It’s certainly been a long time coming, but Renault has officially unveiled its Alpine A110-50 concept at the Monaco Grand Prix. From the start, the French automaker set out to engineer a worthy successor to the original two-door coupe that rocketed around the streets of Europe and took the rally world by storm during the early 1970s.
Striking a contoured and dramatic pose, the Alpine A110-50 concept is anything but dull and features enough visual eye-candy to keep our blood sugar levels dangerously high. Renault’s latest design experiment wears a meticulously crafted suit of carbon fiber and immediately arrests the eyes with a new shade of Alpine Blue bodywork that adorned its predecessors — and became synonymous with the Berlinette — for over 50 years now.
It’s always the little things that matter, though, and Renault’s re-imagined rally masterpiece exhibits a fine level of detail that is sure to place a smile on fans of the beloved original. Details like the front-end’s half-domed headlamps, which provide a technical, if not nostalgic, interpretation of the originals captivating design — complete with full LED yellow lighting, and all — demonstrates the design teams appreciation and understanding of its storied source material.
While Renault has christened its latest concept with the historic Alpine moniker, the visual similarities run deep with another of the French company’s concepts: the seductively sexy, Dezir (pictured right). Of course a quick glance at the Dezir – and to a lesser extent the Alpine A110-50 – and we can’t help but be reminded of a certain Audi supercar we’ve grown quite fond of.
Much like the Italians, we have to hand it to the French: they make being stylish seem effortless. But more than just being an earmarked showpiece with its expressive build, split-wing rear spoiler, and scissor doors, the Alpine A110-50 has been engineered with a clear nod to power and performance.
Sharing the same technical platform as the Megan Trophy, the Alpine A110-50 is powering by Renault’s very own the mid-rear mounted V4Y engine block, a 3.5-liter 24-valve V6 pumping out 400 horsepower. Impressive to say the least, but Renault has yet to release figures regarding top speed, 0-60 times, and the like. However we do know that Renault has managed to distribute an almost ideal front and rear weight ratio with 47.8 percent resting over the front wheels.
As its name suggest, the Renault Alpine A110-50 is merely a concept — which means no information on pricing or availability — but despite the vehicle’s costly carbon fiber frame, we can’t see any other real barriers preventing this French beauty from rolling down the ritzy runway of a Monte Carlo showroom floor in the near future. Here’s hoping it does.
