the chassis and pressed aluminium body panels on the outside.
The transverse engine is mid-mounted behind the driver and with the fuel tank between the front struts, the A110 has a 44:56 weight ratio. And the suspension is a real treat, particularly within the body’s diminutive dimensions: double wishbones all-round with finely calibrated passive dampers and hydraulic bump stops to endure bigger impacts. The setup, which eclipses the common McPherson strut setup, ensures the 205mm front and 235mm rear Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tyres remain perpendicular to the road when cornering, giving a greater patch of contact than a wheel leaning on camber.
It is similar to a Lotus Elise in setup and greater than the Cayman’s McPherson struts.
The lightweight body and double wishbone setup also allow for hollow lightweight anti-roll bars and the final tally on the scales is a 1080kg kerb weight that has an almost 300kg head start on the Porsche.
What are the Standout features?
There are a few things that will certainly appeal to buyers, such as the little-known and exclusive name, and the A110’s complex lightweight architecture that gives it a unique driving experience.
What does it have that others don't?
With only 43 models sold the A110 will be a rare sight on roads, at least for the next 12 months. And that’s a constant talking point we encountered during Targa, being bombarded with questions and surprise that the brand is actually decades old.
The suspension setup within such a small and light frame is also a standout, providing a unique driving experience which can be appreciated at any level.
How practical is it?
For all of its graces, the A110 is barely functional beyond being a wonderful drivers’ car for mindless point A to wherever driving. Shrunken overhangs and a mid-engine layout mean there’s barely space in the boots for more than a handbag and purse – 96-litres in the frunk (front truck) and 100L in the rear. It also lacks features found in just about any new car on sale; there’s only one cup holder and not two, there’s no option for a reversing camera, and there’s not really much more in the way of storage anywhere.
Is it comfortable?
The interior presentation feels special and there’s some verve to the design of the carbon-fibre centre console that houses push-start ignition and gear selector buttons. And the way the Sabelt bucket seats wrap up the driver in sporty diamond-quilt leather adds to the atmosphere. But equally, some parts aren’t strewn together well, and there are some oddities that feel… French.
Some of the plastics are a bit flimsy – lending to weight reduction no doubt – such as the cowling over the dash and around the console. The digital dash is clear and crisp, but it’s also a little cluttered for information and offers no customisation and information that systems such as BMW and Audi do. The infotainment system also looks like it’s been plucked from a Suzuki Swift with the four-box layout and presentation, the cruise control persists with Renault’s clunky switch in the console and the secondary audio controls are invisible behind the steering wheel.
But the seats, despite being lightweight and thin, give tremendous support when shooting along and there are plenty of thoughtful, well-executed elements like a solid aluminium brace plate in the passenger’s footwell, sports mode button on the steering wheel and door handles that manage to be thin, light and race car-like but are well finished and solid to the touch.
Easy in, easy out?
The Alpine sits very low to the road, providing a terrific low centre of gravity which requires crouching and contorting to get inside the cabin. But once inside there is a surprising amount of room all around and tall frames should have no problem finding a good seating position, with a large range of throw on the tilt-and-reach adjustable steering column and good visibility out of the windscreen.
Space and versatility?
With such small boots and barely any room inside it would be hard to plan an epic road trip, but as a fun day sports car, trackday part-timer or entrant to a Targa it is in its element.
What's the engine like?
Tucked up behind the cabin is a 1.8-litre four-cylinder turbocharged engine that produces 185kW at 6000rpm and 320Nm of torque from 2000-5250rpm. The numbers look a little thin compared to what might be expected from a modern six-figure sports car but in reality it’s a feisty combination with the superb low body mass, out-accelerating the Cayman to 100km/h from a standing start in 4.5 seconds – a feat possible by holding the sports mode button down for three seconds and pulling both paddle shifters together to initiate launch mode.
Better than that, it belts out an angry off-beat burble that’s plumbed into the rear bulkhead and hits the back of the head with a rising turbulence until redline. It’s far removed from RenaultSport’s dabbling of coughs and splutters found under the bonnet of the Megane RS, despite being a revision on the same motor with a different turbo which hisses and wheezes loudly with every actuation of the throttle. And for the driver’s added pleasure an air intake set behind the side window responds with an enthusiastic induction growl as the revs pile up.
The response from low in the rev range is equally impressive, leaving nothing short of torquey grunt from around 1800rpm and beginning to become breathless only once high up into 5000s. So deceiving is the speed of the A110 that we quickly – and accidentally – eclipsed the 130km/h speed limit imposed on the Targa tour category on a long open stage into Jamieson, but importantly the pick-up and eagerness is on tap where you can legally use it most.
How much fuel does it consume?
And for all of its lovely noises and grunt this featherweight consumes an average of 6.1L/100km on the official combined cycle.
Is it enjoyable to drive?
There was perhaps no better launching pad for the Alpine brand than on top of the Victorian Alpine-region’s opening Targa High Country stage at Mount Buller. Dappled with slippery spots in the shadows of an early-morning sun, the A110 began its first taste of some of Australia best driving roads, unrestricted.
Entering into a tight twisting forest road on the Warburton stage towards Eildon, it proved its worth as a highly flexible sports car, unafraid to push the limits on roads better suited to small hot hatches than fattening sports cars.
The four-corner double wishbone setup is highly sophisticated but allows for a simpler suspension configuration with relatively soft springs and a fixed damper rate, and, as the tyres keep a better point of contact under lateral load, the body is free to roll and move about without restriction.
As a result, the chassis feels highly communicative, breathing over the road and responding with predictable movement on mid-corner bump. Pitching into a tight left-hander fast and leaving the braking very late, the A110 was quick to point into the corner smoothly and move around on itself with some light lift-off oversteer, entering a completely calm and surefooted slide. There’s no LSD in the back and it doesn’t have the aggressive attitude a limited-slip gives, but the artificial brake-nipping vector control does well to let the rear-end yaw when needed.
As the road opened back into a straight and with the throttle applied, the rear pushed back down on its haunches, loading up with grip and accelerating down some esses to do it all over again.
Depsite this repeated occurrence of switching from left to right and left with a similar attitude, the brakes never feel cooked or the tyres overworked, giving a predictable pedal feedback that’s hard and sharp but with varying degrees of feedback.
And the steering wheel, small as it is in the hands, joins with a thoughtfully calibrated electromechanical power-assisted rack that’s light, fast, accurate and anything but dulled. The lack of interference in the suspension setup to push against the chassis adds to the feedback and brings a clairvoyant line of communication to the front-end.
Behind the steering wheel are the paddle shifters, connected to a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission that fires rapidly up through each gear. But it’s the only form of manual connection to the transmission and being both short and column-mounted the paddles feel inadept when entering the red zone. With the centre console so tight for space it’s hard to see a shift selector joining the cluster, but longer prongs or a steering wheel-mounted setup would feel more cohesive. And, unlike the upshift, there can be a moment of hesitation before the dual-clutch kicks down a gear, leaving a split second in waiting for the gear to kick in.
And the exhaust, while rich and explosive through the mountains, can drone on the highway, even in normal driving mode, highlighting the car has less palatable daily habits than its versatile German rival.
Does it perform as you expect?
But for its intents and purposes, the Alpine A110 is a triumph, excusable for some slightly funny ergonomics and practical decisions where they don’t really matter. Instead, the focus was to produce one of the best and most affordable options in this segment, pushing a highly technical and tightly packaged chassis into a lightweight mid-engine sports car. And importantly, one that’s approachable in its performance by anyone.