France’s Alpine planning electric Porsche 911 rival – report

Alpine is resurrecting the A310 nameplate for a Porsche-rivalling sports car as part of its pivot to an all-electric lineup.

The A310 will be one of seven new EVs from the brand by 2030, as the brand sets its sights on global expansion.

Autocar reports it will join the forthcoming all-electric A110 in sitting on Alpine’s new Alpine Performance Platform (APP).

“We want to do a 2+2 sports car, and of course some time in the past we had the A310, so we will bring together these two ideas as a first intention,” said design director Antony Villain.

Electric A110 teaser

“Our work now is to frame the [APP] platform that we’re working on, and the final design will be finished in a year and a half.”

Despite suspending a joint chassis development program with Lotus, Alpine bosses reportedly insist the performance-oriented platform will be as configurable as possible and remain beneficial in terms of development cost.

The A310 and A110 will have a relationship similar to that of the Porsche 911 and 718 Cayman, with the A310 being a compact four-seat sports car that will be “an icon of future sports cars”.

Alpine marketing director Bruce Pillard said: “The A110 is limited in volume because it’s a two-seater, and we know that adding two more seats in a car will make a huge difference.”

Current A110

In addition, Mr Pillard said the A310 will continue to feature the characteristics that have defined Alpine.

“If all our future models are going to be electric, they’re going to be true Alpines. They will have the DNA of agility and lightness,” he said.

“Even if it’s an electric car with a battery inside, you’re going to feel the lightness. That’s very important.”

The original A310 was a rear-engine, rear-wheel drive sports car produced from 1971 to 1984, offering four-cylinder and later V6 power.

The upcoming A310 revival is one part of a bold plan to take Alpine from being a niche brand to a volume seller.

Original A310

Starting in 2024, Alpine will launch the small A290 hatchback based on the Renault 4 and 5’s CMF-BEV platform, followed by what the company is calling the C-segment (i.e. small to medium-sized) Crossover GT.

D-Crossover (mid-sized) and E-Crossover (premium) SUV models are also due in 2027 and 2028. Alpine also intends to pursue Porsche with these US-focussed models which will sit in similar segments to the Cayenne and Macan.

A running prototype vehicle with a hydrogen internal combustion engine is also in the works, based on last year’s Alpenglow concept car.

Alpine hopes breaking into US and Chinese markets will lead to exponential growth, with the company aiming for an operating margin of over 10 per cent and an annual revenue growth rate of 40 per cent in the 2022-2030 period.