Alpine Announces Track Focused Electric Hot Hatch Concept

Alpine has revealed the first of three all-electric sports cars in what it describes as its future Dream Garage generation. The A290_β (Beta) is an electric hot hatch show car that will be called the A290 once it reaches production. The three-seater is deisgned for the track and every day use so it has a central driver’s seat and draws inspiration from motorsports to dial in its performance and styling.

Performance stats haven’t yet been revealed but the A290 Beta is powered by two electric motors at the front. Alpine says the torque vectoring has been ‘fine-tuned’ to control the torque to each wheel and the production car will also have a torque management system.

The show car is 4.05 meters long, 1.85 meters wide and 1.48 meters high, giving an example of the proportions of the production car. Aero styling and cooling are a key part of the exterior design, so the front bumper has large air inlets and the visible battery fans are reminiscent of gaming PC fans. The 20-inch aluminum wheels are said to be a close match to the ones that will be in the final production model with prominent square cut outs. These are paired with purpose-built high-performance Michelin tires.

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Inside, the motorsports inspiration continues with a central driving position and space for two passengers either side. The arrow-shaped dashboard is styled on Formula 1 nose cones and comes out and forward towards the passengers. The dash is minimalistic with additional controls overhead, no screens and a thin head-up display over the steering wheel.

Like the boost button in Genesis’ GV60, the A290 Beta has an overtake button to provide a 10-second power boost. But it can only be activated on a dry track and used again after a 10 second wait. The overtake button is set to feature on Alpine’s full range of upcoming EVs.

It’s just as important to be able to slow down in good time so the A290 will be fitted with high-performance Brembo brakes, the same found in the A110. Unusual for this category, the A290 will also be fitted with a multi-link rear axle.

In addition to the F1 styling inspiration, the A290 is designed to be competitive on the track. It’s got three track modes: Wet, Dry and Full, all offering different driving dynamics to maximize the vehicle’s performance in varying conditions.

During the design process A290 Beta was digitally duplicated so it will race on real-life tracks as well as in simulators or videogames. The production car will closely resemble the A290 Beta on the outside, but we’ll have to wait for the full interior reveal as the concept internals won’t make it into the final model.