French performance marque Alpine is close to unveiling a concept previewing the first member of its future electric fleet.
The concept is called the A290 Beta, and teaser shots released on Friday confirm it as a hatchback. The production version is due in 2024, and thought to be a tuned version of parent company Renault’s upcoming 5 hatchback inspired by the original 5 of the 1970s, sold in the U.S. as the Le Car.
The A290 Beta concept will make its debut on May 9 at an event in the U.K. to be presented by Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi and design chief Antony Villain.
The concept’s arrival will also mark the start of the next evolution in Alpine’s naming strategy, where the first digit of a three-digit numerical portion of a vehicle’s name signifies the vehicle’s size and positioning, while the remaining two digits signify the vehicle as either a sports model or a lifestyle model. Sports models will use a 10, like the current A110 sports car, while lifestyle models like the upcoming hatch will use a 90, resulting in the A290 name for the production version.
Teaser for Alpine A290 Beta concept debuting on May 9, 2023
Alpine is known to be working on a compact crossover and electric successor to the A110, due around 2025 and 2026, respectively. The A110 successor will use a platform being developed by Lotus for a sports car that will likely end up as an Elise successor. Alpine’s hatch and crossover will use platforms from the Renault Nissan Mitsubishi Alliance.
Alpine has also hinted at two larger crossovers likely sitting in the same segments as the Porsche Macan and Cayenne. These are expected to arrive from 2027 and use platforms from Zhejiang Geely.
These larger crossovers will be critical in expanding sales of Alpine to the U.S. and China, though a launch in those two key markets hasn’t been confirmed.
