This Used Renault Alpine A310 Is A Rear-Engined French Oddity We Can't Help But Lust After

Think of a car with a rear-mounted six-cylinder engine, and the motor that comes to mind will almost certainly be a Porsche 911. However, Porsche’s iconic sports car doesn’t have the monopoly on such a layout, as proven by this: the Renault Alpine A310. Yep, it uses that uncommon choice of rear-engine, rear-wheel drive (albeit with a V6 rather than flat).

Founded in 1955, the Alpine sports and racing car company used Renault engines mounted up back, and in 1973, Renault bought the firm out. One of the cars produced under Renault ownership was the A310, which features a lightweight fibreglass body built around a tubular space frame chassis.

Originally powered by a rear-mounted four-cylinder engine, it switched to the ‘PRV’ 2664cc V6 in 1976. That same six-pot - produced via a joint venture between Peugeot, Renault and Volvo - went on to power the DeLorean DMC-12 in the same rear-mounted configuration. In the early A310s it’s good for 150bhp, a decent output in such a light vehicle.

These cars are now extremely rare; the green example you see pictured here is actually the only one we could find for sale in the UK. It’s up for £22,990, which - considering the rarity and the fact it’s only done 30,000 miles - actually isn’t that bad at all. Sure, it’s a bit quirky, but it’s the kind of quirky we can get behind.