This May Be Renault’s Reborn Alpine-Renault – Should It Be Built? – Mr. Kustom Chicago

Renault’s conceptual homage to the fabled Alpine-Renault A110 sports car apparently won’t officially debut until later this week, but that hasn’t stopped a few publications from leaking an image and some information ahead of schedule.

Renault-DeZir-Concept-front-viewFrench publication MotorSport Magazine, which first broke the images, says you’re looking at the real concept, as does fabled BBC publication TopGear. If true, it looks quite a bit like Renault’s 2010 DeZir concept – which, ironically, we noted bore a vague resemblance to vintage Alpine-Renault sports coupes. This new image appears much like a DeZir, albeit one cranked to eleven. Dramatic wheel flares, preposterously large wings, and gaping air intakes trigger flashbacks to Group 4-prepped A110s. C’est magnifique.

What lurks beneath the skin of la nouvelle Alpine, however, is allegedly wildly different from the original concept. Don’t look for the DeZir’s fancy electric powertrain; according to TopGear, the Alpine concept is built atop the mechanicals of the wild Renaultsport Megane Trophy race car. As such, a 3.5-liter V-6, placed aft of the cabin in keeping with Alpine tradition, could provide about 450 hp to the rear wheels.

Alpine-Renault-A110-front-viewWe’re anxious to learn more about the concept itself – but we’re even more interested in learning exactly what plans Renault has in store for its Alpine brand, which has essentially laid dormant since the discontinuation of the A610 in 1995. Over the past several months, we’ve heard Renault officials insist they’re serious about resurrecting the brand. Rumor has it they’re certainly planning on launching a new sports coupe – perhaps atop a platform shared with Nissan and Daimler – that, could pack a 300-hp punch. Executives have also mulled selling the vehicle in both China and North America to amortize costs. If so, it would be the first Alpine to be officially sold in North America, since plans to sell the GTA in our market in the late 1980s were ultimately scrapped.

For now, it’s a wait-and-see process. The first step, we’re told, is waiting until tomorrow, when more images and details are expected to emerge from Renault

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Original Article: http://wot.motortrend.com/we-hear-this-may-be-renaults-reborn-alpine-renault-should-it-be-built-208735.html#ixzz1vnikduUk