Could Alpine Come to Our Shores?
French automaker Alpine, which is a subsidiary of Renault, could be coming to America.
Don't cue the Neil Diamond yet -- it's not a certainty, especially from a company that at present just builds one sports car in very small numbers.
That said, a report in Forbes suggests that the brand's involvement in Formula One has given it exposure in America and China -- enough that it might find it feasible to sell cars in those markets.
Renault, of course, has tried to crack the U.S. before, but CEO Luca de Meo suggests that perhaps the company should treat Alpine as a niche marque for wealthy buyers instead of chasing volume.
That said, Alpine has three EVs on the way, including a small crossover, a performance hatchback, and an electrified A110. De Meo further said that the company is working on two larger SUVs, set to debut late this decade.
Platforms could come from Renault's alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi or perhaps from Geely, which Renault also works with.
Alpine could also use an IPO to fund its plans, but only after it officially separates itself from Renault, which is planned for 2024.
[Image: Alpine]
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Tim Healey grew up around the auto-parts business and has always had a love for cars — his parents joke his first word was “‘Vette”. Despite this, he wanted to pursue a career in sports writing but he ended up falling semi-accidentally into the automotive-journalism industry, first at Consumer Guide Automotive and later at Web2Carz.com. He also worked as an industry analyst at Mintel Group and freelanced for About.com, CarFax, Vehix.com, High Gear Media, Torque News, FutureCar.com, Cars.com, among others, and of course Vertical Scope sites such as AutoGuide.com, Off-Road.com, and HybridCars.com. He’s an urbanite and as such, doesn’t need a daily driver, but if he had one, it would be compact, sporty, and have a manual transmission.
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I'm not sure they will succeed at this point and time. The best time for this was when Renault owned AMC. I remember reading an article in MT back in the day where Renault was torture testing an Alpine GTA out in the desert in anticipation of a possible North American version. That all got scrapped when Chyrsler bought AMC.
"Renault, of course, has tried to crack the U.S. before..."
They did more than try to crack the U.S. They sold cars here from 1950s, starting with the 4, Dauphine, and Caravelle, through cars like the 12, 16, and 17, and the 5 (the "Le Car"), into the 1980s. Sure, they never sold here in huge numbers, but they had a solid presence.
Please, anything but another friggin' SUV! And with a real transmission, please.
The A110 is so beautiful!! An electric version - oh my.