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Last month, it was revealed that the collaboration between Alpine and Lotus to produce an electric sports car platform had ended. While the partnership ended on a mutual note, this left plans for an all-electric successor to the Alpine A110 in doubt. Fortunately, Renault Group CEO Luca de Meo told Autocar that the French company has decided to create its own electric platform, which will be used to underpin several new EVs from Alpine in the future. Autocar was told that additional details on Alpine's EV plans will be announced at an investor day meeting on June 26.
Considering that this new platform will be built completely from scratch, sharing the underpinnings with other models makes a lot of sense, as it will make the most of the costs required to develop an entirely new platform. As for Alpine's electric sports car, the original plan with Lotus promised a 2026 launch, but the new architecture may see a delay in that timeline.
While speaking to Autocar, de Meo further emphasized the point that Lotus and Alpine's joint collaboration ended in a friendly manner. "There was no friction with the thing because everybody was feeling like this was the best thing," he said. "It doesn’t mean we don’t have opportunities to work together again."
As a refresher, Alpine and Lotus first began their partnership in 2021. The main goal of the collaboration was to jointly develop an electric sports car platform that would underpin new performance EVs from both brands, in order to keep costs lower. However, the partnership between the two companies ended last May, though a specific reason wasn't mentioned. Despite Alpine backing out of the plan, Lotus said it would continue development of its own electric sports car.
As for Alpine, the French automaker says it plans to sell nothing but EVs by the decade's end, and it will be launching at least five new models in the next five years. This includes the sports car successor to the current gas-powered A110, which is currently the only vehicle sold by Alpine. As the brand expands, parent company Renault plans to position it as a premium EV maker to properly rival the likes of Porsche and even Lotus. While Alpine has no presence in the U.S. as of now, it has previously expressed interest in selling its cars stateside.
Would you be interested in Alpine if it came to the U.S.?
Image Credits: Alpine
Report
Jun 19, 2023
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Alpine Still Planning An Electric Sports Car After Backing Out Of Lotus Partnership
The French automaker will develop its own platform instead.
Last month, it was revealed that the collaboration between Alpine and Lotus to produce an electric sports car platform had ended. While the partnership ended on a mutual note, this left plans for an all-electric successor to the Alpine A110 in doubt. Fortunately, Renault Group CEO Luca de Meo told Autocar that the French company has decided to create its own electric platform, which will be used to underpin several new EVs from Alpine in the future. Autocar was told that additional details on Alpine's EV plans will be announced at an investor day meeting on June 26.
Considering that this new platform will be built completely from scratch, sharing the underpinnings with other models makes a lot of sense, as it will make the most of the costs required to develop an entirely new platform. As for Alpine's electric sports car, the original plan with Lotus promised a 2026 launch, but the new architecture may see a delay in that timeline.
While speaking to Autocar, de Meo further emphasized the point that Lotus and Alpine's joint collaboration ended in a friendly manner. "There was no friction with the thing because everybody was feeling like this was the best thing," he said. "It doesn’t mean we don’t have opportunities to work together again."
As a refresher, Alpine and Lotus first began their partnership in 2021. The main goal of the collaboration was to jointly develop an electric sports car platform that would underpin new performance EVs from both brands, in order to keep costs lower. However, the partnership between the two companies ended last May, though a specific reason wasn't mentioned. Despite Alpine backing out of the plan, Lotus said it would continue development of its own electric sports car.
As for Alpine, the French automaker says it plans to sell nothing but EVs by the decade's end, and it will be launching at least five new models in the next five years. This includes the sports car successor to the current gas-powered A110, which is currently the only vehicle sold by Alpine. As the brand expands, parent company Renault plans to position it as a premium EV maker to properly rival the likes of Porsche and even Lotus. While Alpine has no presence in the U.S. as of now, it has previously expressed interest in selling its cars stateside.
Would you be interested in Alpine if it came to the U.S.?
Image Credits: Alpine
