► Pricing, pics, specs for new Alpine A290 hot hatch
► Faster, significantly upgraded Renault 5 electric car
► Full of fun and feel, available to order now from £33k
The Alpine A290 electric hot hatch is available to order in the UK now, priced from an attractively reasonable £33,500. There are five trim levels at launch and two power outputs – so if you want 217bhp rather than the basic 178bhp you’ll need to find another £2500.
Finance pricing looks keen, too, with the entry-level Alpine A290 GT available from £345 a month with a £5,054 deposit (though that is limited to 6000 miles a year, with APR at 2.9 per cent). What’s more, if you order before 4 February 2025, Alpine is throwing in a choice of ‘VIP experiences’ as part of the deal; choose between an A110 track drive, access and hospitality at a number of UK events Alpine is appearing at, or an Alpine F1 tour at the firm’s Formula 1 facility in Enstone.
Check out our Alpine A290 review to see if this quirky little ripper might be for you. Or keep reading for more spec and pricing details.
Where does the Alpine A290 fit into the grand scheme of things?
While the A290 still looks very much like the Renault 5 it’s based on, we assure you there’s a lot more going on under the bodywork.
Unveiled at Le Mans 2024, Alpine’s new A290 has officially arrived and – in the words of Ron Burgundy – it’s Kind Of A Big Deal. The A290 is an all-new car for Alpine in a segment it’s not had a toe in for some time, it’s the brand’s first battery-electric car and the first car of its upcoming ‘Dream Garage’ that includes an Alpine crossover SUV and a new-generation A110.
Let’s talk about that bodywork first…
Were you expecting anything different, given the teasers and the A290β concept? Like the R5, info about this thing has been teased, drip-fed and hinted at for years. So, in the end, the design isn’t really that much of a surprise. Still, the design team – led by VP of design Antony Villain – have put effort into making this feel like an Alpine, not a Renault.
The A290 is 60mm wider than the R5, with more aggressive bumpers and square DRLs designed to look like rally foglamps, complete with cross motifs to echo the tape stretched across headlights. As well as an alloy wheel design that’s pretty much exactly the same as the one seen on the A290β concept, another wheel design is – according to Villain – designed to look like snowflakes. Because Alpine – geddit?
The chunks taken out of the rear doors, too, are meant to be a nod to the A110 – Villain calls it the ‘Alpine Swoosh.’
Colour co-ordination is nice and simple, with a reworked version of the brand’s Alpine Blue. Villain says the new version is ‘an updated version with new pigments that are deeper and stronger. So it’s the same colour, but the effect is much stronger than before – this version will be the colour we use on all future Alpines.’
Grey and black are also available, as is a white colour scheme designed to ape the A290β concept for the A290’s limited-run, 1955-example Premiere Edition.
What about the interior?
Again, quite a lot of R5-ness in here, but the differences are just as noticeable as the exterior. The A290 benefits from the R5’s large digital instrument cluster and central infotainment screen, physical climate controls and slightly retro dashboard design.
But the A290 benefits from bespoke infotainment and instrument graphics (including triangular power and speedometers that raise as they increase, bespoke animations and more) and DNR buttons like an A110 in the centre console.
Upholstery quality has been taken up a notch (over the already-very-nice R5’s materials) to include an attractive dual-tone Nappa leather option, and an optional audio system designed and engineered by French audio specialists Devaliet.
The most noticeable detail about the interior, though, is the steering wheel. Alpine’s engineers tenuously link it to the wheel seen on an F1 car, with details like an ‘OV’-spec overtake button for short e-boost stretches and a blue dial to change the amount of regen easily.
Give me some performance specs!
Well, CAR’s early intel was correct regarding battery size – 52kWh – and where the e-motor’s come from: the Megane E-Tech.
Interestingly, though, Alpine is introducing two power variants here: 178bhp or 217bhp. WLTP driving range is 236 miles for the lower-power model – not brilliant, but not Abarth 500e cack, either – with the more powerful version knocking that back slightly to 226 miles per charge.
The lower power variant can sprint 0-62mph in 7.4 seconds and tops out at 99mph, with the higher power version clocking in at 6.4 seconds before reaching a max speed of 105mph. For reference, a Mini Cooper S Electric takes 6.7sec to reach 62mph, while Abarth’s 500e claims a seven-second sprint.
Both models use a single e-motor on the front axle, and utilise the same reasonably lightweight Ampr Small platform as the R5; Alpine quotes a weight figure of 1479kg. Your charging options are 11kW AC or 100kW DC and, like the R5, the A290 features vehicle-to-load and vehicle-to-grid functionality.
We asked at the reveal in June 2024 whether Alpine would ever do a twin-motor, all-wheel drive model for a higher power output. CEO Philippe Krier smiled and said: ‘not yet.’ In December the same year, Renault unveiled the mad, limited edition Renault 5 Turbo 3E, a wild rear-wheel drive variant with 500bhp…
So it’s the Alpine is a power boost – no clever tech?
You assume wrong, dear reader. This is where the A290 gets interesting, and where you can breathe a sigh of relief.
‘We took the platform and changed everything we could around it,’ says A290 project lead, Charlie Biardeau. ‘If you go back a few decades, [Alpine founder] Jean Rédélé was doing just that. He used to race in a 4CV but changed the engine, added a five-speed gearbox, uprated the suspension and even changed it to have a three-door fibreglass body – and that became the Alpine A106.’
With the A290, an entirely different, all-aluminium front subframe is used compared to the R5, and that 60mm increase in width has been achieved via completely different suspension knuckles and wider wheels. ‘It also features unique suspension with hydraulic bump stops similar the A110,’ says Sovany Ang, Alpine’s product performance VP, ‘as well as new anti-roll bars, Brembo brakes from the A110 with 320mm discs and exclusive tyres from Michelin.’
Brake-by-wire enables Alpine’s engineers ‘to get really natural brake feel, like in an A110,’ ride and handling engineer, Quentin Verheeke, tells CAR – but it will still including strong regenerative braking functionality controlled via that chunky blue dial on the steering wheel (and includes a coasting function). The ‘OV’ button has push-and-hold functionality, effectively acting like a brief Sport mode boost (when not already in Sport) and is designed for – you guessed it, F1 fans – overtaking.
One of the big focuses has been sound, too. The A290 introduces the Alpine Driving Sound – something the brand’s engineers have spent a serious amount of time on to make it feel authentic (and not half-arsed, like Abarth’s). ‘The easy way would have just been to reproduce an engine sound,’ says Alpine CEO Philippe Krief, ‘but this uses noises from the electric motors.’
We’re shown demos of the sound in action as an A290 zips around a test track and note that there are different versions – one that includes a growl and digital whooshing noises combined, and another that’s more muted – and that the noise builds naturally with speed. It even reacts to throttle inputs and grip levels. Not so hard then, is it Abarth?
And that’s not all. Aside from BMW’s ‘drift analyser,’ how many cars can you say challenge you to improve your driving skills on the road and on track? The A290 does. Aside from an Alpine-specific overlay of Renault’s OpenR infotainment, Alpine’s software team have included a huge telematics program that includes a G-meter that includes times when the ABS or traction control have been activated, and a lap timer for track driving.
The coaching section covers everything from the basics of the A290 right up to getting the best drifting angle or using the driver monitoring system to ensure you’re looking where you need to when hunting for an apex. There are even 15 challenges the car sets for you – almost like the driving school in Gran Turismo – that include clocking the fastest 0-62mph time or achieving the shortest braking distance to more calm and considered ones such as achieving the best mile per kWh efficiency figure.
How much is the Alpine A290?
There are four standard specifications of A290 available at launch, plus a limited special edition. Base-spec GT and more luxurious GT Premium use the lower-power 178bhp electric motor, and roll out of the factory with Michelin Pilot Sport EV tyres. GT Performance and top-spec GTS benefit from the more potent 217bhp e-motor and Michelin Pilot Sport 5S rubber. The Premiere Edition pictured above is based on the GTS, adds various blue details and a Driving Pack, and is limited to 1955 examples.
Priced from £33,500, even GT models include a 10.0-inch infotainment system with built-in nav, full LED headlights, 19-inch alloys, heated front seats, heated steering wheel, wireless phone charging and two-tone roof. At £36,000, GT Premium adds two-tone Nappa leather, premium audio, blue brake calipers and different bi-colour roof.
The faster GT Performance is based on the GT, gets red brake calipers, telematics, black detailing and more intricate non-leather interior upholstery, and also costs £36,000. GTS is based on the GT Premium and gains black wheels, telematics, black detailing and lumbar adjustment and is priced from £37,500. The Premiere Edition costs £38,500.
UK order books are open now.